Resources

This book represents some of the last writings by Paulo Freire, who has been acclaimed one of the most important educators of the 20th century. Pedagogy of the Heart is filled with Freire's reminiscences of his early life and meditations "under my mango tree." Many of these will be familiar themes to those who have walked with Freire before. For those coming to his work for the first time, Pedagogy of the Heart will open new doors to the interrelations of education and political struggle. Further enhancing the text are substantive notes by Ana Maria Araujo Freire. (From the Publisher)

In this new volume, theologians reflect on sociological methods, explore social theories of the human agent, and offer a theological transformation of sociology. Spanning such developments as local, non-stipendiary ministries, the identification of the roots of church growth, and giving voice to gay and lesbian Christians, this collection of innovative essays provides a fascinating and important dialogue on how the seemingly disparate fields of sociology and theology can illuminate and enrich one other. This is essential reading for anyone concerned with the shifting dynamics of these two disciplines. (From the Publisher)

This sourcebook provides workshop leaders and designers with the information necessary to hone their skills in everything from planning and instructional design to delivery and evaluation. The authors are seasoned workshop veterans who give practical suggestions grounded in both experience and theory. This volume will help professionals navigate the challenges and exploit the potential of distance learning; effectively use technology and the media to enhance their workshops; and negotiate power dynamics in the intensity of the workshop atmosphere. This is the 76th issue of the quarterly journal New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education. For more information on the series, please see the Journals and Periodicals page. (From the Publisher)

Higher education researchers Martin Finkelstein, Robert Seal, and Jack Schuster focus on the changing face of American academe, as women, foreign-born, and minority scholars enter the professorate in large numbers. Considering this trend, the authors argue that the next generation will usher in an era of dramatic changes and that the long-term implications of these changes will be profound. 7 illustrations. (From the Publisher)

Colleges and universities in the United States are experiencing a major shift: while their student bodies change, their faculties remain largely the same--at least in the short run. The student body grows increasingly diverse in terms of ethnicity, economic status, and academic preparedness, with more and more students coming from the groups that have been least-well-served by higher education in the past. Student retention and ultimate success depends, in part, on the ability of professors--most of whom have been teaching for many years--to provide appropriate classroom experiences and learning assistance. Faculty demographics present a start contrast: the professoriate, mostly white and male, will continue to age as the large faculty cohort hired in the 1960s and early 1970s reaches mid- and late career. More than half of all full-time faculty members in 1988 were over forty-five, nearly two-thirds had tenure, and relatively few between the ages of forty-five and sixty anticipated leaving their current position. The faculty members who face the challenges and opportunities of the college classroom in the 1990s are a seasoned, stable, and job-secure group. Happily for students and for institutions, faculty members frequently focus their energies on teaching in their later decades of their careers; to date, institutions seeking to support this crucial refocusing have not had resources or models to draw upon. If senior faculty in their last decades of professional service do, in fact, turn their collective energies to improving teaching and learning, the potential for long-term impact on collegiate education is tremendous. Engaging senior faculty, who control the reward structure, in reflection on how excellent teaching is best supported can fundamentally alter institutional priorities toward a more appropriate balance between teaching and research--and create a better teaching environment. (From the Publisher)

How do the careers and lives of academic couples differ from those of other academics? What advantages and disadvantages do they face, and what problems and opportunities do their increasing numbers present to academic institutions? Sixteen experts address these and many other questions in Academic Couples, offering new research and much vital information. (From the Publisher)

As academic service-learning continues to grow rapidly, practitioners are discovering a pressing need for solid empirical research about learning outcomes. Where's the Learning in Service-Learning? helps define learning expectations, presents data about learning, and links program characteristics with learning outcomes. It is the first book to explore the experience of service-learning as a valid learning activity. (From the Publisher)

These probing essays, factual case studies and critical commentaries by thirty-nine prominent scholars, educators, seminary administrators and church executives together address the emerging issues of the globalization of theological education. What does it mean to minister in a world of both interdependence and polarization? How can leaders be prepared to build up a church able and willing to respond to the challenge of global witness and service? What new ways of teaching and learning can seminaries and congregations develop toward the ultimate goal of faithfully and effectively embracing all of God's creation? (From the Publisher)

Drawing on media studies, literary theory, and the work of psychoanalytical feminist theorist Shoshana Felman, Ellsworth (curriculum and instruction, U. of Wisconsin-Madison) portrays the work of pedagogy as a performance practice. She argues that pedagogy's mode of address - its positioning of teachers and students in relation to one another - is crucial in the success or failure of education efforts. (From the Publisher)

Peter Elbow's widely acclaimed and original theories on the writing process, set forth in Writing Without Teachers and Writing With Power, have earned him a reputation as a leading educational innovator. Now Elbow has drawn together twelve of his essays on the nature of learning and teaching to suggest a comprehensive philosophy of education. At once theoretical and down-to-earth, this collection will appeal not only to teachers, adminitrators and students, but to anyone with a love of learning. Elbow explores the "contraries" in the educational process, in particular his theory that clear thinking can be enhanced by inviting indecision, incoherence, and paradoxical thinking. The essays, written over a period of twenty-five years, are engaged in a single enterprise: to arrive at insights or conclusions about learning and teaching while still doing justice to the "rich messiness" of intellectual inquiry. Drawing his conclusions from his own perplexities as a student and as a teacher, Elbow discusses the value of interdisciplinary teaching, his theory of "cooking" (an interaction of conflicting ideas), the authority relationship in teaching and the value of specifying learning objectives. A full section is devoted to evaluation and feedback, both of students and faculty. Finally, Elbow focuses on the need to move beyond the skepticism of critical thinking to what he calls "methodological belief" -- an ability to embrace more than one point of view. (From the Publisher)