Defying Low Expectations

Name: Defying Low Expectations
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ISBN: 9798899460227

What Jaime Escalante Taught Us About Learning

William A Dembski, Alex Thomas

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English

Inkwell Press
31 January 2026

Educational strategies & policy; Secondary schools; Teaching of a specific subject; Educational: Mathematics & numeracy

Jaime Escalante didn't just teach calculus in East LA; he blew up the lie that poor, minority students can't handle serious academics-and then watched the system quietly bury the evidence. Defying Low Expectations tells the story beyond Stand and Deliver, the 1988 film about Escalante starring Edward James Olmos that became a classroom staple. Here we learn about the immigrant teacher from Bolivia, the maverick principal Henry Gradillas who cleared a path for him, and the forces that dismantled their success once it became too threatening to the status quo. Drawing on fresh interviews, lost online material, and hard data about today's failing schools, Dembski and Thomas show how Escalante created an ecosystem where students did the hard thing-and won big. This isn't nostalgia. It's a blueprint for rescuing American education. Escalante's example exposes low expectations as educational malpractice and shows how disciplined teaching, principled leadership, and moral courage can turn ""throwaway"" American schools into powerhouses of learning.

By: William A Dembski, Alex Thomas
Imprint: Inkwell Press
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm, Spine: 21mm
Weight: 540g
ISBN: 9798899460227
Pages: 406
Publication Date: 31 January 2026
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Reviews for Defying Low Expectations: What Jaime Escalante Taught Us About Learning

""Jaime Escalante exposed one of the most dangerous myths of our time-that inner-city students can't be expected to perform at the highest levels-and because of him, that destructive idea has been shattered forever."" -Edward James Olmos, actor who portrayed Escalante ""Jaime Escalante and those at Garfield High School are the kinds of people movies ought to glorify, and this time [in Stand and Deliver] the movies did."" -President Ronald Reagan ""Throughout his career, Jaime opened the doors of success and higher education for his students one by one and proved that where a person came from did not have to determine how far they could go."" -President Barack Obama