Back to School

Back to School PDF Author: Michael Anthony Rose
Publisher: The New Press
ISBN: 1595587861
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 226

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Book Description
"Shines a light on institutions that are teaching students, young and old, how to rebuild our economy and put America back to work" (President Bill Clinton). It's a statistic that's sure to surprise: Close to forty-five percent of postsecondary students in the United States today did not enroll in college directly out of high school, and many attend only part-time. Following a tradition of self-improvement as old as the Republic, the "nontraditional" college student is becoming the norm. Back to School is the first book to look at the schools that serve a growing population of "second-chancers," exploring what higher education--in the fullest sense of the term--can offer our rapidly changing society and why it is so critical to support the institutions that make it possible for millions of Americans to better their lot in life. In the anecdotal style of his bestselling Possible Lives, Mike Rose crafts rich and moving vignettes of people in tough circumstances who find their way, who get a second . . . or third . . . or even fourth chance, and who, in a surprising number of cases, reinvent themselves as educated, engaged citizens. Rose reminds us that our nation's economic and civic future rests heavily on the health of the institutions that serve millions of everyday people--not simply the top twenty universities listed in U.S. News and World Report--and paints a vivid picture of the community colleges and adult education programs that give so many a shot at reaching their aspirations. "Thoughtful and surprising." --The Washington Post "Inspiring stories of older Americans attending secondary schools." --Kirkus Reviews

Back to School

Back to School PDF Author: Michael Anthony Rose
Publisher: The New Press
ISBN: 1595587861
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 226

Get Book Here

Book Description
"Shines a light on institutions that are teaching students, young and old, how to rebuild our economy and put America back to work" (President Bill Clinton). It's a statistic that's sure to surprise: Close to forty-five percent of postsecondary students in the United States today did not enroll in college directly out of high school, and many attend only part-time. Following a tradition of self-improvement as old as the Republic, the "nontraditional" college student is becoming the norm. Back to School is the first book to look at the schools that serve a growing population of "second-chancers," exploring what higher education--in the fullest sense of the term--can offer our rapidly changing society and why it is so critical to support the institutions that make it possible for millions of Americans to better their lot in life. In the anecdotal style of his bestselling Possible Lives, Mike Rose crafts rich and moving vignettes of people in tough circumstances who find their way, who get a second . . . or third . . . or even fourth chance, and who, in a surprising number of cases, reinvent themselves as educated, engaged citizens. Rose reminds us that our nation's economic and civic future rests heavily on the health of the institutions that serve millions of everyday people--not simply the top twenty universities listed in U.S. News and World Report--and paints a vivid picture of the community colleges and adult education programs that give so many a shot at reaching their aspirations. "Thoughtful and surprising." --The Washington Post "Inspiring stories of older Americans attending secondary schools." --Kirkus Reviews

That College Book

That College Book PDF Author: Timothy Snyder
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781535243551
Category : College student orientation
Languages : en
Pages : 172

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Book Description
In high school, everyone's talking about college. What to do. Where to go. Why it's important. Classes are given on it. Books are written about it. But details get left out. Every year, college graduates learn this the hard way as they step into adulthood. I was one of them. After earning a four-year degree, I went through two of the worst years of my life. Not that my situation is unique. I am a part of a generation that was told to go to college first and sort out the details later. Most of us did. We chased the promise of a big shiny future, and we ended up being chased by the mistakes of our past. That's not to say we completely regretted going. This book isn't a list of privileged millennial complaints. It's a collection of wisdom gained in less than pleasant ways. It's a story of hardship, failure, victory, and perseverance. It's all of the things we wish someone had told us. And it takes place before college, in college, after college, and without college. This is the wild, painful, awkward, hilarious, depressing, & beautiful journey from youth to maturity. This is the college book that no one ever gave us.

Where You Go Is Not Who You'll Be

Where You Go Is Not Who You'll Be PDF Author: Frank Bruni
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
ISBN: 145553269X
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
Read award-winning journalist Frank Bruni's New York Times bestseller: an inspiring manifesto about everything wrong with today's frenzied college admissions process and how to make the most of your college years. Over the last few decades, Americans have turned college admissions into a terrifying and occasionally devastating process, preceded by test prep, tutors, all sorts of stratagems, all kinds of rankings, and a conviction among too many young people that their futures will be determined and their worth established by which schools say yes and which say no. In Where You Go is Not Who You'll Be, Frank Bruni explains why this mindset is wrong, giving students and their parents a new perspective on this brutal, deeply flawed competition and a path out of the anxiety that it provokes. Bruni, a bestselling author and a columnist for the New York Times, shows that the Ivy League has no monopoly on corner offices, governors' mansions, or the most prestigious academic and scientific grants. Through statistics, surveys, and the stories of hugely successful people, he demonstrates that many kinds of colleges serve as ideal springboards. And he illuminates how to make the most of them. What matters in the end are students' efforts in and out of the classroom, not the name on their diploma. Where you go isn't who you'll be. Americans need to hear that--and this indispensable manifesto says it with eloquence and respect for the real promise of higher education.

What's the Point of College?

What's the Point of College? PDF Author: Johann N. Neem
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 1421429896
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
Before we can improve college education, we need to know what it's for. In our current age of reform, there are countless ideas about how to "fix" higher education. But before we can reconceptualize the college experience, we need to remember why we have these institutions in the first place—and what we want from them. In What's the Point of College?, historian Johann N. Neem offers a new way to think about the major questions facing higher education today, from online education to disruptive innovation to how students really learn. As commentators, reformers, and policymakers call for dramatic change and new educational models, this collection of lucid essays asks us to pause and take stock. What is a college education supposed to be? What kinds of institutions and practices will best help us get there? And which virtues must colleges and universities cultivate to sustain their desired ends? During this time of drift, Neem argues, we need to moor our colleges once again to their core purposes. By evaluating reformers' goals in relation to the specific goods that a college should offer to students and society, What's the Point of College? connects public policy to deeper ethical questions. Exploring how we can ensure that America's colleges remain places for intellectual inquiry and reflection, Neem does not just provide answers to the big questions surrounding higher education—he offers readers a guide for how to think about them.

How to College

How to College PDF Author: Andrea Malkin Brenner
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
ISBN: 1250225191
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 173

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Book Description
The first practical guide of its kind that helps students transition smoothly from high school to college The transition from high school—and home—to college can be stressful. Students and parents often arrive on campus unprepared for what college is really like. Academic standards and expectations are different from high school; families aren’t present to serve as “scaffolding” for students; and first-years have to do what they call “adulting.” Nothing in the college admissions process prepares students for these new realities. As a result, first-year college students report higher stress, more mental health issues, and lower completion rates than in the past. In fact, up to one third of first-year college students will not return for their second year—and colleges are reporting an increase in underprepared first-year students. How to College is here to help. Professors Andrea Malkin Brenner and Lara Schwartz guide first-year students and their families through the transition process, during the summer after high school graduation and throughout the school year, preparing students to succeed and thrive as they transition and adapt to college. The book draws on the authors’ experience teaching, writing curricula, and designing programs for thousands of first-year college students over decades.

(Re)Defining the Goal

(Re)Defining the Goal PDF Author: Kevin J. Fleming, Ph.d.
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781532912580
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 222

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Book Description
How is it possible that both university graduates and unfilled job openings are both at record-breaking highs? Our world has changed. New and emerging occupations in every industry now require a combination of academic knowledge and technical ability. With rising education costs, mounting student debt, fierce competition for jobs, and the oversaturation of some academic majors in the workforce, we need to once again guide students towards personality-aligned careers and not just into college. Extensively researched, (Re)Defining the Goal deconstructs the prevalent "one-size-fits-all" education agenda. The author provides a fresh perspective, replicable strategies, and outlines six proven steps to help students secure a competitive advantage in the new economy. Gain a new paradigm and the right resources to help students avoid the pitfalls of unemployment, or underemployment, after graduation.

Top Student, Top School?

Top Student, Top School? PDF Author: Alexandria Walton Radford
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022604095X
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 293

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Book Description
Most of us think that valedictorians can write their own ticket. By reaching the top of their class they have proven their merit, so their next logical step should be to attend the nation’s very best universities. Yet in Top Student, Top School?, Alexandria Walton Radford, of American Institutes for Research, reveals that many valedictorians do not enroll in prestigious institutions. Employing an original five-state study that surveyed nine hundred public high school valedictorians, she sets out to determine when and why valedictorians end up at less selective schools, showing that social class makes all the difference. Radford traces valedictorians’ paths to college and presents damning evidence that high schools do not provide sufficient guidance on crucial factors affecting college selection, such as reputation, financial aid, and even the application process itself. Left in a bewildering environment of seemingly similar options, many students depend on their parents for assistance—and this allows social class to rear its head and have a profound impact on where students attend. Simply put, parents from less affluent backgrounds are far less informed about differences in colleges’ quality, the college application process, and financial aid options, which significantly limits their child’s chances of attending a competitive school, even when their child has already managed to become valedictorian. Top Student, Top School? pinpoints an overlooked yet critical juncture in the education process, one that stands as a barrier to class mobility. By focusing solely on valedictorians, it shows that students’ paths diverge by social class even when they are similarly well-prepared academically, and this divergence is traceable to specific failures by society, failures that we can and should address. Watch an interview of Alexandria Walton Radford discussing her book here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F81c1D1BpY0

Colleges That Change Lives

Colleges That Change Lives PDF Author: Loren Pope
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101221348
Category : Study Aids
Languages : en
Pages : 404

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Book Description
Prospective college students and their parents have been relying on Loren Pope's expertise since 1995, when he published the first edition of this indispensable guide. This new edition profiles 41 colleges—all of which outdo the Ivies and research universities in producing performers, not only among A students but also among those who get Bs and Cs. Contents include: Evaluations of each school's program and "personality" Candid assessments by students, professors, and deans Information on the progress of graduates This new edition not only revisits schools listed in previous volumes to give readers a comprehensive assessment, it also addresses such issues as homeschooling, learning disabilities, and single-sex education.

Success Without College

Success Without College PDF Author: Linda Lee
Publisher: Crown Archetype
ISBN: 0767909321
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 338

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Book Description
If your child seems indecisive about college, don't read the riot act, read this landmark book instead. College is not the only alternative. A New York Times editor and concerned parent tells you why and helps you to find happy alternatives to starting college before your child is ready. As an educated, committed parent, Linda Lee harbored the usual expectation of a prestigious college degree as the illustrious preface to a top-flight career for her child. Some fifty thousand dollars and several disastrous report cards later, Lee recognized that her seemingly rational expectations were proving far-fetched and that her son was simply not ready for college. Moreover, she was shocked to discover that his experience was not the exception but the rule; only 26 percent of students receive a bachelor's degree within five years. Why, then, are parents led to believe that their children must go to college immediately and that it is the right choice for everyone? If not attending college worked for Bill Gates, Harry S. Truman, Thomas Edison, and William Faulkner, why can't it work for your child and what are your alternatives? Success Without College is a groundbreaking book that reveals the surprising facts of why many bright kids are not suited for college (or at least not right after high school). Lee's accessible, knowledgeable style informs parents why this should be more a source of pride than shame by providing profiles of students and parents from around the country and their creative, positive solutions to the college dilemma. With a college education now costing an average of a hundred thousand dollars, maybe it's time for American parents to reconsider: Do you really need college to succeed?

The Real World of College

The Real World of College PDF Author: Wendy Fischman
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262046539
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 406

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Book Description
Why higher education in the United States has lost its way, and how universities and colleges can focus sharply on their core mission. For The Real World of College, Wendy Fischman and Howard Gardner analyzed in-depth interviews with more than 2,000 students, alumni, faculty, administrators, parents, trustees, and others, which were conducted at ten institutions ranging from highly selective liberal arts colleges to less-selective state schools. What they found challenged characterizations in the media: students are not preoccupied by political correctness, free speech, or even the cost of college. They are most concerned about their GPA and their resumes; they see jobs and earning potential as more important than learning. Many say they face mental health challenges, fear that they don’t belong, and feel a deep sense of alienation. Given this daily reality for students, has higher education lost its way? Fischman and Gardner contend that US universities and colleges must focus sharply on their core educational mission. Fischman and Gardner, both recognized authorities on education and learning, argue that higher education in the United States has lost sight of its principal reason for existing: not vocational training, not the provision of campus amenities, but to increase what Fischman and Gardner call “higher education capital”—to help students think well and broadly, express themselves clearly, explore new areas, and be open to possible transformations. Fischman and Gardner offer cogent recommendations for how every college can become a community of learners who are open to change as thinkers, citizens, and human beings.