It must be not about unusually bad schools or backward children. The schools in which the experiences described here took place are private schools of th highest standards and reputation. With very few exceptions, the children whose work is described are well above the average in intelligence and are, to all outward appearances, successful, and on their way to good' secondary schools and colleges. Friends and colleagues, who understand what I am trying to say about the harmful effect of today's schooling on the character and intellect of children, and who have visited many more schools than l have, tell me that the schools l have not seen are not a bit better than those I have, and very often are worse. (From How children fail by John Holt, 1965, pp. 9-11)