Professional Resources Books

The authors strive to make this book a very practical tool. They look upon the past to gather valuable insights to better equip the future servant. Having learned valuable lessons from those who have gone before them, the readers will be better prepared to meet the challenges that lay ahead.
Each chapter has three major emphases that are very helpful:
1.Historical context- Each chapter is introduced with a section titled "What in the World?" to introduce the reader to what else was happening in the world in the era being reviewed, beyond the scope of the particular chapter.
2.Frequent Summaries- The authors make frequent use of text boxes to provide a summary of the material being discussed. This is a very useful tool to refer back to in the future.
3.Contemporary relevance- Each chapter concludes with a section labeled "So What? Lessons from the past for 21st Century Christian Education" These sections draw out principles or lessons derived from the particular historical era.
In the final chapter the authors encourage the reader to develop a Personal Philosophy of Ministry divided up into seven categories and to support their view with scripture. The categories include the Role and Nature of the Teacher, Role and Nature of the Learner, Pupose and Goals of the Lesson, and Outcomes Assessment. This will help the servant to apply theory to practice.
The book ends with an Epilogue, which attempts to pull together the lessons learned from this study. It is broken down in seven summarizing points. It has an 8-page textbox titled "So What? Cumulative Lessons from the Past for 21st Century Education" which contains seven points. Among those summarizing points are that Ministry leaders should lead the way in demonstrating servant leadership (point 2), God's Word is preeminent (point3), and that change is necessary (point 7).
I definitely recommend the book as it is a very helpful tool in looking at the history and philosophy of Christian Education. As the authors state "The emphasis of this history book is the future." We will be able to learn from the lessons of the past and apply it to our future ministry.

It is always gratifying to see attention paid to the perennial ideas and ideals, the importance of understanding the events and lessons of history, and to the appreciation of the classics in any educational enterprise. Perhaps more so today, it is cause to celebrate when that attention happens in the context of theological education. An informal survey of courses of study in theological schools will reveal a diminishing opportunity for being introduced in any systematic way to the history and philosophy of educational thought and Christian education.

So it was with some anticipation that this reviewer read Anthony and Benson's volume on the history and philosophy of Christian education. While the organization and coverage of the text offers a traditional Western approach that is recognizable to those who appreciate "old school," sadly, it has little to contribute by way of new insight, interpretation, or challenge to the contemporary reader. The coverage of history and philosophies which impact Christian education extends up to the twentieth century, but ends with a cursory treatment of the very influential impact of existentialism, and almost no treatment of substance of postmodernism, a school of thought that, regardless of what extent one sees as relevant, should nevertheless be dealt with critically by any student of history, philosophy, and education.

This is at best an introductory college-level textbook. The coverage and treatment of the subject at hand is much too simplistic, at times understated to the point of inaccuracy, to allow for deep understanding of the subject. For example, the extent of the reference to the Odyssey is the statement that it is "the account of Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, who makes an arduous journey home from the battlefield" (p. 47). There are too many oversimplifications like, "People worshiped Greek gods more out of fear for how the gods could hurt them than out of a genuine desire to express their appreciation and affection for the gods. They presented offerings more to avoid future punishment than to express heartfelt thanksgiving" (p. 48). The book also suffers from an over reliance on educational, theological, and philosophical dictionaries and general works as well as some puzzling sources like the All Color Book of Greek Mythology (Pattrick, London: Octopus, 1972).

The authors provide what they call "three major emphases" throughout the book. The first is the placing of the historical content under examination into a broader context through the use of a timeline list under the caption "What in the world?" This is a sidebar feature that is somewhat helpful. The second is the use of textboxes (sidebars) that provide an (overly) interpretive summary of the material under discussion. The third feature is a final chapter section labeled "So What?" in which the authors summarize and attempt to apply "principles or lessons" (hence the subtitle) from the material-a sort of whack on the side of the head for those who may have difficulty connecting the dots on their own. Unfortunately, the principles offered are not helpful generally. More often than not they seem disconnected from the content coverage and intended more to reaffirm a predisposed philosophical stance. For example, the "So What?" list for Chapter 1, Hebrew Origins of Christian Education includes, "1. God desires to use people to accomplish His purpose on earth," and "3. Ministry is about relationships." Likewise for Chapter 2, Greek Education and Philosophical Thought, the "So What?" list includes, "1. Christian education must be more than rote memory," "2. The curriculum of Christian education must be fully integrated," and "3. Scope and sequence of Bible-related curriculum must consider basic tenants of human development."

The book has a decidedly conservative evangelical perspective, including a lack of attention to inclusive language (God is always "He"). This work may provide a good introductory text for Christian and parochial high schools or a college religion course. But we'll have to continue to wait for a more critical contemporary review treatment of the history and philosophy of Christian education for advanced programs of study.

A highly informative book that grips your attention once you mange to overlook or get used to the distracting in-text citations.

A highly informative book that grips your attention once you mange to overlook or get used to the distracting in-text citations.

This book offers practical wisdom on how to successfully design and implement a distance learning system. It is written by proven professionals who know what it takes to get a major change initiative completed in the corporate environment. I highly recommend the book!

This book is for those who want to learn more about distance learning, but don't know where to begin. The title of the book says "An Implementation Guide for Trainers and Human Resources Professionals" but this book would be helpful to any manager involved in distance learning, whether it is developing a program or evaluating the feasibility of implementation. Chapters include basic overviews of audio, video and web-based learning, determining if your company is ready and program design & delivery. The book includes some valuable information about the differences between the different methods of distance learning. This is a no-nonsense approach without a lot of fluff, but offers some sensible, solid content and a good introduction to the topic. Recommended.

The book arrived in just a few days, in excellent condition. It was given as a gift, so I am unable to review the actual book.

This fourth updated edition of a classic reflects ongoing changes in technology and business management, providing an important tool for modern offices and home business users alike. From a comprehensive coverage of modern office procedures and Internet resources to advice on conducting meetings and using basic accounting programs, this is packed with practical tips.

Book covers a wide variety of survey topics very well. I underlined a great many thoughts. One thought that occured to me was that I was on my way to doing Organizational Surveys. But at the end was warned "I would be a 'bounder' if I read a few books and started practicing." It seems this book's final conclusion is that you need to join the Union to do surverys, ie. be a phd or working under one. The book was still a great value.

I purchased this 418pp volume in 1998 and recently re-read this book to reacquaint myself with the rich material. What Kraut has done as an editor is to select 35 pertinent papers that discuss Organizational Surveys under three main heading:
1) Purposes and uses.
2) The Survey process.
3) Special applications - such as linking survey results to "hard" figures such as productivity and performance.

The book is packed with sage advice, both academic and practical. For example it counsels researchers to work closely with insiders in order to get the most useful surveys, and it spends many pages discussing the questions of implementing the recommendations and the whole issue of raising employee expectations by even conducting surveys.

But what a lot has occurred in the 10 years since this book was edited. I find on re-reading that several cutting-edge ideas (linking internal results to customer satisfaction measures) are fairly standard now; and of-course the advent of web-based online surveys has had a major effect upon the practicability and style of conducting employee research. Online surveys, with their wonderful capacity to capture open-enders, really enable researchers to glue their quant findings much closer to qualitative styles of research including focus groups (given scant coverage here) and ethnography: the act of observing how the organisation does things. In essence, I don't feel the collection of papers deals quite adequately with the central question: what is it that makes organizational research and surveys different from other kinds of research.

One key difference is the question of culture, and the way sub-units within an organisation may act as distinct and cohesive "tribes" capable of affirming, or subverting the overall objectives of the organisation by applying their sense of values, sense of fairness and sense of direction to their day-to-day involvement. Fascinating stuff - but this volume only discusses such issues in a generic manner.

In short, the publishers might be prompted to consider a new updated edition. This book was state of the art 10 years ago, but its relevance is diminishing. I still give it four stars (just) because of the quality of the writing and the value of its insights - but the book is no longer solid gold. There's rust appearing on the bodywork, and readers will need to find other volumes to accompany this one. That's not a bad approach because the subject-matter has evolved quickly.

I find all Tom lambert's books well written, relevant and practical. This is no exception. If you want to really understand and practise ethical, influencing skills this is the book for you. If power corrupts, influence gets the right things done at the right time. No one who takes leadership seriously should be without this book.

Written in a text-book style, "The Power of Influence" is an educated look at the psychology of persuasion. You will find out how to listen and deal with difficult people and situations, use body language effectively and show empathy, use verbal language to your advantage, and use power effectively. A workbook at the end enables you to practice specific skills.

This book uses numerous examples from the sales profession, but the concepts can be applied to other work environments. It is more a discussion of psychology than an intensive, skill-building handbook for those wanting to develop people skills at work. Although it is a dry, wordy, difficult read, I would recommend it for sales professionals and for the student or teacher interested in the psychology of influence.

For further reading on controlling your own circle of influence, I would highly recommend any of Stephen Covey's inspirational books, such as "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People", "First Things First", and "Principle-Centered Leadership"

I had hoped for a more user-friendly layout. There is good information in this book, however; I was hoping for more of a quick reference guide.

I thought his ideas were fresh and new a cut above what i have been used to. I feel it was a very good reference guide and hope that others will share in my experience with this book.

"The subject of this book, written by a general practitioner and research psychologist, is probably more pertinent today than at any other time in the past. Stress in primary health care professionals is so common that almost every general practice will have had some experience o it first hand. The book is reasonably easy to read and contain extensive analysis and references. It will therefore be particularly useful to readers who have an academic interest in stress related problems... This book will provide a useful...addition to a general practice library."- L. Tapper-Jones, Roath House Surgery

"This book is likely to be useful as an introductory text to health professionals who know little about the field of occupational stress." - Susan Cartwright, UMIST, UK

I have very much enjoyed reading this book by Terry Lankford. I find myself frequently opening this book for clarification on how forecasts and observations are used in real-world aviation/weather situations. Terry provides numerous examples from his years of experience as a weather specialist and flight instructor. His writing style is clear and concise. Obviously, he has a firm grasp of official standards adopted by the FAA, NWS, and WMO, but he presents the information in a manner that is much more enjoyable to read than most manuals on standards from either of these organizations. I highly recommend this well-written book for anyone interested in general meteorology, or for young pilots wishing to learn more about the impact weather will have on their chosen profession.

I did give me some extra info to think about. I would just comment that if you are not at all religious it would be hard to grasp on to. Other that than if can be helpful and give tips that would not ordinally think about. For a compact book it gets to the point of your career.