What is the overall appeal and effect of the book "To sir, with Love"?

For me, To Sir, With Love is appealing on two different levels.

On one level, it is the story of a black man trying to make it in a white-dominated society.  Ricardo Braithwaite fails to find a job in his chosen field, electrical engineering, because of strictly racial reasons.  He eventually takes a job as a teacher, in which he must fight the prejudices of his students, their parents and some of his colleagues.  He falls in love with a white woman, which of course leads to more racial tensions. 

In all of these racial struggles, Braithwaite presents himself as a very likable hero.  He is brave, but certainly not super-human.  

To Sir With Love is also a story about a young teacher who struggles to find a way to connect with a difficult group of students.  Since I am a teacher (and one who has struggled with some difficult students!) I found Braithwaite's story to be particularly appealing.  Braithwaite presents some interesting ideas about curriculum, discipline, classroom management, and adolescent psychology.  (It doesn't hurt that I happen to agree with most of his ideas; check out the link below.)