Alexander W. Astin – författare

Discover the true effects of attending collegeWhile there is no doubt that going to college has an effect on one's life, the question of what those specific effects may be remains somewhat elusive. Four Critical Years takes an in-depth look at those potential effects beyond those that are immediately obvious. The book investigates how one's attitudes, beliefs and sense of self are affected by going to college, how behavior is affected, what patterns of behavior emerge from going to college, and the permanence of the effects of attending college. For those students, policymakers and those about to make the crucial decision on whether – or where – to go to college, the book is an original and enlightening look at the subject.

Cultivating the Spirit THIS GROUNDBREAKING WORK IS BASED on a five-year study of how students change during the college years and the role college plays in facilitating the development of their spiritual qualities. Students, the authors argue, grapple with the big questions in life: Who am I? What are my values? Do I have a mission in life? Why am I in college? What kind of person do I want to be? What sort of world do I want to help to create? Their answers to these questions help determine their academic and career choices and are tied to the development of personal qualities such as empathy, caring, and social responsibility. The study finds that, while students' religious engagement declines during college, at the same time they become substantially more caring, tolerant, connected with others, and actively egaged in a spiritual quest. Spiritual growth also enhances academic performance, leadership development, and satisfaction with college. The study provides strong evidence pointing to specific experiences during college that can contribute to students' spiritual growth. The need for spiritual development in college is apparent. Two-thirds of the students in the study express a strong interest in spiritual matters, well over half report that their professors never encourage discussions of religious or spiritual matters, and about the same proportion report that professors never provide opportunities to discuss the purpose and meaning of life. Cultivating the Spirit aims to raise the awareness of academic administrators, faculty, and the public at large to the vital role that spirituality plays in student learning and development. Throughout the book, the authors identify strategies for enhancing students' development and encourage the academy to give greater priority to the spiritual aspects of students' educational and personal development.

From the author of Four Critical Years--a book the Journal of Higher Education called the most cited work in higher education literature--What Matters in College? presents the definitive study of how students change and develop in college and how colleges can enhance that development. Based on a study of more than 20,000 students, 25,000 faculty members, and 200 institutions, the book shows how academic programs, faculty, student peer groups, and other variables affect students' college experiences.

Praise for The Gender Gap in College "Linda Sax has produced an encyclopedic volume comparing women's and men's development during the undergraduate years. We believe it is destined to become a classic in the higher education literature." —From the Foreword by Alexander W. Astin and Helen S. Astin "Using findings from an important national data set, Linda Sax has skillfully crafted a definitive work about the gender gap in college. It is a major scholarly achievement that will be influential for many years to come." —Ernest Pascarella, Petersen Professor of Higher Education, University of Iowa "Linda Sax has produced a meticulously researched, carefully documented analysis that identifies many ways that college impacts men and women differently. This book will be an invaluable resource to researchers and practitioners seeking to better understand and serve traditional-age students at four-year colleges and universities." —Jacqueline E. King, assistant vice president, Center for Policy Analysis, American Council on Education

The second edition of Assessment for Excellence arrives as higher education enters a new era of the accountability movement. In the face of mandates such as results-based funding and outcomes-based accreditation, institutions and assessment specialists are feeling increasingly pressured to demonstrate accountability to external constituencies. The practice of assessment under these new accountability pressures takes on special significance for the education of students and the development of talent across the entire higher education system. This book introduces a talent development approach to educational assessment as a counter to prevailing philosophies, illustrating how contemporary practices are unable to provide institutions with meaningful data with which to improve educational outcomes. It provides administrators, policymakers, researchers, and analysts with a comprehensive framework for developing new assessment programs to promote talent development and for scrutinizing existing policies and practices. Written for a wide audience, the book enables the lay reader to quickly grasp the imperatives of a properly-designed assessment program, and also to gain adequate statistical understanding necessary for examining current or planned assessment policies. More advanced readers will appreciate the technical appendix for assistance in conducting statistical analyses that align with a talent development approach. In addition, institutional researchers will benefit from sections that outline the development of appropriate student databases.

The second edition of Assessment for Excellence arrives as higher education enters a new era of the accountability movement. In the face of mandates such as results-based funding and outcomes-based accreditation, institutions and assessment specialists are feeling increasingly pressured to demonstrate accountability to external constituencies. The practice of assessment under these new accountability pressures takes on special significance for the education of students and the development of talent across the entire higher education system. This book introduces a talent development approach to educational assessment as a counter to prevailing philosophies, illustrating how contemporary practices are unable to provide institutions with meaningful data with which to improve educational outcomes. It provides administrators, policymakers, researchers, and analysts with a comprehensive framework for developing new assessment programs to promote talent development and for scrutinizing existing policies and practices. Written for a wide audience, the book enables the lay reader to quickly grasp the imperatives of a properly-designed assessment program, and also to gain adequate statistical understanding necessary for examining current or planned assessment policies. More advanced readers will appreciate the technical appendix for assistance in conducting statistical analyses that align with a talent development approach. In addition, institutional researchers will benefit from sections that outline the development of appropriate student databases.

“Know thyself” is something that has been advocated by great philosophers, psychologists, and religious leaders since the beginning of recorded history. The principal aim of this book is to promote greater self-awareness through a deeper understanding of how your mind works and by cultivating your ability to observe your own mind in action. Most of the chapters contain simple exercises that are designed to enhance your ability to understand and control your own thoughts, feelings, and actions. Since your emotional reactions to life events are largely shaped by your beliefs, many of these exercises are designed to help you get in closer touch with your beliefs and, if necessary, to change some of these beliefs.Each of us has the ability—right now in this conscious moment—to begin reshaping our life’s experience through a better understanding of how the mind works. The book is thus intended for people who feel that they worry too much, or are dissatisfied with their jobs or their relationships with others, or always feel rushed because there are too many things that they have to do. It’s for people who want less frustration, guilt, irritability, boredom, or unhappiness and more love, joy, adventure, and sense of control over their lives.

“Know thyself” is something that has been advocated by great philosophers, psychologists, and religious leaders since the beginning of recorded history. The principal aim of this book is to promote greater self-awareness through a deeper understanding of how your mind works and by cultivating your ability to observe your own mind in action. Most of the chapters contain simple exercises that are designed to enhance your ability to understand and control your own thoughts, feelings, and actions. Since your emotional reactions to life events are largely shaped by your beliefs, many of these exercises are designed to help you get in closer touch with your beliefs and, if necessary, to change some of these beliefs.Each of us has the ability—right now in this conscious moment—to begin reshaping our life’s experience through a better understanding of how the mind works. The book is thus intended for people who feel that they worry too much, or are dissatisfied with their jobs or their relationships with others, or always feel rushed because there are too many things that they have to do. It’s for people who want less frustration, guilt, irritability, boredom, or unhappiness and more love, joy, adventure, and sense of control over their lives.

This book explores the many ways in which the obsession with “being smart” distorts the life of a typical college or university, and how this obsession leads to a higher education that shortchanges the majority of students, and by extension, our society’s need for an educated population. The author calls on his colleagues in higher education to return the focus to the true mission of developing the potential of each student: However “smart” they are when they get to college, both the student and the college should be able to show what they learned while there.Unfortunately, colleges and universities have embraced two very narrow definitions of smartness: the course grade and especially the standardized test. A large body of research shows that it will be very difficult for colleges to fulfill their stated mission unless they substantially broaden their conception to include student qualities such as leadership, social responsibility, honesty, empathy, and citizenship. Specifically, the book grapples with issues such as the following:• Why America’s 3,000-plus colleges and universities have evolved into a hierarchical pecking order, where institutions compete with each other to recruit “smart” students, and where a handful of elite institutions at the top of the pecking order enroll the “smartest” students.• Why higher education favors its smartest students to the point where the “not so smart” students get second-class treatment.• Why so many colleges find it difficult to make good on their commitment to affirmative action and “equality of opportunity.”• Why college faculties tend to value being smart more than developing students’ smartness (i.e., teaching and learning).