I have a large stack of books with an education bent going right now. Must be the crisp autumn weather that’s triggering my current brain-cravings for non-fiction that’s educational on all levels. They are all interesting (especially to education junkies/geeks like me) and worth reading if you’re into that sort of thing. Stuck in [...]
I have a large stack of books with an education bent going right now. Must be the crisp autumn weather that’s triggering my current brain-cravings for non-fiction that’s educational on all levels. They are all interesting (especially to education junkies/geeks like me) and worth reading if you’re into that sort of thing.
Stuck in the Shallow End: Education, Race, and Computing by Jane Margolis
The co-author of Unlocking the Clubhouse: Women in Computing writes again about the computer science have-nots. This time it’s students of color in three different Los Angeles high schools. Margolis makes an excellent point regarding the difference between having access to a computer and having access to computer science education.
Scholarship in the Digital Age: Information, Infrastructure, and the Internet by Christine L. Borgman
How the Internet and access to incredible amounts of information and information-sharing can and will affect academia, and the infrastructure needed to maintain that information, research and knowledge. I like books that make me think a few aisles over from the intended subject matter; this one is making me ponder mankind’s modern day intentions for the pursuit of knowledge.
Research and the accumulation of information used to be (mostly) for the betterment of human existence. Now it seems to be an embarrassing competition for grant money, tenure, and recognition. If everyone’s in it for the money/fame, then I suppose we can just chuck the whole Internet infrastructure improvement idea and it can be every researcher for themselves. No more sharing, no more building on past data, no more standing on the shoulders of giants. If you can’t figure out how to play together, then you’re on your own.
Learn Me Good by John Pearson
A thermal design engineer gets laid off, becomes a teacher, and writes effing hilarious e-mails to his friend about his first year of teaching.
Tested: One American School Struggles to Make the Grade by Linda Perlstein
A well-written account of how the No Child Left Behind Act affects a suburban Maryland elementary school that was already on the edge and falling apart.
Posted by Alexa Harrington
