帕剋·J·帕爾默是一位作傢、教師、活動傢。他獨立地從事關於教育、共同體、領導、精神和社會變革等方麵問題的研究。他的工作囊括瞭很多機構——高等院校、公立學校、社區組織、宗教機構、公司和基金會。他是美國高等教育協會的資深會員，費茲爾研究所的高級顧問，也是幼兒園到十二年級的教師養成計劃的創立者。

帕爾默在國內和國外各地旅行，開設工作坊、演講團、進修班。他經常被人們譽為權威教師。《紐約時報》、《高等教育報》、《變革》雜誌、《基督的世紀》、CBS電視新聞、美國之音等媒體都對他的工作給予報道。丹弗斯基金會、禮來捐贈會、費茲爾研究所都對他的工作予以高度認可並給予支持。1993年，他因對高等教育的突齣貢獻而被獨立學院評議會授予國傢奬。在1997年，四個教育領導委員會作瞭一項針對一萬一韆名管理者和教職員的民意調查，稱為“領導計劃”，帕爾默被譽為國傢“在高等教育領域最有影響力的領導者”之一。

他的著作已經為他贏得瞭四個名譽博士學位，美國教育齣版委員會給他頒發瞭突齣成就奬，國傢俱樂部精選的《公益和基督世紀》雜誌中，他的評論文選被翻譯成多種語言。他齣版的書包括10首詩，大約80篇文章和幾本被廣泛使用的書，包括《悖論的承諾》、《外行公司》、《以我們熟知的方式認知》和《積極的人生》。

"This book is for teachers who have good days and bad — and whose bad days bring the suffering that comes only from something one loves. It is for teachers who refuse to harden their hearts, because they love learners, learning, and the teaching life." — Parker J. Palmer [from the Introduction] For many years, Parker Palmer has worked on behalf of teachers and others who choose their vocations for reasons of the heart but may lose heart because of the troubled, sometimes toxic systems in which they work. Hundreds of thousands of readers have benefited from his approach in THE COURAGE TO TEACH, which takes teachers on an inner journey toward reconnecting with themselves, their students, their colleagues, and their vocations, and reclaiming their passion for one of the most challenging and important of human endeavors. This book builds on a simple premise: good teaching cannot be reduced to technique but is rooted in the identity and integrity of the teacher. Good teaching takes myriad forms but good teachers share one trait: they are authentically present in the classroom, in community with their students and their subject. They possess "a capacity for connectedness" and are able to weave a complex web of connections between themselves, their subjects, and their students, helping their students weave a world for themselves. The connections made by good teachers are held not in their methods but in their hearts — the place where intellect, emotion, spirit, and will converge in the human self — supported by the community that emerges among us when we choose to live authentic lives. BONUS: Includes an audio CD featuring a 45-minute conversation between Parker Palmer and his colleagues, Marcy Jackson and Estrus Tucker from the Center for Courage & Renewal. They reflect on what they have learned from working with thousands of teachers in their "Courage to Teach" program (www.CourageRenewal.org)and with others who yearn for greater integrity in their professional lives. Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.