Why Teach? In Defense of a Real Education (Audible Audio Edition) Mark Edmundson Jones Allen Audible Studios for Bloomsbury Books
Download As PDF : Why Teach? In Defense of a Real Education (Audible Audio Edition) Mark Edmundson Jones Allen Audible Studios for Bloomsbury Books
We rarely discuss college anymore without bringing up its exorbitant price tag. Is there an education bubble? Is a bachelor's degree worth the investment? If you didn't know better, you'd think universities were only available to us on the stock market. What ever happened to the actual human souls who do the teaching and learning these institutions are rumored to promote?
Mark Edmundson, a renowned professor of English at the University of Virginia, has considered the personal meaning of education his whole career. His prose, exacting yet expansive, tough-minded yet optimistic, is that rare breed that reminds us that reading matters after all. He has been writing on this important subject for decades, sometimes in book form and other times in essays that have run in places like Harper's, the New York Times, and the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Here, Edmundson's writings on the subject are collected and eloquently narrated - including several essays that are new and unpublished elsewhere. What they show, collectively, is that higher learning is not some staid old notion but necessary medicine for our troubled modern selves. Edmundson enlivens his topic, putting parents back in the classrooms perhaps inhabited by their children. His carefully chosen words are filled with the wisdom and inspiration that make learning possible. This audiobook is a must-listen for any teacher, or student, and a refreshing reminder to parents.
Why Teach? In Defense of a Real Education (Audible Audio Edition) Mark Edmundson Jones Allen Audible Studios for Bloomsbury Books
I enjoyed Edmundson's Why Read, so I picked this up. That it pertained directly to my profession was also important, but I was a bit disappointed in the collection of platitudes and cliches that much of this book contains. Then, again, it is a great challenge to discuss this topic without falling back onto platitudes and cliches, and Edmundson occasionally comes up with some good points about teaching and why one enters this career. Much of the problem seems to be that society, in general, does not have a high regard for teachers (professors are in another category, which can be better or worse!). Financially, as well as socially, teachers tend to be regarded as lazy (they leave work at 3pm and don't work in the summer!), know-it-alls (how many teachers ever land on juries? Lawyers don't like 'em), and general gadflies. That's okay, some of us are, but it doesn't explain why some teachers endure years of over-work (yes, over-work), and over-supervision: this is what Edmundson tries to do. I am not so sure he succeeds as well as he would like, but, read it; next time you see a teacher with a rather hapless expression on his face, maybe you'll understand just a bit better.Product details
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Why Teach? In Defense of a Real Education (Audible Audio Edition) Mark Edmundson Jones Allen Audible Studios for Bloomsbury Books Reviews
I teach on the college/university level. It's a big place. I have grown, over the past few years, frustrated and angry with many students feeling that they have bought a service and that it is our job to give them A's, no matter if they have earned the A or not. I battle this constantly, not with the administration, but with the mind-set of the student who thinks he/she has paid for an A-producing service and, as a result of buying this service, they will have a piece of paper that says they graduated with a high GPA. Forget whether they learned anything or not. They believe (or they have been convinced) that this piece of paper with a high GPA means something. I somehow felt like a failure, like there was something that I was doing that caused them to act this way. When I read Mark Edmundson's book my heart soared with that feeling of "I am not alone." This thinking is everywhere on campuses...and it is there because we have become profit making organizations (out of necessity) whose primary objective is to please the customer. That is ultimately not fair to the "customer" nor is it fair to the educational institution. But money (high tuition paid by slackers) means survival and we are hard-wired to survive. Mark Edmundson makes us feel, come to know, that we teachers are not alone.
Although this book consists of previously published articles, seeing them together as a collection adds to their impact. Edmundson's emphasis on "real education" - meaning the development of the intellect in order to question, understand and evaluate the importance of what we say and do in our lives - flies in the face of the current economic model being applied to higher education, with it's emphasis on empirical measures of academic "output" (e.g. instructional costs per credit hour) and "efficiency" (online courses, larger classes, fewer faculty, etc.). A "real education" can and often will change your life. A "corporate-model education" does not attempt to change lives or societies, but rather to integrate individuals into existing economic and social structures.
On a side note, for many years I have lived in Medford, Massachusetts, where Edmundson grew up and which he writes about wonderfully. He has indeed come a long way and he has his father, a handful of teachers and coaches, and Medford itself to thank for steering him in the right direction.
In this book, Mark Edmundson defends real education on behalf of all teachers. Real education is the life-changing, mind-altering, value-questioning pursuit that was lost somewhere along the way. The beast has changed in the past 40 years and he shows the evolution, and posits explanations, throughout this book. Some ideas are consistent with his earlier publication, Why Read?, but there is plenty of new material to appreciate. He doesn't blame the student, the institution, or the professor entirely; we all share equal responsibility and have helped contribute to the demise of education. We, as teachers, must do what we can to help shrink the monster, but he addresses both teachers and students in hopes to reignite real education.
In my opinion, the most compelling chapter was his satire on the typical student in contemporary education, "A Word to the New Humanities Professor." You don't need to be new to the game to appreciate the relevance for your own classroom. I particularly like his criticism of group work. It is deeply problematic that we are relinquishing our role as educator, or those meant to inspire change among our students, to the students themselves. There is a great deal to appreciate about this book. I was both encouraged and depressed when I finished it. It's a very casual read, but if you find yourself in a despairing moment, give it a go. You will be reminded of why you began your journey as an educator in the first place.
This should really be titled, "Why Learn?" as it is a testament to the need to develop minds for the continuation of American society. Sounds lofty but when you read the book, you'll understand that our society is really what's at stake. I am in the process of helping my son look for a university to continue his education -- problem is, all over the country I hear that the reason I should send my child to college is so that he may get a job afterward. One after another they gloat over their percentage of after college placement. I'm a realist, I don't want my son to starve, but I also want to know that the reason he's employable is that his education prepared him to think analytically, to write exquisitely, to delve into subject areas to which he's not been previously exposed -- to think! Now that would be something in which I'd be willing to invest!
Why learn? Mark Edmundson will spark or renew your thinking on education with this book.
I enjoyed Edmundson's Why Read, so I picked this up. That it pertained directly to my profession was also important, but I was a bit disappointed in the collection of platitudes and cliches that much of this book contains. Then, again, it is a great challenge to discuss this topic without falling back onto platitudes and cliches, and Edmundson occasionally comes up with some good points about teaching and why one enters this career. Much of the problem seems to be that society, in general, does not have a high regard for teachers (professors are in another category, which can be better or worse!). Financially, as well as socially, teachers tend to be regarded as lazy (they leave work at 3pm and don't work in the summer!), know-it-alls (how many teachers ever land on juries? Lawyers don't like 'em), and general gadflies. That's okay, some of us are, but it doesn't explain why some teachers endure years of over-work (yes, over-work), and over-supervision this is what Edmundson tries to do. I am not so sure he succeeds as well as he would like, but, read it; next time you see a teacher with a rather hapless expression on his face, maybe you'll understand just a bit better.
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