Al Shanker Remembered

Like the good teacher he was, Albert Shanker left a little bit of himself with everyone he ever taught or spoke to, and with everyone who ever worked with him or negotiated against him. It was my privilege to work as Mr. Shanker's teaching assistant in 1987 and 1988 at Harvard University, where I was a doctoral student, and he taught me much about what is important in education and in life.

When I heard that Al Shanker died on Saturday, Feb. 22, I felt sympathy for his family, for his many colleagues and friends, and for his staff at the American Federation of Teachers, where he had been president since 1974. ( "The End of an Era," March 5, 1997.) But I also felt sorry for my two sons, ages 9 and 6, who must finish their formal education without Albert Shanker as one of their champions.

A superintendent who interviewed me for a job a few years back noticed that I had listed my work for Al on my r‚sum‚. After the interview, the superintendent leaned forward conspiratorially and said, "Tell me--what's Al Shanker really like." I answered perfunctorily that Al Shanker was a brilliant man, a clear and passionate thinker who could communicate his thoughts eloquently in speech and in writing. I said that he taught me the difference between a principled person (which he was) and an ideologue (which he was not). I told him that Al was the most committed worker for teachers that...