In an era when most colleges and universities have become
vocational schools, their improvement measured in terms of cost
reduction or instructional efficiency, the essential values of
higher education are too often overlooked. Students are being
filled with knowledge, but are not learning how to use it wisely,
nor even understanding that it's important to do so.
According to philosopher and educator George Allan, what is most
important about a college education is not what students are taught
but whether they learn the moral practices that determine how they
may best conduct their lives and how they can become responsible
individuals-practices that cannot be taught but can only be learned
in an environment that encourages imaginative play and open-ended
dialogue. The most important thing colleges can offer young people,
claims Allan, is a place to converse: to learn the skills of
cultured intercourse and not just a trade.
Allan argues that the current goal-orientation of America's
colleges and universities has undermined the very nature of higher
education. He shows that while colleges historically may have been
based on a religious sense of mission or on the Enlightenment's
commitment to rational inquiry, today's universities have become
resource centers organized to serve the needs of a diverse customer
base of students. In its commitment to giving students what they
want, this model of higher education not only neglects the
broadening and deepening of minds, it encourages students to
recognize the validity of numerous points of view without ever
learning to interact creatively with them.
Writing with the same inventive openness he encourages for our
colleges, Allan explores the essential nature of education and
seeks to refocus the debate concerning its future. "Rethinking
College Education" engages readers in fundamental issues rarely
broached by the current educational literature, and it challenges
American colleges and universities to reconsider their priorities
before they lose completely the spirit and style that have been the
sources of their importance to the nation.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
