Learning Resources

Abstract: Book Review: Generation X goes to College: An Eye-Opening Accout of TEaching in Postmodern America, by Peter Sacks, Open COurt Publishing Company, 1996. 201 pages. ISBN 0-8126-9314-0

Abstract: Book Review: Managing Diversity: People Skills for a Multicultural Workplac, by Norma Carr-Ruffino. Thomas Executive Press, 1996. 559 pages. ISBN 0-538-84456-6.

Abstract: Reengineering a faculty's pedagogy and academic programs is hard. But it can be done. Subtitles: From experiments to overhaul; What we learned; Making change natural. Pull quotes: "The students became more actively engaged and less bored." "Naturally some students don't like the new pedagogy and resist the changes." "Reengineering change requires no exemptions." "To justify investments in technology, classroom teaching must change."

Abstract: Contends that many planning efforts are unsuccessful because they fail to account for luck, chance, idiosyncrasies, or unplanned conflict. In short, human behavior is unpredictable, and too many plans demand that it be orderly and rational. However, the author asserts that an understanding of chaos theory as applied to human behavior may help planners improve the success rates when attempting to implement strategic change. Keeping this theory in mind, plans should be: short-term and flexible; multifaceted and interactive; sensitive to organizational goals and motivators; and able to receive and interpret feedback appropriately.

Abstract: Book review: Leading with Soul: An Uncommon Journey of Spirit, by Lee Bolman and Terrance Deal. Jossey-Bass, 1995. 195 pages. ISBN 1-55542-707-3

Abstract: Book Review: Campus Architecture: Building in the Groves of Academe, by Richard Dober. Mcgraw-Hill, 1996. 254 pages. ISBN 0-07-017185-6

Abstract: Book review: Presidential Leadership: Making a Difference, by James Fisher and James Koch. ACE/ Oryx Press, 1996. 421 pages. ISBN 1-573656-020-0.

Abstract: Book Review: Crisis in the Academy: Rethink American Higher Education, by Christopher Lucas. St. Martin's Press, 1996. 298 pages. ISBN 1-312-12936-X.

Abstract: Although his reputation for park design is perhaps greater, Frederick Law Olmstead left an indelible mark on campus design and the way we think about campus land use planning. The author outlines five of Olmstead’s basic principles for good design that are still employed today: the campus is an extension of the community in which it exists; buildings should be domestic, not institutional, in scale; student dwellings should approximate those they will inhabit in later life; the quadrangle is too inflexible a design; and the physical campus helps to shape the "tastes, inclinations, and habits" of the students.