I have lots more time to read, tweet and surf than you do!
Here is a review of an Edited book by Goldhaber and Hannaway that looks at a wide variety of human resource issues in education. Everyone who does any teacher hiring, evaluation, or staff development should have this book. It is also essential for policy makers. The bottom line is that we have an outmoded system and that we won’t know what works unless we try the type of alternatives discussed here.
Click here to see my review of this book.
For four decades Jamie McKenzie has been stressing the importance of engaging students in challenges that require original thought as they deal with new technology. This book takes on that challenge directly. It is designed to support teachers and leaders intent on raising a generation of thinkers capable of asking tough questions while generating good ideas. His insight and the resources in this book are ideal for staff development efforts and graduate courses.
Click here to see my review of this book.
The College Board’s Advanced Placement Program has grown significantly since the mid 1990’s as policy makers have added courses for students who are for the most part not ready. In AP: A Critical Examination of the Advanced Placement Program, a new release from The Harvard Education Press, seventeen authors share their research. The main point is that an AP course for an unprepared student is at best a waste of time and resources. It is clear from this work that more effort needs to be directed to earlier grades rather than simply raising expectations at the top.
Click here to see the summary of this book.
Geoff Colvin’s book by this title is cited often by writers in the leadership and education business. This book is based on abundant research and explains what deliberate practice is and how anyone can use it to be better even if they don’t become one of the greats. Like other books I summarize, I encourage you to purchase this one for yourself and/or your organization.
Click here to see the summary of this book.
Denialism: How Irrational Thinking Hinders Scientific Progress, Harms the Planet, and Threatens Our Lives by Michael Specter deals with how large sections of our society are in denial about things that science supports. Included are topics like child immunizations, genetic engineering of our food supply, alternative medicine, and race-based medication. The following quote should give you some idea of what to expect:
“Denialism is not green or religious or anti-intellectual, nor is it confined to utopian dreamers, agrarians, or hippies. It is not right- or left-wing; it is a fear expressed as frequently and with as much fervor by Oxford dons as by bus drivers.”
Although the book is science centered, you don’t have to be a scientist to follow it.
Click here to see the excerpted summary of this book.
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