Dr. Chris Edwards

The history and philosophy of science provide a deep well of lessons and analogies for educators. Historically, geniuses are produced by certain recurring historical patterns that, once understood, can be synthesized into practical curricular and professional development guides for teachers and administrators. Drawing on history, philosophy, theoretical physics, neuroscience, and the best scholarship on teacher practice, Teaching Genius: Redefining Education with Lessons from Science and Philosophy presents a new vision for educational reform, one that is shaped by teachers and framed by history. Written by a classroom teacher, Teaching Genius is philosophical, practical, and immediately applicable. Teachers and administrators looking to invigorate their classroom practices or their staffs will find this book indispensable.

"Edwards is right on the mark as he surmises the individual classroom teacher as the most important school-based factor for affecting student performance. Teaching Genius not only lays the groundwork for needed practitioner based educational reform, but provides real-world examples of how to do it."
"In his book Teaching Genius: Redefining Education with Lessons from Science and Philosophy, Chris Edwards contends that ‘[teachers] should not be viewed as individuals who adopt systems, but as professionals who are invited to shape and advance their field.’ This is a radical shift away from top-down reform efforts that place teachers in passive roles. Edwards directs teachers to deepen their content knowledge and experiment with different methodologies, and to then publish their successes, much like university professors do. Edwards’ book places teachers back where they should be in the school-reform movement: empowered problem solvers working to do what is best to improve student learning."
"Edwards’ fascinating book should be required reading for all teachers of history and social studies. His examples reveal how critical connections are to learning and how teachers can pull from a depth of understanding of their content areas to support students’ valuable work in making those connections. Teachers in other disciplines would find Part I important to their teachings, as well; defining teaching as a field and understanding how people learn are vital for any educator who hopes to make a difference with his/​her teaching. An added benefit of reading Teaching Genius is the history itself, and I found myself with a renewed interest in the field due to how well he ‘connected the dots.’ Most importantly, Edwards celebrates with this book the joy of doing academic work, creating critical thinkers, and discovering connections between disciplines. It is just what teaching should be."