The New Education

How to Revolutionize the University to Prepare Students for a World In Flux

De: Cathy N. Davidson

Narrado por: Carolyn Cook

A leading educational thinker argues that the American university is stuck in the past -- and shows how we can revolutionize it for our era of constant change

Our current system of higher education dates to the period from 1865 to 1925. It was in those decades that the nation's new universities created grades and departments, majors and minors, all in an attempt to prepare young people for a world transformed by the telegraph and the Model T.

As Cathy N. Davidson argues in The New Education, this approach to education is wholly unsuited to the era of the gig economy. From the Ivy League to community colleges, she introduces us to innovators who are remaking college for our own time by emphasizing student-centered learning that values creativity in the face of change above all. The New Education ultimately shows how we can teach students not only to survive but to thrive amid the challenges to come.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"The New Education" is an inspiring, well-researched, and compellingly written manifesto for a revolution in learning and teaching. It is a book for everyone who wants to understand why and how universities need to be reimagined for the twenty-first century--those who have been 'educated' and those who aspire to be. It is the most important book I have read in many years."—Tony Wagner, Harvard University i-lab expert in residence and author of The Global Achievement Gap and Creating Innovators

"Davidson is one of the most thoughtful voices from within academia calling for a more student-centered university. The New Education is a welcome collection of stories detailing how professors, administrators and students are designing paths through higher education that are relevant to our changing culture and society... At her best, Davidson writes in the tradition of Du Bois and Dewey, a pragmatist tradition that puts inquiry first and sees learning through the potential of the full, complex human beings students can become."—Washington Post

"Davidson argues persuasively that student-centered, active learning can transform classrooms and even online courses... [her] enthusiasm and her examples should inspire creativity from a lot more college teachers."—New York Times Book Review

"The fact that Davidson is able to bridge her narrative on the history and future of higher education across a popular and academic audience is a testimony to her skills as a scholar, an educator, and a writer. Davidson knows her stuff, has something to say, and has clearly worked very hard in crafting a book that should be discussed by everyone who cares about higher education... Powerfully argued, beautifully written, and doggedly grounded in research and examples."—Technology & Learning, Inside Higher Education

“It’s Davidson who has a vision for what education could and should be that’s consistent with the traditional values of freedom, opportunity and progress we associate with education.”—John Warner, Chicago Tribune

“I am aware that I cannot do justice to the merits of this book, let alone capture the depths of Davidson’s insights, in a few thousand words, but I do think I can make enough points sufficiently to warrant why readers should commit themselves to examining this volume, sharing it with others, and most importantly help to enact changes in higher education offered in this work.”—Richard Leo Enos, Athenaeum

Great for a higher Ed educator

This book has a lot of interesting background about how we got where we are with college major structure, grading, and rampant standardized testing. It offers a critique of the current system, based on studies. And, it offers some ways to start making changes. Great

Practical Enough / Scholarly Enough

Cathy Davidson goes beyond the mere holistic identification of the current problems with American Higher Education - she promotes some very doable solutions to developing a 21st century workforce that is both educated capable of adjusting to what challenges the future may bring. Educators are tasked with preparing students for the future - a role that is increasingly challenging in a rapidly evolving world. That is why it is so important that we employ methods that will train people to be adaptive - to find answers, collaborate, think, and solve problems rather than pursuing trivia that will not benefit them in the real world.

The book is not too scholarly, which is a big plus. Sometimes scholars write to impress other scholars. This book is readable and her observations/arguments are practical.