aims and objectives

Reveals the importance of innovation in American global competitiveness, profiling some of today's most compelling young innovators while explaining how they have succeeded through the unconventional methods of parents, teachers, and mentors.

Presents articles and essays espousing opposing viewpoints on the topic of higher education in the United States, such as what the future of small private colleges might be, and whether or not online education will ever be as trusted as traditional college and university.

Addresses the complex issues of assessment, accountability, and grading and offers practical solutions for educating students in the twenty-first century.

" ... colleges and universities will soon find themselves competing for students with universities from around the world. With the advent of massive open online courses (MOOCS) over the past two years, predictions that higher education will be the next industry to undergo 'disruption' have become more frequent and fervent. Currently a university's reputation relies heavily on the 'four Rs' in which the most elite schools thrive--rankings, research, real estate, and rah! (i.e. sports). But for the majority of students who are not attending these elite institutions, the 'four Rs' offer poor value for the expense of a college education ... details the changes that American higher education will undergo, including the transformation from packaged courses and degrees to truly unbundled course offerings"--Amazon.com.

Two teachers share their methods for helping kids from all walks of life become outstanding students who go on to lead fulfilling, productive lives in adulthood.

Presents a rationale for library mission statements, and features over one hundred examples of effective mission statements, with advice and strategies for libraries on how to develop one of their own.

Examines some of the major education controversies that have arisen since the 1950s, discussing desegregation, funding, reform, school choice, ability grouping, and other topics, argues that most issues come down to a conflict between what is best for the individual and what is good for all students, and offers suggestions for building a consensus on education policy.

"Contentious debates over the benefits-or drawbacks-of a liberal education are as old as America itself. From Benjamin Franklin to the Internet pundits, critics of higher education have attacked its irrelevance and elitism-often calling for more vocational instruction. Thomas Jefferson, by contrast, believed that nurturing a student's capacity for lifelong learning was useful for science and commerce while also being essential for democracy. In this provocative contribution to the disputes, university president Michael S. Roth focuses on important moments and seminal thinkers in America's long-running argument over vocational vs. liberal education. Conflicting streams of thought flow through American intellectual history: W. E. B. Du Bois's humanistic principles of pedagogy for newly emancipated slaves developed in opposition to Booker T. Washington's educational utilitarianism, for example. Jane Addams's emphasis on the cultivation of empathy and John Dewey's calls for education as civic engagement were rejected as impractical by those who aimed to train students for particular economic tasks. Roth explores these arguments (and more), considers the state of higher education today, and concludes with a stirring plea for the kind of education that has, since the founding of the nation, cultivated individual freedom, promulgated civic virtue, and instilled hope for the future"--.