Higher Education and the American Dream: Success and Its Discontents

Marvin Lazerson

Published by Central European University Press 2007

Higher Education and the American Dream

Success and Its Discontents

Marvin Lazerson

https://doi.org/10.1515/9786155211911

Overview
Contents

About this book

A readable, cogent explanation of how the U.S. can have the best system of higher education in the world, but also a system that seems to be coming apart at the seams.

Author / Editor information

Lazerson Marvin :

Marvin Lazerson is Professor of Higher Education in the School of Public Policy, Central European University and Professor Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania.

Reviews

Susan Fuhrman:
"Marvin Lazerson’s new book is exactly what is needed: a readable, cogent explanation of how the U.S. can have the best system of higher education in the world, but also a system that seems to be coming apart at the seams.”

Derek Bok:
"Professor Lazerson gives an insightful account of American higher education based on years of study and first-hand experience. He discusses both the problems and the accomplishment of our universities with equal care and thus, succeeds in providing a useful and illuminating analysis.”

David L. Kirp:
"In prose remarkable for its clarity and analysis remarkable for its fair-mindedness, this volume delivers a penetrating, nuanced account of American universities in the twenty-first century. Blessedly without rant or cant, the book tackles topics that range from the rise of the managerial class to the failed attempts to reform practice in the classroom. It’s a smart provocation—a must-read for anyone who cares about where our universities are heading.”

Yehuda Elkana:
"Marvin Lazerson’s magnificent book is not only comprehensive, but it is written from an all-embracing point of view: seeing higher education in America as an expression of the American Dream. This book should be on the reading list of all who want to understand America’s actions, role and image in the world today, with and equal emphasis on their successes and the discontents they create.”

"The unique perspective of this long-term administrator and education historian made Lazerson's memoir particularly compelling. Lazerson acknowledges many of the challenges facing American higher education, especially in the current economic downturn. Perhaps with hard work, including strong systems of truly shared governance, more and more Americans will be able to partake in the American dream Lazerson professes."

"How, asks Marvin Lazerson, can a higher education system that depended so heavily on the dreams of so many millions of Americans have lost its way so completely? His readable and quietly authoritative response to this value-laden question has relevance far beyond the US."

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Table of Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
Introduction: Houses, Automobiles, and Higher Education Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
Part I. The Gospel of Getting Ahead
Chapter 1. Building the dream (and worrying about it) Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	11
Chapter 2. Higher education as vocational education Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	41
Part II. Governance and Managerial Dilemmas
Chapter 3. Who governs higher education? Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	67
Chapter 4. Managerial imperatives Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	95
Part III. The Teaching and Learning Conundrum
Chapter 5. Academic disciplines, research imperatives, and undergraduate learning Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	113
Chapter 6. A revolution in teaching and learning Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	147
Part IV. Making Things Better
Chapter 7. Why is higher education so hard to reform? Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	185
References Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	201
Name Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	213
Subject Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	215

Language: English
Publisher: Central European University Press
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Main content: 231
Keywords: 21st century; Higher Education; United States

eBook

Published: August 10, 2007
ISBN: 9786155211911