Make Me!

In this groundbreaking book, Eric Toshalis explores student resistance through a variety of perspectives, arguing that oppositional behaviors can be not only instructive but productive. All too often treated as a matter of compliance, student resistance can also be understood as a form of engagement, as young people confront and negotiate new identities in the classroom environment. The focus of teachers' efforts, Toshalis says, should not be about "managing" adolescents but about learning how to read their behavior and respond to it in developmentally productive, culturally responsive, and democratically enriching ways. Noting that the research literature is scattered across fields, Toshalis draws on four domains of inquiry: theoretical, psychological, political, and pedagogical. The result is a resource that can help teachers address this pervasive classroom challenge in ways that enhance student agency, motivation, engagement, and academic achievement. The coauthor ofUnderstanding Youth: Adolescent Development for Educators (Harvard Education Press, 2006), Toshalis blends accessible explanations of theory and research with vignettes of interactions among educators and students. In Make Me!, Toshalis helps teachers perceive possibility, rather than pathology, in student resistance.
About the Author: Eric Toshalis received his Bachelor of Arts, Teaching Credential, and Master of Education degrees from the University of California, Santa Barbara; a Master of Theological Studies degree from Harvard Divinity School; and a Doctorate in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He is the coauthor, with Michael J. Nakkula, of Understanding Youth: Adolescent Development for Educators (Harvard Education Press, 2006) and its companion Website, Understanding-Youth.com. He is on the faculty of the Teacher Education Department in the Graduate School of Education and Counseling at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon, where he directs the Summer Middle Level/ High School M.A.T Program and teaches courses in adolescent development and classroom management.

For over two decades, Eric has served public education in a variety of roles, including middle and high school teacher, coach, mentor teacher, union president, community activist, teacher educator, curriculum developer, researcher, author, professor, and consultant. His primary focus has been to study and practice what it takes to ensure that students flourish in school, particularly those students who are often marginalized by mainstream practices and contexts. He received the Human Relations Award by Santa Barbara County for his antiracist efforts at his middle school, was recognized as Teacher of the Year by his school district, and was awarded the Certificate of Distinction in Teaching by Harvard College. He consults with educators, nonprofits, and after-school professionals across the country. For more information, please visit EngagingResistance.com.