Resources

During the twentieth century, theological and religious perspectives have been marginalized, if not utterly excluded, in many of our colleges and universities. The essays in this book argue in different ways for the critical, appreciative, inclusion of theological and religious perspectives in higher education. The contributors believe that even in our secular, religiously disestablished era, religion and God continue to occupy an important and dynamic role in personal and social life. If our colleges and universities are to fulfill their higher aspirations of educating whole persons for the real world in all of its diversity and challenge, we need to go bravely against the flow and "give God tenure." (From the Publisher)

With this splendid monograph by Allan Gredalof the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education launches its new series of Green Guides. Each guide will deal with some aspect of teaching and learning in higher education. They will be solidly based on relevant research and theory, but the approach will be pragmatic and applied. The guides will be short, with an emphasis on clear, jargon-free expression, and plentiful examples of how the ideas being discussed relate to real teaching situations faced by Canadian academics. Another feature of the guides is their reasonable price, which is made possible by the generous donation of time by STLHE members in writing, reviewing, editing, and distributing these valuable resources. The idea of Grene Guides originated with our sister organization on the other side of hte world, the Higher Education and Research Development Society of Australasia. HERDSA published its first guide in 1984, and they have now published more htan 20 guides on a wide range of topics related to teaching and learning in higher education. HERDSA has very generously allowed us to use their title for the series, and we will shortly be embarking on a collaborative endeavour to jointly publish some titles in both Canada and Australia. This arrangement has been greatly facilitated by the generous help of Dr. Kym Fraser of Monash University, who chairs the HERDSA publications committee. Other Grene Guides are in the works and will be published shortly. Meanwhile, any readers inspired to make their own proposals for a new guide are invited to contact one of their series editors. (From the Publisher)

In an era in which the teaching enterprise is freighted with tactics, techniques, and methods, M. Robert Gardner guides us back to the spirit of teaching. He writes especially about the dilemmas and challenges of teaching, about how it feels to be trying to teach. A clinical teacher of psychiatry and psychoanalysis for over four decades, Gardner is both enlightening and entertaining in relating his own teacherly struggles, including his efforts to harness the teacher's ever-present furor to teach" and thence to discern and engage his students' "hidden questions." Written in simple but evocative prose, On Trying to Teach is a wonderful companion volume to Self Inquiry (1983). In the earlier work, Gardner explored the play between patient and analyst; now, in the same gracefully self-reflective voice, he turns to the play between student and teacher. Gardner's provocative, often iconoclastic musings will goad teachers of all subjects to reflect anew on their calling, on what exactly it means to teach. Analysts and other clinical readers will take special pleasure in the humane psychoanalytic sensibility that not only infuses Gardner's own teaching, but shapes his approach to the most basic questions about teaching and learning in general. (From the Publisher)

Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner has been acclaimed as the most influential educational theorist since John Dewey. His ideas about intelligence and creativity - explicated in such bestselling books as Frames of Mind and Multiple Intelligences (over 200,000 copies in print combined) - have revolutionized our thinking. In his groundbreaking 1983 book Frames of Mind, Howard Gardner first introduced the theory of multiple intelligences, which posits that intelligence is more than a single property of the human mind. That theory has become widely accepted as one of the seminal ideas of the twentieth century and continues to attract attention all over the world. Now in Intelligence Reframed, Gardner provides a much-needed report on the theory, its evolution and revisions. He offers practical guidance on the educational uses of the theory and responds to the critiques leveled against him. He also introduces two new intelligences (existential intelligence and naturalist intelligence) and argues that the concept of intelligence should be broadened, but not so absurdly that it includes every human virtue and value. Ultimately, argues Gardner, possessing a basic set of seven or eight intelligences is not only a unique trademark of the human species, but also perhaps even a working definition of the species. Gardner also offers provocative ideas about creativity, leadership, and moral excellence, and speculates about the relationship between multiple intelligences and the world of work in the future. (From the Publisher)

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)