5 comments about Leadership and the Sexes: Using Gender Science to Create Success in Business.

1. Oh, how this book has already changed the way we do business -- from listening to clients to negotiating with potential clients -- we have embraced and incorporated the many lessons Michael Gurian and Barbara Annis have to teach (we were extremely lucky to get an advance reading copy so have a two month jump on our competition). Michael's parenting books have always described my son, and helped me so tremendously with his learning issues. But this crossover into the corporate world is pure genius. From every budding entrepreneur to every CEO, from the smallest local businesses to the largest global conglomerate, every one in business needs to read this book.



2. It goes far beyond the Mars/Venus approach to gender because it links men and women to science. It's highly readable, and yet it goes deep into who we are and what makes us tick. I'm a Human Resources Specialist, and I'm very glad to have this book for my team.



3. Finally, a practical book about how to work best with the opposite sex--at work! Michael Gurian brings his best thinking about gender differences and the brain to the corporate conference room. This book is full of insights about how and why men and women "work differently," and it is chock full of ideas about how individual leaders, managers--as well as the teams they lead--can understand these differences and use them to grow bigger, better, more effective organizations.



4. Gender has become such an important topic in companies and organizations that senior leaders and line executives will lose effectiveness if they don't have the latest scientific brain research straightforwardly described in this book.
   
   Most valuable, this book also includes some practical, easy to use tools and approaches that I applied in my work (and home) -- immediately.
   
   From Michael Gurian we finally have a serious, business-oriented, fact-based, value/politics free knowledgebase and resources for moving to the next generation of gender effectiveness and mobilizing the special skills and capabilities of women and men.
   
   So much of the current "gender diversity" approaches and rhetoric, presentations and training programs are based on feel-good ideology and anecdotes. For example, trying to make guys more like women or women less "aggressive." I've been involved in a lot of these and everybody's eyes just glaze over now.
   
   I've been buying this book for my friends and it has made a difference in their work right away.



5. This book was a great help to me in changing some things I do at work with colleagues; things run smoother and the job is more satisfying now.

4 comments about Engaging Ideas: The Professor's Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom (Jossey Bass Higher and Adult Education Series).

1. Bean's text is a thoughtful and useful pedagogical "storehouse" of ideas that teachers can use in their classrooms. Not only does the text provide the theory _behind_ collaborative/cooperative approaches to teaching, but it provides such ideas for a wide array of subjects. Anyone who values the teaching of writing--whatever the subject area--will find good value in Bean's text.



2. John C. Bean presents a thorough, logical discussion covering issues that (may seem basic) but that I for one, still struggle with - successfully integrating critical thinking writing assignments into my courses.
   
   Bean blends relevant research and studies to explain and justify what works and what fizzles. His text offers strategies and assignments - from short, informal writings to involved research projects. His work considers learning styles - (students and instructors). The author models rich critical thinking and writing - the discourse allows learners to make their own connections and discoveries (while absorbing the valuable resources and information provided) Readers, like students engage in the journey of sense-making.

   In sum, this is not just a book of potential exercies - it is a rich resource for instructors grappling with issues of assessment, critiquing, and the fear of grading overload. These topics and more provided me with some wonderful "aha" moments.

   It's the "aha"s that spark my spirit of inquiry - and this is what I strive to share with students.




3. Professor Bean provides the theory behind his recommendations but, as any teacher who has delved into this literature knows, theories about effective teaching aren't in themselves necessarily very helpful. What one needs is practical advice, and this book has it---lots of it. Bean identifies different writing activities for students; shows how to design tasks for active thinking and learning in the classroom; suggests effective ways to make use of small group discussion in the classroom; explains ways to increase active learning in a lecture course; discusses the mechanics of grading papers; and shows how to enhance learning in essay exams. Even for the experienced teacher, there's a good deal of worthwhile material here, and it's cogently presented. A highly recommended book for the professor who wants to increase active learning in the classroom and get more out of a lecture course.



4. This book has revolutionized my teaching procedures. Bean shows us how to be more effective teachers without adding to the time we spend prepping and grading. The students are more engaged and writing better essays, and I am spending the same or less time preparing and grading. There are tips on everything from in-class exercises to constructing formal writing assignments. I recommend it to anyone teaching composition or any class with a critical thinking/writing component.

5 comments about A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey.

1. The book contains a creative and interesting discourse between a burnout minister and his postmodern Christian teacher friend. I don't know what's happened to the 'modern' churches in America, but the concepts Brian McLaren expounds in the book aren't new at all. Christians have always been called to "act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with God." (Micah 6:8) A lot of the issues discussed in this book have been much more thorougly explained and illustrated in books about the kingdom community by such renowned Christian authors as John Stott and Howard Sydner first published in the 1980's. This one is comparatively superficial, but apparently much easier to read.



2. An attitude shift of looking at how we do our Christianity, how we live it, and how it is expressed by us. There are some controversial points in the book however at it's core, it is calling us to be real and doesn't compromise the message of the Bible at all. It calls us to work with a new paradigm that runs at another level that the traditional church offering it's ministries to its congregation. This is a view on what it means to embrace the attitude of being "missional" or living our life as if we are on mission everyday. The impact of living this way has changed how I view my Christian walk. I encourage you to consider reading this book as well.



3. I am just starting to examine emergent Christianity and come at McLaren's book from a different perspective than many previous reviewers as a liberal mainline Protestant (the bogey man for some here). I think McLaren's analysis of the state of the church today is pretty much on target. I especially appreciated his perception that both evangelical and liberal Protestant churches are essentially modern institutions now floundering to adjust to the emerging postmodern world. Despite the criticisms here, I actually found McLaren's "evangelical skirts" showing a bit too much for me and I am not sure how far he has really moved beyond modern evangelicalism. But the whole point is that we are in transition (and this was written eight years ago) and not yet arrived on the postmodern side, so this may not be a big concern.
   
   What I found increasingly irritating as I read the book, however, was just the whole narrative format. McLaren doesn't pretend to be a great fiction writer, but in the introduction he asks us to imagine Plato's dialogs! We are a LONG way from those. I think the main problem is that the story of a pastor with a faith/vocation crisis just isn't a substantial enough framework for the book. McLaren seems to recognize that by introducing the character Neo, who he is actually more interested in. His side story becomes increasingly distracting, however, especially when he leaves to attend to his dying mother--with Alzheimer's! Fiction can be used effectively to present philosophical ideas (one that comes to mind is the early 70s tour de force, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig) but in this case I am afraid it just gets in the way. There are some very good passages and genuinely provocative ideas, however, and they are worth slogging through the rest to find.



4. WARNING...If you are looking for a review that dances around what I think or tries to be nice this is not the one for you. If you want a gut reaction to this book keep reading...
   Brian Mclaren is everything you ever imagined of a snakeoil salesman and more. He is able to manipulate the english language in ways that I had not imagined possible. But if you read carefully and take meaning from the entirety of what he says it is clear that what he advocates does not even resemble the Christianity of the Bible at all. Of course that is not a problem for mclaren and those "new" gnostics like him because they don't really believe the bible is really needed to understand this new christianity. As he will allude to, but not come out and admit here, what he desires is a kind of religion of the month club. We should find the "good" parts of each and make a religion that more suites us and not worry about truth, or right and wrong or anything so modern. As a matter of course mclaren misrepresents Christians as an evil with no redeaming values unless they decide to come over to his special new knowledge of what a good christian should be. Of course he has no basis for this special knowledge unless you sermise from his so called prayers that God has made a special revelation to him. The only use of scripture he makes in this book is misrepresented to support points of view that scripture as a whole clearly refutes. But I must give him credit, he is able to soft peddle evolution, syncritism, universalism, relativism, and denegrate the truth of scripture all in one sitting. I was also struck with the irony that he preaches postmodernism throughout this book while at the same time proving that he has no understanding of postmodernism because of his insistence that he has the "new" truth and spending an entire book telling us what that new truth is. If I were to sum this book up in one word it would be a word so "modern" it was used the first few centuries after Christ the gnostics of those days....Heresy.



5. Brian D. McLaren, in his book, "A New Kind of Christian" does a superb job of getting at the heart of what needs to happen within Christianity as society moves into the future. While his friend "NEO" seems larger than life, the issues raised and insights given are exactly what needs to be addresed in our time. A refocusing of our own faith and how we look at "church" becomes a major issue in our widely diversified church culture. The old and current way of being church is breaking down and new concepts must emerge. The one quote which will stay with me is, "...church doesn't exist for the benefit of its members. It exists to equip its members for the benefit of the world" That says it all.

5 comments about Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers (Jossey Bass Higher and Adult Education Series).

1. The text was used in a course through UW Stout and it is a very good resource for methods that can be used to assess learners progress towards a goal. Great tool to have on the bookshelf!



2. Excellent book! Angelo was very clear and concise in guiding teachers through the assessment process.



3. This book is a handbook-style text that elaborates on the concept of "Classroom Assessment Techniques," a term used by the authors to refer to alternative methods of evaluating or assessing student learning. The book is a handbook because each "CAT" is listed in terms of how to prepare, use, and evaluate results; the authors also present rather subjective indicants of the amount of time required for each technique.
   
   The techniques range from the laughably simple (such as "muddiest point") to the more involved (such as student learning portfolios); the handbook is arranged in terms of types of assessment that may be conducted with each group of techniques. The book provides a wide variety of techniques, and the user should be able to find several applicable techniques for a particular educational situation.
   
   However, I would strongly suggest that anyone using these techniques NOT rely on this text as the sole source of how and why to do educational assessment and evaluation -- the field is too complex and the implications are too important.



4. The book arrived in perfect condition, even though it was listed as used. Arrived on time.



5. This is our second order of the book. It is used by our Tablet Users Group faculty members. We have had Thomas Angelo as a speaker at Rose-Hulman and were very pleased by him and his work. We would highly recommend Classroom Assessment Techniques: A Handbook for College Teachers. The book has been very well received and helpful teaching, evaluating & assessing classroom techniques.

2 comments about Preparing Teachers for a Changing World: What Teachers Should Learn and Be Able to Do.

1. The book is very informative in and outside of school. I think it has excellent information for those teachers or want to be teachers to gain insight from.



2. This book is useful for many different people involved in education: teachers, future teachers, administrators who support teachers, teacher educators, etc. It includes chapters from preeminent researchers in the field and covers many different areas in education. Each chapter reviews research in the area, and the language is not techno-speak meant to be accessible only to people who spend their lives doing research (my biggest pet peeve with many research articles and chapters). I am a teacher and graduate student. I checked this out from the library and found myself returning it so many times that I decided to go ahead and buy a copy for myself.

5 comments about Encouraging the Heart: A Leader's Guide to Rewarding and Recognizing Others.

1. * The famous journalist Walter Lippman once said, "The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind in others the conviction and will to carry on."
   
   * That is the test for all of us, not only those is a managerial position, but all of us. A leader may be the guy in a suit and tie down in the corner office, but a leader can also be the sixty year old woman working as a cashier who knows not to put our bread and canned goods in the same bag.
   
   * Every one of us leads, whether directly or indirectly, in the actions we perform every day. Whether we know it or not, right now, each of us is showing something the right way to be or the wrong way to be.
   
   * James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, discuss in their bestselling book The Leadership Challenge, the five principles they have found in leaders who have teams that get "extraordinary" things done:
   
   * These leaders:
   
   * Challenge the Process
   
   * Inspire a shared vision
   
   * Enable others to act
   
   * Model the way
   
   * And, Encourage the Heart.
   
   * But what does it mean to "encourage the heart?"
   
   * Encouraging the Heart shows how, with a few main ideas, how each of us - management or not - can take the initiative to bring common courtesy and kindness into the workplace, and how effective that everyday emotional bond between human beings can translate into a successful, more productive, and generally happier workplace.
   
   * And as we all know, the more content the team is, the better that team will be. And a successful team is often attributed to the successful leader of that team. Encouraging the heart forms that connection, and helps boost the overall strength of the team as well as the strength of the leader.



2. I did not read this book. I am a corporate librarian and was asked to purchase it for one of our senior vice presidents.



3. Continuing their `Leadership is a Relationship' philosophy, best-selling authors, (The Leadership Challenge and Credibility), Kouzes & Posner focus this book on the 5th of their five essential practices for exemplary leadership - Encourage the Heart. After demonstrating that even the best performers are `starved for recognition' and will respond positively to a heart-felt "thank you", the authors provide descriptions and examples of the seven essential components of the Encouraging the Heart practice, devoting a chapter to each of the following:
   1. Set Clear Standards
   2. Expect the Best
   3. Pay Attention
   4. Personalize Recognition
   5. Tell the Story
   6. Celebrate Together
   7. Set the Example
   But, reading about how others do it is never enough, and the so the last part of the book takes the reader beyond tools and techniques, with a "Finding Your Voice" chapter coming before the listing of "150 Ways to Encourage the Heart" of others.
   
   If you believe that money is the prime motivator of exceptional performance, you may want to spend a few quiet hours with this easy-to-read, how-to manual for getting to the heart of individual performance. This book is recommended for anyone wanting to learn a foundational process for relational leadership. Dennis DeWilde, author of "The Performance Connection"



4. This book is highly recommended. We used it at our church for a leadership training class. Everyone who read it found it to be particularly helpful and relevant. It has some challenging points and has some great ideas.



5. This is a great book if you are in a leadership role now, or if you aspire to be in one in the future.
   It affirms my beliefs about trusting others and recognizing others for their accomplishments.
   A quick read, and an excellent reference.

5 comments about Parents Do Make a Difference: How to Raise Kids with Solid Character, Stro Minds, and Caring Hearts (The Jossey-Bass Psychology Series).

1. This book is one of the gems -- a diamond in the rough -- on parenting. Written in simple language, it's the "basic course" on "HOW TO RAISE KIDS WITH SOLID CHARACTER, STRONG MINDS, AND CARING HEARTS". So read, use, and understand. Hmm. Understand? What do you do when the kids ask, "WHY?"! Hmm. You'll need a book that makes you understand -- in simple language -- the philosophy of WHY character counts, of right and wrong, of good and evil, of moral and immoral, and of ethical and unethical. The school that exists to teach the "advanced course" in "HOW TO RAISE KIDS WITH SOLID CHARACTER, STRONG, MINDS, AND CARING HEARTS" is West Point. The only book that explains the philosophy behind all the "WHYS" -- in simple language -- is the book titled "WEST POINT", by Norman Thomas Remick. It's THE companion book for all how-to books and "courses", basic or advanced, on parenting and character. It will become kind of an encyclopedia that you can refer to for explaining "WHY?" to your kids. And it will give Borba's diamond in the rough its required polish.



2. This book is one of the gems -- a diamond in the rough -- on parenting. Written in simple language, it's the "basic course" on "HOW TO RAISE KIDS WITH SOLID CHARACTER, STRONG MINDS, AND CARING HEARTS". So read, use, and understand. Hmm. Understand? What do you do when the kids ask, "WHY?"! Hmm. You'll need a book that makes you understand -- in simple language -- the philosophy of WHY character counts, of right and wrong, of good and evil, of moral and immoral, and of ethical and unethical. The school that exists to teach the "advanced course" in "HOW TO RAISE KIDS WITH SOLID CHARACTER, STRONG, MINDS, AND CARING HEARTS" is West Point. The only book that explains the philosophy behind all the "WHYS" -- in simple language -- is the book titled "WEST POINT", by Norman Thomas Remick. It's THE companion book for all how-to books and "courses", basic or advanced, on parenting and character. It will become kind of an encyclopedia that you can refer to for explaining "WHY?" to your kids. And it will give Borba's diamond in the rough its required polish.



3. I have bought tons of books over the years many were good some not so much this is one of the only books I have kept and always go back to for advice and ideas. This book is a must have for all parents



4. This is easy to read, well laid out and is packed with useful tips on how to help kids be their best selves. It's a real 'how to' guide, with lots of examples of actual situations & what to say to help your child overcome specific difficulties & be more successful. I like it so much I've ordered another copy to share with friends (gently & tactfully, of course!) Every parent should read this book - it's not about pushing your kids to achieve & driving them to prove what a great parent you are - this book is about nurturing their strengths & helping them believe in themselves & be more confident in who they are, just so they can be happy & enjoy life more.
   
   Definitely worth the money & time spent reading it & putting it into practice. Does what it says on the cover!



5. I consider myself to be a well educated, caring person with a lot of common sense, however this book has been a real eye opener on human nature and how to nurture our children to grow to their greatest potential. I'm only on page 50 but I feel compelled to write a review already!

5 comments about Engaging the Online Learner: Activities and Resources for Creative Instruction (Online Teaching and Learning Series (OTL)).

1. I found the book to be a good read and had a lot of interesting things to say and good examples of activities for online participants.
   
   The book focuses solely on the online learner, which is good, but if you teach students in a classroom setting and are looking to extend their learning online in the evenings and between classes you need to 'read between the lines' to pull out the pieces that you need (which are many and included in this book).



2. This book is what I have been looking for: short, concise and full of practical examples of activities.



3. I found the book to be very easy and fast to read with lots of concrete examples of activities for the online learner. Though I understand the importance of engaging the online learner, as an instructor in the allied health field I don't feel I have the time or interest in developing games and the types of alternative learning activities suggested in the book. In allied health/science courses we need to cover an extensive amount of material, perhaps if I were teaching a course in another discipline I would feel differently.
   
   I feel that another book "Discussion Based Online Teaching To Enhance Student Learning" by Tisha Bender is a much better book for my situation and offered more helpful ideas (but less examples) to improve my online course.



4. As an online learner and instructor, I found this book informative, and, yes, ENGAGING. I am planning on using the insights and examples in a new project I've been given-- securing the services of teachers that have experience with strictly the conventional classroom models to instruct online. I'm hopeful that resources like this can de-mystify the distance learning models, and eventually help disseminate knowledge widely throughout my mostly-rural state.



5. The first part of the book kept repeating itself with regards to what "should be the main goals of online learning"...it felt very repetitive without really offering any useful information. I discovered the source of every lame group project (or group building experiments) my husband has had to do since he began taking online classes at Keller. There were some interesting "get to know you" activities, but a lot of what I read smacked of those very tired and very lame role-playing business seminars I had to put up with when I worked in hotels, which I despised...but this did drive home the importance of creating a community feel among the students, of getting them working together and feeling part of a group. I would recommend it, but with the warning that the book is somewhat repetitive in the first few chapters. I am glad to have it as a reference, but it's certainly not a one stop resource...it should definately be part of a larger body of works to draw from on the subject.

5 comments about The Leader's Guide to Storytelling: Mastering the Art and Discipline of Business Narrative.

1. Getting things done in business requires much more than hard facts and PowerPoint presentations -- it requires the ability to persuade, motivate and convince. Denning does a fantastic job demonstrating how to do this through storytelling - making your audience (your boss, teammates, customers) get involved in your idea, allowing them to put themselves into your story. Presentation slides have become a frustrating crutch -- few remember (or even trust) your numbers and unending bullet points. Put your audience inside your story - allow them to apply their own context to what you are explaining and they will start listening and participating.
   
   Good leaders persuade through what often appears to be spontaneous narrative. They build credibility and respect. This book gives you the tools to strategically target and build your narrative to accomplish specific objectives. It spends time explaining purposeful communication and storytelling methods for different situations.
   
   I thought the section on Values was a little out of place, as more of a lesson on values than as a storytelling method.
   
   This is a book I will go back and read several times as I try to put it to practical use. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to succeed in business, especially given our overload of information from every angle. It will help you to find a way to stand out and be heard.



2. Chapter 11, to be precise. It is the best critique of the Innovators Dillema and similar work that I have seen anywhere. It also has a good review of future vision techniques in Chapter 10. If I were teaching a graduate seminar in a business school, these would be assigned reading.



3. This is a very scholarly book that really sheds light what it's like to be a business leader. Then Denning shows how storytelling can be part of an effective leadership tool box.
   
   Each chapter ends with a couple of pages of great instruction--how to craft and deliver the story that chapter was devoted to. I found the table on page 18 to be a helpful overview of the eight types of stories, their uses and what reactions they should elicit from the audience.
   
   However, business speakers who want to add stories to their presentations TODAY need to work with a presentation coach. In much less time, and with much more fun, your coach will get you to actually be a storyteller, not just think about telling stories.



4. I thought that this book showed a different aspect to leadership. A very interesting book that is for everyone in everyday life.



5. This is THE book on using story telling to effect any change or influence you want to have on anyone in a company or organization. Without using the term "emotional intelligence" the book overflows with it in a direct and practical way. Denning basically says that the selection of what kind of story to tell is based on your intention and knowing the mind set and intentions of your audience. In other words, by thinking of what you want to accomplish and thinking of what your audience wants to accomplish and furthermore thinking of where they're coming from, you will be more effective. I am already using his practical and usable information to become a more effective speaker. It really works.
   
   - Mark Goulston, M.D.
   "The Leading Edge" at Fast Company
   author Get Out of Your Own Way at Work...And Help Others Do the Same: Conquer Self-Defeating Behavior on the Job

5 comments about A Survival Kit for the Elementary/Middle School Art Teacher (J-B Ed:Survival Guides).

1. This book came at the perfect time. I am a first year art teacher at a K-8 school. I was looking for activities to keep my 7th and 8th graders interested and this book is providing so much more. The information is very helpful for me as well as a resource for the classroom teachers I work with.



2. I was very disapointed with this book. All of the pages are photocopied in black and white. There is very low resolution on the images and an art book in black and white is worthless for most aspects of class. There were a few projects that were appropriate but it was hardly worth the investment.



3. This book was recommended to me by a classmate who has been an art teacher for 7 years. Her copy is tattered, wrinkled and obviously well used and well loved. I ordered it to help me brainstorm units and organize my new classroom.
   
   A lot of the 125 student projects are pretty corny but provide jumping off points for creating your own fabulous lessons. I really like some of the interdisciplinary connections Hume lists and think they will help me in collaborating with the general ed teachers in my school.
   
   Hume also lists several educational games that can be purchased or created by you for an art classroom - what a wonderful idea for substitute days!



4. The product was as expected and in good condition. Shipped quickly and received with no problems.



5. Everything was great. Book is in excellent condition and it was shipped very fast.