"As a substitute teacher in the schools of San Francisco and South San Francisco since some time in the last millennium (and in Boston before that), Tom Gallagher sees kids on their worst behavior five days a week -- that's when business is good. Once a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, where he was affectionately known as Tommy the Commie and sat on the Joint Committee on Education, Gallagher currently holds the line against academic entropy in everything from pre-Kindergarten through 12th Grade, from Physics to Phys Ed. The fundamental stance of Sub: My Years Underground in America's Schools is wry -- it dares raise questions like why the guy who invented middle schools was never prosecuted for crimes against humanity. At the same time, Gallagher finds much of the current national debate on education misplaced: the system works just fine for some, while for others schools are asked to solve problems in children's lives that are far beyond their scope"--Back cover.