Education Books

This book is a gem. Not only does it motivate you to market yourself effectively and put yourself "out there", it gives you all the pertinent tools needed to do just that! It has the ability to contextualise the entire job search process, whilst inspiring you to get on with it - assess your abilities, write your resume, write a supremely convincing cover letter, and nail the interview. It is an incredibly easy read that even has the ability to re-energize you when you get the feeling that it's all going nowhere. The advice and answers to tricky questions afforded in this excellent career book are by far the most practical and useful that I have found. Rob Sullivan makes the job search process seem alot less daunting and even fun! There is much to be gained from Getting Your Foot in the Door When You Don't Have a Leg to Stand On.

I was fortunate to have met Rob Sullivan, and in a forty-five minute seminar, he filled me with enough insight to transform my Monster.com resume from generating 1 call in 6 weeks to 5 calls in 4 days! The passion, enthusiasm, and insight I experienced with him personally, fill the pages of his book, which I found to be extremely valuable in my own job search.

Rob's book is interesting, fun, succinct, and filled with wisdom. I found his book much more relevant and useful to me than "What Color is Your Parachute." I highly recommend "Getting Your Foot in the Door" instead.

What I LOVE about this book is that it's like having your best friend give you a big hug and say, "Don't worry. It's going to be alright. Here's what you need to do."

The case studies are great and really make Rob's points come to life. That, by itself, makes this book different because you can see the difference this approach makes. But don't kid yourself. It takes work. It took me a few weeks just to work through the self-assessment.

If you're looking for a quick fix, magic pill, you aren't likely to find it anywhere. You hold the key to your future. It's up to you to uncover the gold in your background. Thanks to Rob, I'm well on my way.

While this book is particularly valuable for career-changers and entry-level job hunters, I'd recommend this book to anyone.

Every time I pick up this book I am mystified as to why it hasn't found a broader audience. Yet, perhaps it's because, as Sullivan says in the intro, "you won't find shortcuts or easy answers". Unlike the narrow, often-unsatisfactory assessments that abound on the web or in career centers (interest inventories, personality typings, etc.), Sullivan's approach requires a greater level of responsibility and engagement on the part of the reader. But those willing to put in the time will find a bonanza of sound guidance to help them identify and credibly market their strengths, and hold onto their saddles while riding the interview circuit.

Solid training in advertising plus real world experience (at ad-world giant, Leo Burnett, and as a VP and Senior consultant for an executive recruiting firm) equip Sullivan with the means to define and craft the job search in marketing terms, as well as plenty of insider knowledge of interviewing techniques. Moreover, these recommendations are market-tested: Sullivan suffered through more than 80 interviews before writing the book and leveraging its methods to attain career success.

Sullivan's comparison of the job hunt to a product launch, with potential employer as consumer, orients the job seeker early on toward a realistic and research-driven self-assessment. Subsequent chapters prod the reader through the process of harvesting and quantifying details and variously combining the elements into persuasive, job-specific resumes and covers.

With well-selected quotes, honest field reports and a long, quirky bibliography, Sullivan reveals his humanity-a creative counterbalance to the book's stolid core. Scattered with gems such as the recommendation to keep a work journal of your ideas and contributions, and advice on how to handle time gaps, lateral moves and backward steps, Getting Your Foot in the Door is well-worth its modest price.

Rob's book is an easy read, and has good insights into how companies approach the recruitment process. It helped me create a very focused resume. I also liked the interview tips. A very concise and useful book.

Abrams, accomplished scholar and critic, has created a monument for himself and the best, most reliable, and concise glossary of literary terms. Opening up the recent trends, but not as trends, as developments from within established scholarship and literary science. This glossary is special, with a good index of terms, one for authors, and dense, usable, clearly written articles with further reading, its form is unchanged since it first appeared in 1957. The 8th edition I purchased opens with the Absurd and closes with Wit, Humor, and the Comic. The articles are articles, not just key terms defined, but developments traced and contextualized. This is no replacement for an encyclopedia of literature or an Oxford Companion, but a vital tool next to these. None of us can keep every term in mind, and this is a serious book to help our feeble minds, for which we should be grateful and which delivers bang for the buck.

Every student of literature should have their own copy of this book. Non-students would get a lot out of this too. And while the price might appear excessive, I think in the long-term this book is a worthwhile investment. What makes this guide of literary terms different from others, is its comprehensiveness. Abrams goes into great detail on the important terms that one comes across most often in literature. There is information on theories and movements in criticism and terms such as modernism and post modernism, are clearly defined. there is also material on symbolism, metaphor and other figures of speech and so on. A Glossary of Literary Terms, now in its 8th edition, is written in a lucid style, and is a must buy for anyone who wants to expand their literary horizons. Recommended. 5 stars.

Abrams supplies very nicely written explanations of many terms you are likely to come across in literature, or more specifically, in literary studies. If you have puzzled over an "objective correlative", then he explains that it wasn't due to TS Eliot, as many believe, but to Allston. Though Eliot was the one responsible for popularising the term. Or, if you want to use "doggerel" properly when deconstructing some Bukowski poem, perhaps check Abrams first.

This is a very well-researched encyclopedia covering almost any literary term that comes to mind. Try it, look up the term as if using a dictionary and one finds a clearly written paragraph, if not essay, that explains it all. It also provides links that can point the reader in different directions. In the event of literary jargon overload, there is no better treatment currently available.

As a student, this is an essential reference for me, but it is also something that I would want to keep forever as I think it would be very difficult to find such a useful, interesting and intellectually credible/incredible guide to literary terms. As a future teacher I look forward to using this book for many years to come.

The reader who complains that the 8th edition is radically different from previous editions with respect to the definitions of literary terms such as sonnet and ode is entirely mistaken. The entries on these and other terms are either unchanged from earlier editions or improved and updated. Moreover, a number of new terms have been added.

This book has many great ideas! It is very simple and to the point. YOu can turn around and use these lessons tomorrow.

I wish every teacher in America could teach reading this way- we would have classrooms full of kids who LOVE to read instead of kids who get DRILLED to death with phonics and word attack skills.... phonics is important but learning to choose appropriate books and LOVING them will create LIFE LONG readers... this author knows that and shares her thoughts in a fabulous way :)

We just finished a Book Study @ school using this book! We all thought her suggestions were great (especially the one about not ONLY using running records & DRA levels to "label" readers) but using individual conferencing also.
Mini Lesson Ideas abound! Specifics are included throughout! A must-have in your personal/professional library for ANY Elementary School Reading Teacher!

Mrs. Collins gives you a classroom teachers perspective on guiding yourself and your students down a path to discovering reading, readers and the step readers undergo to comprehend what they read. This is an easy read because Mrs. Collins narratives transforms you from the pages of the book to front and center in your classroom, working with your students.

This is an excellent source to guide teachers on how to teach Reading Workshop. It gives dialogue on mini lessons and ideas of how to set up your room. It is a must read for Reading Workshop teachers. It is a down to the minutes guide of what to do.

I bought this for help with my 6.5-year-old since he finally has homework and has been giving us a hard time. Its written for an older child to use as a guide, so wasn't all that helpful at this stage. Maybe in a few years it will be, dunno.

Very good book. Helps with getting kids to do their homework. It is a very good reference book. We have used it alot.

My 11 year old son rolled his eyes when I handed him this book. I came back a half an hour later and he had finished it! He was so excited and told me so many things on how he can do his homework better. He said it was very funny also. He learned a lot and really enjoyed the book!

You know the phrase, "A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down." Well, this book gives a spoonful of laughter to help the homework "go down" without "throwing up." The clever use of artwork and text really gets kids involved in getting the job done instead of spending so much time complaining. There are many practical ideas and they are presented in a highly motivational way. I suggest reading it with children and discussing it rather than just handing them the book.

Nobody likes homework these days. I can say not even I do. Well the book I read was How to Do Your Homework Without Throwing Up by Trevor Romian. The book was all about homework obviously, it also explains why it's good for you, the purpose of homework, and why it helps us in school. It also explains to you the emotions and feelings you might get when you're doing your homework. People might get sad, confused, frustrated etc. Then you have to think they didn't come up with homework just to bug us.

I like this book because it's exciting and it's something I'm interested in. It's easy to connect in a way, because at times when I'm doing my homework I do get confused and think that homework is there for no reason and as your reading the book you can compare yourself to the book in several ways. I would recommend this book to people who like funny books but also books that you can connect to. If you like books that teach you a lesson in life, and what homework is good for, read this one!

Several years ago my daughter and I saw this book on Between the Lions. We instantly fell in love with it. I missed the title and author. I've been looking for it for years. I finally found it! My daughter is now 6. She still loves it. I don't travel much, but we have family far away and are preparing her for her first extended stay with grandma. This book is perfect for reassuring her. There are books that I hope to give my daughter so that she will share with her children many years from now. This book is definitely one of them. This books portrays all the sentiments of what I would like to do for my daughter

This is a great bedtime story in general, but it is even more applicable for those moms who travel for work and want to reassure their little ones that they will ALWAYS come home to them. (e.g. via airplane, riding a leopard, the space shuttle, etc) Wonderful illustrations! Also highly recommend her other book "I love you Stinky Face".

Kinda have to slow down reading it to my son as the pictures are so intricate and he likes to see every aspect of them, but a great story.

My granddaughter has chosen this as her second favorite book next to the original Stinky Face book..... as always it asks questions that are probably on the minds of children with whimsy answers that are reasurring... lovely pictures too!

Like other reviewers, we have two copies. One comes with me in my suitcase so I can read bedtime stories and the other one stays home so my sons can read along.

The authors of "I'll Miss You Too" offer terrific perspectives and invaluable advice to help both parents and college-bound students navigate this turbulent passage. Too many parents and students are ill-prepared for the emotional turmoil that can begin to overwhelm both parent and student. My husband,son and I were caught off-guard by what we later learned was typical--our son departed for college with high expectations, but soon encountered significant adjustment challenges--trials that impacted his academic record and caused great distress to all. More recently, when our daughter was facing the same transition, we no longer had to make it alone and unprepared. "I'll Miss You Too" was there to guide us and offer support to our entire family. Happily, our daughter successfully completed her freshman year, thanks to this very savvy and to-the-point book!

This book was wonderfully insightful. As a single parent with a beautiful intelligent young girl I had many questions that were eloquently answered by the suggestions in this book. There are not many books out there that offer the point of view that this one does. It helped me immensely. It helped bring me and my daughter closer and aided in the confrontation that was inevitable because it eliminated any aggressive behavior due to fear. It brought to my attention the questions that you forget to ask or are unprepared to answer. This book was a great communication guide for me and my daughter to open the doors of what may be expected in this difficult but necessary transition. I am confident of the authenticity of this book and how the advice given really will pertain to your experience with your loved one. Every parent wants to be as prepared as possible in lives huge alteration's for me it was relieving to have material such as these book to make the inevitable progression of a youths education a smooth and healthy one. This book is a brilliant example of how the skills of parenthood have excelled.

Best book I've ever read! Most insightful book - every single parent and child should read this prior to college! I am my parents only daughter, so going away to college was tough on my mom and my dad. I only wish there was a book like this out when I had graduated years back. My own mom cried for a good 4 days when I left and then gave me guilt trips and we fought all the time on the phone for no reason (or that was what i thought of then) - her little baby was growing up and I wish she read that book because all I wanted was for her to treat me like an adult, all I wanted was alot of things, things that I thought couldnt be explained, but after reading this book - it makes sense now, everything makes sense. This book can be applied to any kind of person going to any school, whether it is a large public school, or a small private school, or a state school. The point of the matter is that leaving home and entering a new world of adulthood when there is very little transition is hard. Hard for the parents and hard for the children. My little cousin is going to off to college this fall to a public state school half way across the country. I gave this book to my aunt and cousin to read - quote from my cousin "i cant wait until college and to learn how to deal with my parents FINALLY, I read it in one sitting". I sat around the kitchen table with my family discussing how profound this book actually is,,, and how it can actually change your life. I can't wait for a sequel!

Petty thin on content. Quite a bit less than what I expected. Oh, well...

There is a great line in this book; at a moment of despair, Steffany says `I was one with the car.' It's great because no adult would ever write that; we tend to filter ourselves. This sounds like a kid, dealing with the real emotions of leaving home.

There is so much literature about the students leaving, but so little on how the parent/child relationship is effected. Margo has done a wonderful job of honestly addressing the real issues involved when your child goes off to college.

This book will get you from Griffiths' Intro to QM to Peskin & Schroeder's Quantum Field Theory. Guaranteed.

But don't buy it.

Seriously. The book was published in 1987 and a new edition is coming out this summer, in time, presumably, for the fall term. Wait for that one (neutrinos will actually have mass in this edition).

This book is a marvelous introduction to the subject, suitable for undergraduates. Nothing important is left out, the explanations are clear, the problems very illuminating, the text carefully proofread and almost error-free. I highly recommend this book to anyone with a basic undergraduate-level background in physics and math who wants to learn the essence of the subject. I'm not surprised a paperback edition is finally coming out: the demand must be very large.

Seriously, DO YOURSELF A FAVOR, BUY THIS BOOK NOW.

I find it hard to describe to you in words how much I love this book. I am just speechless! This book will take you by the hand and spoon feed you all the important concepts and calculation steps. If you are thinking of pursuing a high energy physics and trying to find the very first book to read on this subject, Griffiths is THE ONE.

Reading QFT books before this book is in my opinion a NO-GO. Trust me from someone that has been there! You lose insight immediately and get taken down hard by the unfamiliar math. Griffiths knows how to explain things and always keeps in close contact with the actual physics. You will never lose motivation / insights into what's going on.

Take my word for it. BUY THIS BOOK NOW! You will save hundreds of hours invested on other books that claim to be "good". There are none of this kind.

After Griffiths, proceed to Ryder's QFT, and then Peskins. Then and only then will you finally see the light of the day. There are not other routes to the promised land.

David Griffiths' texts are indispensable for any beginner, and are used to "translate" more advanced texts. I used his "Quantum Mechanics" to fill in the gaps at the advanced graduate level, and his "Electrodynamics" was essential to understanding Jackson. I'm sorry that I waited so long to purchase his "Elementary Particles".

This book contains all the background that professors expect you to have already been exposed to: particle classification schemes, the November Revolution, relativistic kinematics, and fundamental force overviews. Griffiths then goes on to discuss Feynman rules, QED, QCD, electroweak and gauge theories. Griffiths also works out some essential problems, like muon decay, that you will want to see done, but I think it is done better by Lahiri and Pal (that, however, is a field theory book, which might be more advanced than is necessary to some people in particle physics).

This is a great text for anyone starting out in particle physics and for anyone who needs to review the fundamentals. My only bone with Griffiths is that sometimes more of the work is left to the reader than is appropriate (those problems worked out in gory detail are a godsend when you genuinely aren't getting the point).

This is the perfect introduction for any student learning about particle physics, the Standard Model, or Quantum Field Theory. It introduces Feynman calculus very well, although anyone planning to continue will need Peskin & Schroeder's book as well for the details not introduced here. This book contains an excellent appendix with all formulae and rules needed for even an advanced researcher.

all of my rocket scientist friends (literally rocket scientists!) say this is the best, bar none, intro to Aero book on the planet.

This is a very good read, for an engineering textbook. It uses a rare combination of technical and historical explanations that holds the reader's interest enough to effectively provide him/her with the basic concepts of the subject it teaches.

This book is definitely for serious aero engineering students. Very in-depth, very detailed. Don't expect light material for those who are with no background in some physics, statics and dynamics. Wish it had more examples for working on to better understand concepts, and more illustrations. Interesting book nonetheless.

5 Stars.

Introduction to Flight, by John D. Anderson, is the ultimate introduction to flight mechanics and aircraft performance for engineers. Much of the content is also applicable to pilots, although some may find the math to be excessive at some points.

Anderson's writing reflects an excellent grasp of the subject matter, as well as an obvious talent for teaching complex content to those new to the field. Whether you're using this book as a primary or secondary text, for self-instruction, or as a professional reference, you'll find it up to the task.

Also recommended are Dr. Anderson's other titles, including:

- Fundamentals of Aerodynamics

- Modern Compressible Flow with a Historical Perspective

- Introduction to Computational Fluid Dynamics

"Introduction to Flight" is an excellent book on the fundamentals of aerodynamics, and the history of flight. The book gives a comprehensive coverage of a wide range of topics including aerodynamics, aircraft design, aircraft control, propulsion systems, supersonic and hypersonic flight as well as structures and materials.

The author did a good job of taking the otherwise complex subject of flight into a clearly explained and illustrated subject making it interesting and easy to follow by anyone with a high school level of knowledge of physics and mathematics. The book is well written with easy to follow explanations and worked examples. The reader will find the book simple to understand due to the author's generous use of diagrams and graphs.

The book is recommended reading for aeronautical engineering students, flight enthusiasts and pilots.

I ordered the Junie B. books for my granddaughter. She loves them! I personally have never read them but I can let you know that at 6 years old and having this interest in reading speaks for itself.

Therefore, I recommend this series.

I bought the first, second and third boxed sets of Junie B Jones books for my granddaughter, who is 5. She can read them, but also likes for her mom to read them to her at night before she goes to sleep. They are funny, interesting and just a whole lot of fun for one so young!!

i purchased this set for my granddaughter. she loves this series and was thrilled to get this.

When my two granddaughters, ages 6 & 7, showed me how excited they were for these books, I was glad to get them for Christmas. Anybody that excited about reading made it a pleasure to buy them.

I bought this set for my granddaughter for Christmas and am already aware that she really enjoys these books. I imagine she will want any continuation of this series.

Jane Vella, in her work Learning to Listen Learning to Teach: The Power of Dialogue in Educating Adults, presents 10 issues for effective teaching. Due to the brevity of this critical review, in order to provide depth of content three issues are addressed: needs assessment, safety, and sound relationships.

Needs Assessment

With needs assessment, Vella states regarding her philosophy, "They [learners] will vote with their feet if the course does not meet their needs. They will simply walk out. As a teacher, I need to discover what they already know and what they think they need or want to know...when adult learners are bored or indifferent, it means their themes have been neglected in the design of the course" (p. 6).

In response to the philosophy of Vella's needs assessment, first she makes very good points in that professors can often neglect to present relevant content students are interested in, and her procedure of contacting learners prior to the first session of a course, to investigate the learning objectives of students, is a good one--and one that could improve course design.

The problem with Vella's model is that it assumes learners (or potential learners) always know what it is they most want to know, or need to know. This simply is not the case. It is very possible there are areas of knowledge the teacher is aware of--that students would want to learn--but do not even know exist (this is especially probable when the teacher is an expert in the content area to be taught).
For example, in one doctoral level course in pedagogy, students were asked what they wished to learn over the course's term. Consequently, students volunteered their suggestions for content, such that they believe would be most helpful in their teaching professions. However, throughout the course the professor offhand mentioned a pedagogy related discipline of "instructional design" which dealt in course design, and which turned out to be significantly more helpful for students than the agenda they has chosen to set for the course. Being that the course was nearing its end, there was no time to investigate this topic--subject matter the professor would have taught initially if the students "knew" that is what they wanted to know, and suggested it.

Another problem with Vella's process of needs assessment is that she assumes that if information is helpful for students, they are always going to be passionate about the information. This is too is inaccurate. For example, doctoral students preparing to write a dissertation on a topic that interests them must be taught significant amounts of content in statistics to achieve their research goals, though the topic of statistic may be the epitome of tediousness for the students.

Further, though it may be true that students will "vote with their feet" or walk out on a course if it does not meet the needs of the students, Vella misidentifies needs as student enjoyment with course content. Though there is sometimes room in education for a professor to tailor course material to the likings of students, this is not always so for--to site one example--academic programs have required courses that are uninteresting but provide a necessary background to equip learners to understand what they need later: a dry intro to psychology course, or a course on psychotherapy theory (which may be uninteresting to students), provides a necessary backdrop before students can be taught more interesting "hands-on" counseling techniques in a later course. Likewise, Vella neglects the idea that for the accreditation of academic programs learners may need to learn subject matter that does not interest them, in order to obtain a degree. English majors need to take collegiate math and a foreign language to earn a Bachelors degree, for example.

Safety

Vella considers safety as an important characteristic for creating an effective learning environment. Though this may or may not be true, it is interesting what Vella perceives to be synonymous with the concept of "safety." For example, at one point it is written "the design of learning tasks, the atmosphere in the room, and the very design of small groups and materials convey to the adult learners that this experience will work for them. The context is safe." Present here is a convolution, for the issues of whether the materials and content of the course will "work for" the learners has nothing to do with safety.

Vella continues on to state a learner's confidence in his/her instructor's knowledge and competence helps the learner to feel safe, stating that students must feel "safe and confident in their teacher" (p. 9).. However, I cannot see why this is necessarily true. First, a teacher's competency does not seem to be a "safety" issue: If the learner is in some situation where a teacher's incompetence could cause him/her grave harm, then perhaps (I would feel safer with an experienced skydiving instructor, for example). However, as for a history professor, whether the professor is knowledgeable or not, such does not affect my perception of "safety." Confidence in one's teacher is not a safety issue. In fact, a teacher that knows a great deal about a subject matter could make one feel less safe, for a learners may have the stress that he/she must master the knowledge course content much faster to keep up with the teacher's ideas.

Vella continues, stating "trust in the feasibility and relevance of the objectives makes learners feel safe" (p. 9). This too is unrelated to real safety.

In an extreme declaration, Vella at one point declares that the size of groups and the size of a table that promotes the most safety, stating "four learners at a table large enough for their materials, small enough for them to feel included, provides psychical and social safety for learners" (p. 9). With this Vella presents no research to back up this strange claim, and does not address issues of gender, race, or culture which would dramatically alter students' feelings of "safety" in close confinement with one another.

In other criteria, Vella states that trust in the sequence of activities promotes safety and as well as does starting with easier tasks and progressively making them more challenging. Though this may be true, it facilitates the question: "why is safety the best approach for learning?" for example, if one knows the sequence of activities, that student may feel safe to only learn part of the material for the course--for the person knows what knowledge is required to successfully complete the course, and what material the student is able to neglect. Students, even "good" students, are not always as motivated to learn as Vella assumes and having a class set up in a way where students do not know when they will be tested, or do not know what part of the course material they will be required to have mastery of, could promote additional learning through a students sense of vulnerability: the student knowing he/she may be asked to provide insight on any of the course material at any time. This is present in the Socratic method of teaching, and often part of law school education, which has been time-tested to be an effective educational system. Fear is a great motivator.

Sound Relationships

In addressing sound relationships, Vella speaks about welcoming the "death" of the teacher. With this, Vella sees the student and the teacher as mutual learners, as close friends, and sees a need for the "teacher" to often display negative assertion, which means the teacher will allow the student to learn without the teacher's interruption or input. Further, Vella states teachers should be available to the students outside of class: by phone, email, etc. Lastly, Vella states that a teacher must provide emotional support and must encourage learners at all times. In this same sentiment Vella states a teacher must never judge a student, even when the student is perceivable wrong.

In review of these ideas, I believe the concept of the teacher being an equal to his/her learner is fallacious, for I cannot believe that the teachers and students are to learn equal amounts from each other. Granted, teachers should learn from their students' experiences and insights--and I truly believe one can learn something from anyone--however, the suggestion that the exchange of information be "equal" seems unfounded.

In addition, the idea of negative capability, where the teacher (present in class) will sit in a corner and let students to teach themselves, available to students only when they have a question, seems problematic. Though this may be effective at times when students have been given a great deal of information and need to reflect on it, or partake in some sort of praxis, Vella should make more of an effort to note that teacher absence is usually not the ideal situation for learning. It is a logically flawed theory that teachers can learn from their students' active behaviors (participation), and students learn most from teachers' passive behaviors (lack of participation).

In review of Vella's position that teachers must be available to learners outside of class, thought this may be a beneficial process--and I believe it is, for it gives students the ability to ask questions or receive clarification when the need arises--Vella does not attempt to provide any guidelines for limitations of student interaction with the professor. I believe this lack of boundaries does not provide suitable respect for the teacher's schedule, personal life, or time. Teachers should be able to have a life "outside" of their teaching responsibilities, though Vella denies attention to this idea.

Vella states that teachers should provide emotional support to their learners, making teachers both the provider of information, and the learners' personal counselor. Though this may be effective to some degree, it is not necessary. Learners are responsible for obtaining social and emotional support outside of their educational endeavors. In addition, the counselor-teacher relationship is conceivably not a healthy one--due to the dual roles--and it is one that is discouraged in many counseling codes of ethics.

Lastly, Vella states in her book that her students are strong enough to know what they want to study, and what works for them. It is an interesting duality (almost a paradox) that Vella sees her learners as so weak in that they need constant encouragement in their academic pursuits (which are supposed to be intrinsically helpful and useful to them). In addition, I completely disagree with the concept of never passing judgment, and believe the idea that Vella never passes judgment to be dangerous, if not blatantly untrue. When students are graded, they are being judged. Also, some dangerous ideas presented by students need to be at least challenged, if not judged.

Discussion

The following document was a reaction and critical review of the text, Learning to Listen Learning to Teach: The Power of Dialogue in Educating Adults, by Jane Vella. It was found that Vella's interpretation and integration regarding the issues of needs assessment, safety, and sound relationships, though helpful in some instances, possess some logical inconsistencies and pragmatic difficulties when integrated into some teaching situations.

Final Note: Telephone and Online Counseling may be a good way to help struggling teachers and students. To learn how to provide telephone and online counseling, try this excellent book: The Therapist's Clinical Guide to Online Counseling and Telephone Counseling: The Definitive Training Guide for Clinical Practice

Learning to listen, learning to teach : the power of dialogue in educating adults gave me the tools I needed to teach wine classes to adult learners. This book provides so much inspiration in teaching fundamentals for adult education. Vella takes readers across the world to demonstrate her essential components for effectively teaching adults. Highly, highly recommended. Buy this book for your favorite adult-level educator, literacy volunteer, and especially for a student in teacher college!

This is an excellent text for today's teachers. It helps the teacher move from the monologue style (lecture style) of teaching into a more improved style of teaching (the dialogue style). It shows how to get the students more involved in the class and how the students will be able to retain what the teacher is presenting over the lecture style. Students retain more when they take part in the teaching process. I highly suggest this text for those who want a more interesting class.

Jane Vella's, Learning to Listen, Learning to Teach: The Power of Dialogue in Educating Adults challenged me to intentionally adopt several principles in my ministry to university students. I'm convinced these principles are useful for church ministries as well. That is why I recommend this book to you.

Jane Vella educates adults in many cultures and for many different groups, mostly community development projects. I'm very familiar with this kind of work and many of the places and people she writes about. One of the goals I have set for the summer teams of student interns serving in community development projects is for the students to have the best learning experience of their lives. Vella refers to this learning as the `quantum' concept, that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
I need to encourage my staff to participate in the process of writing their own job descriptions. I need to be more effective at listening and giving open questions, especially in the teachings I give. Those open questions need to be put to the `safe' environment of small groups. I have practiced this sort of thing at some level, but I see I need to be more intentional. For example, I have asked the question, "What was your best learning experience?" Sometimes, but not always, I send the participants to small group to discuss the question. I need to be more effective at defining learning tasks and follow through on them so that the participants truly participate in the learning process.

1. How can I adopt principles of Vella's dialogue education and quantum thinking?

Vella's key assessment principle, `Who needs What and defined by Whom' or `WWW', is what we will adopt in all of our student ministry programs. To do that, I need to keep a journal. As I pray for individuals in my team and network around the world, I am writing a WWW assessment for YWAM Campus Ministries staff and their projects.

2. Which of the quantum thinking principles have I already practiced and how can I improve on them?

The Field Ministry Internship programme is a serving/learning outreach project for university student teams integrating their field of study with ministries cross-culturally. Vella's book referred to so many things that I have been attempting to do since 1989. For example, to help students feel `safe' we form small teams of 4 to 7. During the first few days in the host country, we typically send small teams out on a `scavenger hunt' in order to learn how to get around with some measure of independence within the safety of their small group. We send small teams to integrate well as a short-term team on a long-term field project. In this way, the students also gain a greater level of participation in the serving/learning process. The students design their own field projects on site as they assess the needs of the long-term personnel and projects they are serving.

I can see how we practice a learning needs assessment, but we do not involve the students enough. We are concerned for safety in the learning process, but I can see that some additional structure and demonstration of concern for the students learning process will raise the energy level and create an environment where learning can take place even when there is much uncertainty. We have structured the outreach program with four phases: Orientation to Cultural Awareness to Ministry to Debriefing. I have learned that we need to add a fifth phase, an Assessment Phase, before the Ministry phase. To date it has been assumed by the leadership, but students have had little understanding of that important phase. To show more respect for the students, we need to document the Assessment phase. By doing so we will be showing more respect to the students giving them more opportunity to participate and take responsibility to decide.

This book is providing a guideline for a full team leader training program. I am very excited about the potential increase in skills that our team leaders can develop through a week-long seminar for FMI team leadership.

Summary

I have created a matrix grid in my journal with Vella's 7 steps for course design for follow up. The key words, RESPECT and ENERGY, are at the top of the list to encourage me to focus my attention on these key values for the adult learners. I have placed a column on the page for each of the 10 different student internship and YWAM leadership training programs I am leading or developing. For each of the seven steps I am considering the different approaches for each of the different programs, depending on the participants, the outcomes, the context, the content, and how learning can be measured and sequenced for greatest effectiveness. I'm expecting quantum changes in all of our programs.

Learning to Listen, Learning to Teach is designed to demonstrate the power and value of dialogue over monologue, and active over passive learning when it comes to educating adults. Vella demonstrates through real life examples how her twelve transcendent principles flesh out in a variety of specific contexts all around the world. This book is designed to help all adult educators embody and model a more effective way to facilitate actual learning. Not only does the book clearly explain and illustrate the twelve principles, but it also calls us to engage and analyze the principles along the way. This book demonstrates what active learning is all about.

A quick summary of the principles for effective adult learning:
1. Needs Assessment: The First Step in Dialogue
It is important to have a need-oriented approach to learning, where the scratch meets the itch by asking the www (political) question - "Who needs what as defined by whom?"
2. Safety: Creating a Safe Environment for Learning
Creating an atmosphere where learners feel safe: where they can trust in the feasibility, relevance and sequence of the learning objectives; where the learners can be both "creative and critical" in their response to the program in an affirming environment.
3. Sound Relationships: The Power of Friendship and Respect
The relationship between the teacher and student is vital. The more that the teacher can formally and informally create a relationship of mutual respect, the greater the motivation and learning potential of the adult learner.
4. Sequence and Reinforcement: Knowing Where and How to Begin
Based upon the needs assessment, the teacher designs an appropriate sequence of lessons moving from simple to complex and from group supported to mastering the lessons alone, in a way the reinforces the learning outcomes. The Seven Steps of Planning: Who, Why, When, Where, What For, What and How help design and reinforce the achievement-based objectives.
5. Praxis: Action with Reflection
Praxis is practice in dynamic relation with thought, where the learner engages in the practice of a new skill, attitude or concept - then immediately reflects on what they just did. The process of action and reflection, practice and thought is repeated in a cyclical process, each informing the other.
6. Respect for Learners: Learners as Subjects of Their Own Learning
In as far as it is possible, allow adult learners to determine what occurs in a learning event, based on their need assessment and the seven steps of planning.
7. Learning with Ideas, Feelings and Actions
Active learning is more effective than passive learning and requires learning objectives that help people think, feel and do.
8. Immediacy: Teaching What is Really Useful
Inviting people to immediately use a skill and see its benefit, gives them motivation to continue to learn more of the skills set out in the learning sequence.
9. Clear Roles: Reinforcement of Human Equity between Teacher and Student
The goal is to do whatever is necessary to foster honest dialogue, so that adults can learn together - while at the same time clarifying who has a deliberate voice and who has a consultative voice.
10. Teamwork: How People Learn Together
By using small groups in healthy competition with each other, the learners are able to provide reinforcement and constructive feedback with each other, enabling effective learning.
11. Engagement: Learning As an Active Process
The goal is not to cover a set of materials, but to allow the learner to engage in an active process of learning by doing.
12. Accountability: Success Is in the Eyes of the Learner
In the end, the educator wants to understand if the learner has actually learned the achievement-based outcomes. The best way to determine if someone has learned is to see if the learner is able to put into action what they have learned and if they have confidence that they "know that they know".

This is a great book to help teachers engage their students in active learning.