You will appreciate not only Cuba's remarkable path to universal literacy but also its relationship to geopolitical, economic and cultural issues. Kate Moody has carefully crafted a work that should be of interest to scholars as well as laymen in both developing and advanced countries. -- Jonathan Showe, Author of Cuba Rising
A very informative and helpful book to everybody who wants to know about the educational system created by the revolutionary government in Cuba since 1959. Although the author recognizes that it isn't the country's story of education, this book is a great synthesis of more than fifty years of efforts, achievements, and problems, mainly presented in commendable terms, but without forgetting the critical aspects. The adaptation of the educational initiatives to the different conjunctures of the socialist society is clearly shown throughout the pages. As a Cuban formed by professors like those the author describes, son of a mother who participated in the literacy campaign of 1961at only 14 years old, and who attended secondary school in the countryside for six years before attending the University of Havana, I can only celebrate this book dedicated to the will of Cuban people during many generations to teach to and learn from other Cuban people, within a free and universal education system. -- Reinaldo Funes Monzote, University of Havana, Cuba
This book tells the fascinating story of how Cuba became a major success story in education by achieving their goal of all citizens becoming literate. With a total commitment from the country's leader, Fidel Castro, and unrelenting passion from citizens throughout urban and rural areas, Cuba moved from a literacy rate of only 25 percent in the early 1950's to 99 percent of Cuban citizens being able to read and write. The descriptions of how the multifaceted solution to Cuba's massive education problem played out over many years are engaging and compelling. As a person who has spent my professional life tackling many educational problems with young children in the United States, Cuba's story provides insight into issues that are important to consider as the United States continues to address the challenge of providing high quality education for all children. -- Susan H. Landry, Director and Founder of the Children's Learning Institute at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Social entrepreneurs and change agents seeking to unleash innovations and equitably accelerate the spread of their benefits will find an abundance of lessons learned in this fascinating account of a nationwide project with extremely limited resources to wipe out illiteracy in a single year. -- Joshua Sparrow, Harvard University
Dr. Kate Moody has provided a detailed and quite fascinating history of Cuba's journey towards literacy for all. Readers can understand the context of the initiative, the structure of the curriculum and the various methods for scaling up the professional development and sustaining such a high rate of literacy across all communities. We can all learn from Dr. Moody's description of Cuba's literacy transformation. -- Elsa Cardenas-Hagan, University of Houston
A must-read for scholars, teachers, students and others interested in the expansion of Cuban education. The book's focus spans from the literacy campaign to early childhood education and preschool to nonformal education in the communities. The culmination of many years of research and travel in Cuba, this book transmits an understanding of the principles that supported Education for All in Cuba. Regina Cortina, Professor of Education, Teachers College, Columbia University and President of the Comparative and International Education Society. -- Regina Cortina, Columbia University
