Just read this book if you are really interested where it started and how it started! I am very happy and honored to have this book as my desk book! It has all the info about the emergence of American colleges and universities! Some dramatic events occured therein! Thanks to the author of the book! he deserves special recognition!

Frederick Rudolph is a master of graceful historical narrative, and this classic account of the development of American higher education should be on the shelf of everyone who teaches in a college or university. From heart-breaking stories of college buildings that burned down before they were completed, to the history of liberal education, to arguments over importance of the extracurriculum, to anecdotes of nineteenth-century professors imported from Germany who found themselves chasing after students with stolen turkeys ("Ach, all dis for two tousand dollars!"), Rudolph will delight you and educate you all at the same time. This is a volume not to be missed.

Rudolph's study of the history of American higher education is considered a premier work in this body of knowledge. It traces the development of the American college and university from the pre-revolution seminary through today's large, multi-line land grant and private instituions and provides insight into the people and events which shaped these institutions and our country. A must for any historian or education scholar.

I have a few of John Bear's books in my study and this book is a terrific publication. If you would like to earn your Education degree via distance learning...this is the book for you. You will find its authors have compiled an excellent resource pointing you in the right direction. Plenty of information is given concerning specific state certification and how you can navigate the need for student teaching via distance learning.

Buy this book if you are serious about earning an education degree!

You can trust Bear to give you acurate, honest information on the schools he covers. This book is specifically written for anyone looking for a degree in the education field. Childhood development, elementary, ect. He covers it all including teaching credentuals, bachelor's degreees, master's degrees, and doctorates. I've bought other distance learning books but it's hard to go through each school looking not only for creditionals you can trust but also for the degree you want. I like the fact that this book only covers the type of degrees I'm interested in. Bear's also has several other distance degree books if education is not your field of study.

Dr. John Bear has once again provided the distance learner with an excellent resource volume. This newest addition to the Bears' Guide collection is a must have for those interested in educational programs via distance learning. Co-authored by Mariah Bear, Tom Head and Thomas Nixon, "Bears' Guide to the Best Education Degrees" profiles over 350 fully accredited distance learning credential and degree programs, ranging from the bachelor's through the doctorate. An entire chapter is devoted to meeting teacher licensing requirements, along with contact information for all fifty states.

As in previous editions, the value and importance of a properly accredited degree is discussed. Since degree mills have become problematic, both in the US and abroad, a degree from a properly accredited school is essential. Accreditation by an agency recognized by the US Dept. of Education, or its foreign equivalent, assures broad utility and recognition of a degree. By profiling only schools with this type of accreditation, Bear provides the distance learner with credible, legitimate and substantive options.

Several specific areas are detailed in terms of degree emphasis and specialization, e.g., administration, educational technology, religious education, library science, special education, distance education, K-12 and early childhood education, curriculum, etc.

Without reservation, this book is recommended for anyone interested in distance learning educational programs, as well as for reference use.

Although I just received the book today, I have scanned through it. The information will be beneficial to my study.
This book was ordered through Finest Books. They indicate in an enclosed letter that they are a new company. I am completely satified with the time frame in which the book was delivered, the packing, and the condition of the book. I feel completely confident that this company is not only reliable, but will benefit others with satisfaction guaranteed.
Thank you Finest Books.

Deborah K.

While the book is full of theory that might discourage someone from reading it, it has an absolutly fantastic practical implacation worth the effort! The second half of this book, "Educational Implications" discusses the Zone of Proximal Development. Learning about this "Zone" plus the discussion regarding how children learn to read and write, tells those of us who really want to help children learn, ways to set-up an environment and activities to do it!!
Don't let the theory scare you away, this is a MUST READ!

This is one of the earliest and still one of the best introductions to socio-historical psychology, the study of how individual human intelligence develops in interaction with people and the environment. In concert with many contemporary approaches in cognitive science today, Lev Vygotsky, A.R. Luria and A.N. Leontiev argued that human intelligence is characteristically mediated through objects and social activity. Humans think through tools. Talking to oneself, for example, is not an irrelevant activity. Putting one's actions into speech is a way of focusing one's consciousness on the problem. This kind of speech is not pointless, but rather a cognitive tool that gives one a greater awareness of one's own actions and makes it easier to modify these actions--a point that Vygotsky proved with research on how children solved problems. Much of human activity involves making use of tools, signs, and activities, the kinetic melodies of action and conceptualization that make us smart, and through which we are able to accomplish the uniquely human feats of complex intellectual action. This is an excellent place to begin studying Vygotsky and activity theory. If you like this you will also like A.R. Luria's *The Making of Mind*, and the classics *The Man With A Shattered World* and *The Mind of a Mnemonist*, the books that inspired Oliver Sacks' writing.

John C. Attig's College In Three Years: Stop Wasting Time & Money is a very practical, sensible, "user friendly" guide to conserving the expenses of a higher education. Offering advice on using advanced placement tests and college-level exams to earn credits without taking courses, as well as Internet correspondence courses and community college courses, College In Three Years also advises shortening a college career by taking extra courses and summer school, instead of a part-time job which will not only reduce one's available time for education but which will also reduce opportunities for financial aid. A highly recommended guide with useful advice even for those who don't have three years in college as their exact maximum goal, College In Three Years is especially recommended and invaluable reading for anyone seeking a college degree despite limited financial resources.

What an excellent topic!! I obtained 2 Bachelors degrees and spent 8 years in college before settling on my current career. As a result, I am still paying on student loans that I could have avoided had I had a reference book like this to refer to. I wish I would have had this book when I was in college! It definitely would have helped. I recommend any high school student or his/her parents read this book when making college plans and that any college student unsure of his/her future also read it. High school guidance counselors would be wise to have this book available for students and parents.

John C. Bean presents a thorough, logical discussion covering issues that (may seem basic) but that I for one, still struggle with - successfully integrating critical thinking writing assignments into my courses.

Bean blends relevant research and studies to explain and justify what works and what fizzles. His text offers strategies and assignments - from short, informal writings to involved research projects. His work considers learning styles - (students and instructors). The author models rich critical thinking and writing - the discourse allows learners to make their own connections and discoveries (while absorbing the valuable resources and information provided) Readers, like students engage in the journey of sense-making.

In sum, this is not just a book of potential exercies - it is a rich resource for instructors grappling with issues of assessment, critiquing, and the fear of grading overload. These topics and more provided me with some wonderful "aha" moments.

It's the "aha"s that spark my spirit of inquiry - and this is what I strive to share with students.

Bean's text is a thoughtful and useful pedagogical "storehouse" of ideas that teachers can use in their classrooms. Not only does the text provide the theory _behind_ collaborative/cooperative approaches to teaching, but it provides such ideas for a wide array of subjects. Anyone who values the teaching of writing--whatever the subject area--will find good value in Bean's text.

HARVARD OBSERVED is a cogent and thought-provoking history that belongs on the shelf of every Harvard alumnus or alumna--and also in the library of anyone who is interested in American higher education. The illustrations are well-chosen; the anecdotes are often surprising; and though one comes away with great respect for Harvard, Bethell's warts-and-all presentation gives this book anything but an institutional feel. The book would be worth buying even if one read nothing but the section on SDS's takeover of University Hall in 1969, which is a model of fairness and careful reportage (the author was obviously on the scene). A splendid book throughout

The author sorts through the major and minor events of Harvard's last hundred years to show how one of the world's great institutions has changed, and been changed by, the twentieth century. Thoroughly researched and written with an emphasis on the telling detail, Harvard Observed should be a treat for anyone with a Harvard connection or an interest in twentieth century history. [Reviewed in galleys]

This is a well written, concise and practical book that can serve as a valuable resource for members of any group, including the family unit. It inspired me and gives me hope that there is a way for people to learn how to come together in groups and solve our problems in a principled, creative process that works for the higher good of all concerned.

Frank Dukes, Marina Piscolish, and John Stephens have successfully collaborated on a book that takes a frank and honest look at what facilitators do in groups and how to do it better. The book is remarkably readable and has instant applicability not only to those of us in the business of mediation; the city administrator and elected official will also find the book extremely useful. I recommend it to my colleagues in the planning profession as a refreshing and rewarding approach to handling large group processes.

Your College Experience: Strategies for Success 4th ed by John N. Gardner and A. Jerome Jewler.
This book is excellent for a first semester college introduction to academic life. It deals with the issues students need to address for academic success such as critical thinking, time management, active learning, learning styles, reading, writing, listening and speaking, test taking, library use, computer use, academic resources, advisors, relationships, diversity, stress management, finances, alcohol, drugs, and sex. The book has six parts: 1. Strategies for success, 2. Plan ahead, 3. Take charge of learning, 4. Hone your skills, 5. Get connected, and 6. Know yourself. There are one to four chapters in each part totaling fourteen chapters, about one per week for a semester. There are exercises and guiding questions for a personal journal at the end of each chapter. A highlight is the interactivity provided by the CD-ROM packaged with each textbook. Each chapter has a self-assessment, has exercises from the book formatted to use on the computer and refers to textbook pages, has additional exercises not in the textbook, quizzes, crossword puzzles, and journal assignments that can be done on the computer. The CD-ROM links to many Internet sites for additional information and self-assessments. The book comes with a free four month subscription to InfoTrac, an online library. This book is good for the visual learner, the CD-ROM is particularly good for the kinesthetic learner, and the discussion exercises are good for the auditory learner. There are also supportive materials for faculty who adopt the book, and the CD-ROM is available on Blackboard and WebCT as online course management tools.

I bought this book my first year of college, I am now a sophomore and STILL using it. I found it so helpful. I even recommended it to friends.

The California Idea fills a big need in the scholarship on higher education: a broad and comparative analysis on how an important state has approached the issues of broadening higher education access. This book is well written, good for both scholars, policymakers, and those generally interested in a public higher education system that has benefited so many Californians.

this book is awesome. It gives you a picture into history by using photographs, timelines and newspaper articles.

History made easy and fun, thats what this book is all about. I hated history when I was in school because the textbooks were boring. Now this book is something completely different. For every month of each year since the beginning of the century it has the highlights of the important events that happened that time. It is like reading an article in the newspaper, giving you the feeling of the era and also providing great pictures. This chronicle is all about pictures. Its structure has a feeling of a magazine or a newspaper.

The whole idea is that you get all the important events of the 20th century in an enjoyable fashion. It covers all aspects of the history like scientific breakthroughs, artistic movements, wars, politics, from all around the world but with a particular emphasis in the US history ( I have also read the Greek version which gives more emphasis in Greek history).

The book is huge and it is more like an encyclopedia rather than a history book. I like to read it before I go to bed and I doubt that any reader will be able to go from cover to cover singlehandedly. It will really strenghten your skills in world history and because of the informal way of covering the events (more like a reporters point of view rather than a professor of history) you will be able to remember a lot after you have read the book. I enjoyed particularly the coverage of the WWII, it is breathtaking, its like reliving the whole thing. I can only imagine the poor people reading in the newspapers of the era the advancement of Hitlers troop across Europe and then the break of war and the losses and the great battles and..... I can go forever.

This book is also a great option for a gift. Believe me the people that you are going to give this book will really appreciate it and will rember you for a long time.

The use of actual newspaper articles in their original format showed the style of the day as well a presenting the news of the day. Photographs and even some contemporary ads are interesting. Reviewed by two teachers, one eleementary and one high school.