The Real Me Is Gonna Be a Shock

Tony Barclay is a retired juvenile corrections probation officer and a
former public-health research associate at the University of Toronto.

This book describes a teacher’s experiences at a “special school”
in Scarborough. Jill Solnicki had taught in collegiate high schools
before taking time off to have her children. Upon resuming her career,
she found herself thrown into a school situation for which her English
degree had in no way prepared her.

Her junior English class could not spell, could barely read, and had
not the slightest inclination to learn the rules of grammar. They could,
however, write poetry, and good poetry at that, filled with passion and
despair. Soon they were writing journals—intensely personal journals
that described a life of violence and hardship almost beyond the
comprehension of a middle-class teacher.

The outrageous language, dress, and behavior of Solnicki’s students
come to life in this book—as do their prejudice, racism, and sexism,
an integral part of their society (and one that Solnicki was unable to
change).

The power of this book derives from the words of the students
themselves. While not for the squeamish, this volume will be treasured
by readers interested in the lives and thoughts of those children who
are failing in our schools. It has much to teach us, if we can bear to
hear it.