The Global Auction : The Broken Promises of Education Jobs and Incomes

In spite of soaring tuition costs, more and more students go to college every year. A bachelor’s degree is now required for entry into a growing number of professions. And some parents begin planning for the expense of sending their kids to college when they’re born. Almost everyone strives to go, but almost no one asks the fundamental question posed by Academically Adrift: are undergraduates really learning anything once they get there?

For a large proportion of students, Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa’s answer to that question is a definitive no. Their extensive research draws on survey responses, transcript data, and, for the first time, the state-of-the-art Collegiate Learning Assessment, a standardized test administered to students in their first semester and then again at the end of their second year. According to their analysis of more than 2,300 undergraduates at twenty-four institutions, 45 percent of these students demonstrate no significant improvement in a range of skills—including critical thinking, complex reasoning, and writing—during their first two years of college. As troubling as their findings are, Arum and Roksa argue that for many faculty and administrators they will come as no surprise—instead, they are the expected result of a student body distracted by socializing or working and an institutional culture that puts undergraduate learning close to the bottom of the priority list.

Academically Adrift holds sobering lessons for students, faculty, administrators, policy makers, and parents—all of whom are implicated in promoting or at least ignoring contemporary campus culture. Higher education faces crises on a number of fronts, but Arum and Roksa’s report that colleges are failing at their most basic mission will demand the attention of us all.

THE BOSTONIANS BY HENRY JAMES

(Cambridge World Classics)

Critical Edition With Complete Unabridged Novel and Special PerfectLink (TM) Technology

ANNOTATED:

* Contains literary critiques, detailed biographies, and detailed historical context

OVERVIEW:

Atypically for Henry James' work, The Bostonians deals with explicitly political themes: feminism and the general role of women in society.  The novel is a bittersweet tragicomedy that centers on Basil Ransom, an unbending political conservative from Mississippi; Olive Chancellor, Ransom's cousin and a zealous Boston feminist; and Verena Tarrant, a protégée of Olive's in the feminist movement. The storyline concerns the contest between Ransom and Olive for Verena's allegiance and affection, though the novel also includes a wide panorama of political activists, newspapermen, and eccentrics.

This Special Critical Edition of The Bostonians (Cambridge World Classics) is the only volume which contains the complete unabridged novel along with three bonus critical and biographical essays which examine, in depth, Henry James' life and literary legacy.

SPECIAL KOBO ENABLED FEATURES:

This edition contains special Kobo eBook enabled features, including interactive table of contents.

The volume also employs PerfectLink (TM) technology which allows Kobo readers to enjoy not only a fully interactive table of contents, but also the ability to click through to each section in the novel.

• Frommer's Chile & Easter Island is the premier guide to the country, with complete coverage of Santiago, Valparaiso, the Carretera Austral, Patagonia, Easter Island, and more.
• Our authors, longtime residents in the region, hit all the highlights, from rugged wilderness preserves to the bustling, colonial capital. They've checked out all the country's best hotels, restaurants, and attractions and offer authoritative, candid reviews that will help you find the choices that suit your tastes and budget.
• You'll travel like a pro with our handy Spanish-language glossary and detailed regional and town maps. Our Suggested Itineraries chapter will help you plan your trip and organize your time, and our new flora and fauna chapter features illustrations of the gorgeous outdoor sights that await you.