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The Blackboard and the Bottom Line: Why Schools Can't Be Businesses
by Larry Cuban"Ford Motor Company would not have survived the competition had it not been for an emphasis on results. We must view education the same way," the U.S. Secretary of Education declared in 2003. But is he right? In this provocative new book, Larry Cuban takes aim at the alluring cliché that schools should be more businesslike, and shows that in its long history in business-minded America, no one has shown that a business model can be successfully applied to education. In this straight-talking book, one of the most distinguished scholars in education charts the Gilded Age beginnings of the influential view that American schools should be organized to meet the needs of American businesses, and run according to principles of cost-efficiency, bottom-line thinking, and customer satisfaction. Not only are schools by their nature not businesslike, Cuban argues, but the attempt to run them along business lines leads to dangerous over-standardization--of tests, and of goals for our children. Why should we think that there is such a thing as one best school? Is "college for all" achievable--or even desirable? Even if it were possible, do we really want schools to operate as bootcamps for a workforce? Cuban suggests that the best business-inspired improvement for American education would be more consistent and sustained on-the-job worker training, tailored for the job to be done, and business leaders' encouragement--and adoption--of an ethic of civic engagement and public service.
Negotiating with Imperialism: The Unequal Treaties and the Culture of Japanese Diplomacy
by Michael R. AuslinJapan's modern international history began in 1858 with the signing of the "unequal" commercial treaty with the United States. Over the next fifteen years, Japanese diplomacy was reshaped to respond to the Western imperialist challenge. Negotiating with Imperialism is the first book to explain the emergence of modern Japan through this early period of treaty relations.Michael Auslin dispels the myth that the Tokugawa bakufu was diplomatically incompetent. Refusing to surrender to the West's power, bakufu diplomats employed negotiation as a weapon to defend Japan's interests. Tracing various visions of Japan's international identity, Auslin examines the evolution of the culture of Japanese diplomacy. Further, he demonstrates the limits of nineteenth-century imperialist power by examining the responses of British, French, and American diplomats. After replacing the Tokugawa in 1868, Meiji leaders initially utilized bakufu tactics. However, their 1872 failure to revise the treaties led them to focus on domestic reform as a way of maintaining independence and gaining equality with the West.In a compelling analysis of the interplay among assassinations, Western bombardment of Japanese cities, fertile cultural exchange, and intellectual discovery, Auslin offers a persuasive reading of the birth of modern Japan and its struggle to determine its future relations with the world.
Modernization from the Other Shore: American Intellectuals and the Romance of Russian Development (Emersion: Emergent Village Resources For Communities Of Faith Ser.)
by David C. EngermanFrom the late nineteenth century to the eve of World War II, America's experts on Russia watched as Russia and the Soviet Union embarked on a course of rapid industrialization. Captivated by the idea of modernization, diplomats, journalists, and scholars across the political spectrum rationalized the enormous human cost of this path to progress. In a fascinating examination of this crucial era, David Engerman underscores the key role economic development played in America's understanding of Russia and explores its profound effects on U.S. policy.American intellectuals from George Kennan to Samuel Harper to Calvin Hoover understood Russian events in terms of national character. Many of them used stereotypes of Russian passivity, backwardness, and fatalism to explain the need for--and the costs of--Soviet economic development. These costs included devastating famines that left millions starving while the government still exported grain.This book is a stellar example of the new international history that seamlessly blends cultural and intellectual currents with policymaking and foreign relations. It offers valuable insights into the role of cultural differences and the shaping of economic policy for developing nations even today.
Indonesian Destinies
by Theodore Friend"How can such a gentle people as we are be so murderous?" a prominent Indonesian asks. That question - and the mysteries of the archipelago's vast contradictions - haunt Theodore Friend's work, a narrative of Indonesia during the second half of the 20th century, from the post-war revolution against Dutch imperialism to the unrest at the beginning of the 21st century. Part history, part meditation on a place and a past observed first-hand, this book penetrates events that gave birth to the world's fourth largest nation and assesses the continuing dangers that threaten to tear it apart. Friend reveals Sukarno's character through wartime collaboration with Japan, and Suharto's through the mass murder of communists that brought him to power for 32 years. He guides our understanding of the tolerant forms of Islam prevailing among the largest Muslim population in the world, and shows growing tensions generated by international terrorism. Drawing on a deep knowledge of the country's cultures, its leaders and its ordinary people, Friend gives a human face and a sense of immediacy to the self-inflicted failures and immeasurable tragedies that cast a shadow over Indonesia's past and future.
Who Controls Teachers' Work?: Power and Accountability in America's Schools
by Richard M. IngersollSchools are places of learning but they are also workplaces, and teachers are employees. As such, are teachers more akin to professionals or to factory workers in the amount of control they have over their work? And what difference does it make? Drawing on large national surveys as well as wide-ranging interviews with high school teachers and administrators, Richard Ingersoll reveals the shortcomings in the two opposing viewpoints that dominate thought on this subject: that schools are too decentralized and lack adequate control and accountability; and that schools are too centralized, giving teachers too little autonomy. Both views, he shows, overlook one of the most important parts of teachers' work: schools are not simply organizations engineered to deliver academic instruction to students, as measured by test scores; schools and teachers also play a large part in the social and behavioral development of our children. As a result, both views overlook the power of implicit social controls in schools that are virtually invisible to outsiders but keenly felt by insiders. Given these blind spots, this book demonstrates that reforms from either camp begin with inaccurate premises about how schools work and so are bound not only to fail, but to exacerbate the problems they propose to solve.
Changing Meanings of Citizenship in Modern China (Harvard Contemporary China Series #13)
by Merle Goldman Elizabeth J. PerryThis collection of essays addresses the meaning and practice of political citizenship in China over the past century, raising the question of whether reform initiatives in citizenship imply movement toward increased democratization. After slow but steady moves toward a new conception of citizenship before 1949, there was a nearly complete reversal during the Mao regime, with a gradual reemergence beginning in the Deng era of concerns with the political rights as well as the duties of citizens. The distinguished contributors to this volume address how citizenship has been understood in China from the late imperial era to the present day, the processes by which citizenship has been fostered or undermined, the influence of the government, the different development of citizenship in mainland China and Taiwan, and the prospects of strengthening citizens' rights in contemporary China. Valuable for its century-long perspective and for placing the historical patterns of Chinese citizenship within the context of European and American experiences, Changing Meanings of Citizenship in Modern China investigates a critical issue for contemporary Chinese society.
Semblances of Sovereignty: The Constitution, the State, and American Citizenship
by T. Alexander AleinikoffIn a set of cases decided at the end of the nineteenth century, the Supreme Court declared that Congress had "plenary power" to regulate immigration, Indian tribes, and newly acquired territories. Not coincidentally, the groups subject to Congress' plenary power were primarily nonwhite and generally perceived as "uncivilized." The Court left Congress free to craft policies of assimilation, exclusion, paternalism, and domination.Despite dramatic shifts in constitutional law in the twentieth century, the plenary power case decisions remain largely the controlling law. The Warren Court, widely recognized for its dedication to individual rights, focused on ensuring "full and equal citizenship"--an agenda that utterly neglected immigrants, tribes, and residents of the territories. The Rehnquist Court has appropriated the Warren Court's rhetoric of citizenship, but has used it to strike down policies that support diversity and the sovereignty of Indian tribes.Attuned to the demands of a new century, the author argues for abandonment of the plenary power cases, and for more flexible conceptions of sovereignty and citizenship. The federal government ought to negotiate compacts with Indian tribes and the territories that affirm more durable forms of self-government. Citizenship should be "decentered," understood as a commitment to an intergenerational national project, not a basis for denying rights to immigrants.
Liberalism and Its Discontents
by Alan BrinkleyHow did liberalism, the great political tradition that from the New Deal to the 1960s seemed to dominate American politics, fall from favor so far and so fast? In this history of liberalism since the 1930s, a distinguished historian offers an eloquent account of postwar liberalism, where it came from, where it has gone, and why. The book supplies a crucial chapter in the history of twentieth-century American politics as well as a valuable and clear perspective on the state of our nation's politics today.Liberalism and Its Discontents moves from a penetrating interpretation of Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal to an analysis of the profound and frequently corrosive economic, social, and cultural changes that have undermined the liberal tradition. The book moves beyond an examination of the internal weaknesses of liberalism and the broad social and economic forces it faced to consider the role of alternative political traditions in liberalism's downfall. What emerges is a picture of a dominant political tradition far less uniform and stable--and far more complex and contested--than has been argued. The author offers as well a masterly assessment of how some of the leading historians of the postwar era explained (or failed to explain) liberalism and other political ideologies in the last half-century. He also makes clear how historical interpretation was itself a reflection of liberal assumptions that began to collapse more quickly and completely than almost any scholar could have imagined a generation ago. As both political history and a critique of that history, Liberalism and Its Discontents, based on extraordinary essays written over the last decade, leads to a new understanding of the shaping of modern America.
The Law Of Peoples (PDF)
by John RawlsThis work consists of two parts: the essay The Idea of Public Reason Revisited, first published in 1997, and The Law of Peoples, a major reworking of a much shorter article by the same name published in 1993. Taken together, they are the culmination of more than 50 years of reflection on liberalism anon some of the most pressing problems of our times by John Rawls.
What's Next: Essays on Geopolitics That Matter (A Penguin Special from Portfolio)
by Douglas Rediker Ian BremmerIn What's Next, Ian Bremmer, author of Every Nation for Itself and The End of the Free Market, and Douglas Rediker provide a guide to the major global issues and policies sure to dominate headlines in the next few years.In the last four years, the world has suffered a financial market meltdown and subsequent global recession. The eurozone crisis looms, the Middle East is in turmoil, and a shifting power balance between emerging markets and developed economies is reordering the global economy as a whole. Facing these new challenges, what will the future hold?Ian Bremmer and Douglas Rediker, together with experts, analysts, analyze these global issues and provide a template to understand how they will change our world in the next few years. Focusing in on the most volatile, powerful, or misunderstood developments, the authors examine the risks to the IMF, Russia's future, the roles of emerging markets, and the future of US foreign policy. They assess the political roots of the eurozone crisis, the key questions surrounding Afghanistan, important trends and tensions underway in Asia Pacific, and the rise of regionalism in the wake of fracturing international governance.Ian Bremmer is the founder and president of Eurasia Group. He has authored several books, including the national bestsellers, Every Nation for Itself and The End of the Free Market. He is a contributor for the Financial Times A-List and Reuters.com, and served as chairman of the Global Agenda Council on Geopolitical Risk. Presently, he teaches at Columbia University.Douglas Rediker previously represented the United States on the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund. Following almost two decades in international financial markets, he co-founded and directed the Global Strategic Finance Initiative at the New America Foundation, where he is currently a Senior Fellow. He served as chairman of the Global Agenda Council on Geopolitical Risk
The Siege: Three Days of Terror Inside the Taj
by Adrian Levy Cathy Scott-ClarkThe Siege by Adrian Levy & Cathy Scott-Clark - a searing account of the 2005 terrorist attacks at Mumbai's famous Taj HotelOn 26th November 2008 the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai is besieged by Pakistani Islamists, armed with explosives and machine guns.For three days, guests and staff of the hotel are trapped as the terrorists run amok.On 29th November commandos launch Operation Black Tornado. The world holds its breath.The Siege is a helter-skelter thriller, threaded with powerful human stories. By turns tragic and heroic, the events are told through a cast of real characters, who were thrown together in the luxurious, century-old Taj: waiters, chefs, captains of industry, hedge funders, celebrities, tourists, policemen, special forces and terrorists. For the first time, this astonishing book takes us through the news footage and into the heart of the hotel. Each hostage has a choice: hide, run or fight. What would you do?This classic non-fiction account will grip readers of No Easy Day and No Way Down and will be enjoyed by fans of 'United 93' and 'The Towering Inferno'.Cathy Scott-Clark and Adrian Levy are the authors of four books, most recently the acclaimed The Meadow: Kashmir 1995 - Where the Terror Began (Harper Press UK; Penguin India). For 16 years they worked as foreign correspondents and investigative reporters for the Sunday Times and then the Guardian. In 2009, the One World Trust named them British Journalists of the Year, having won Foreign Correspondents of the Year in 2004. They co-produce documentaries for British and American television; their most recent for C4 Dispatches, on Pakistan's war on terror, City of Fear, was nominated for an award at the Edinburgh International Television Festival. Currently they are filming new projects in Myanmar and China.
The Power: WINNER OF THE 2017 BAILEYS WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION
by Naomi AldermanWINNER OF THE 2017 BAILEYS WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTIONONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S BEST BOOKS OF 2017'Electrifying' Margaret Atwood'A big, page-turning, thought-provoking thriller' GuardianAll over the world women are discovering they have the power. With a flick of the fingers they can inflict terrible pain - even death. Suddenly, every man on the planet finds they've lost control. The Day of the Girls has arrived - but where will it end?'The Hunger Games crossed with The Handmaid's Tale' Cosmopolitan'Superb. Insightful, thrilling, funny. Well-crafted, compelling, serious-minded' Daily Telegraph'Fascinating, ingenious, rattles with a furious pace. Deserves to be read by every woman (and, for that matter, every man)' The Times'Irresistible. Holds a mirror up to the here and now' Mail on Sunday'Chilling, thrilling, a blast' Financial Times'A shocking, thrill-a-minute story' Observer
In It Together: The Inside Story of the Coalition Government
by Matthew D'AnconaMatthew d'Ancona's In It Together is the revelatory inside story of Britain's coalition government.Andrew Rawnsley told the inside story of new labour in Servants of the People and The End of the Party and now renowned political journalist Matt d'Ancona cuts right to the heart of the Lib Dem/Tory struggle in In It Together. With exclusive, unprecedented access to all the major senior figures, from David Cameron, George Osborne, Boris Johnson and Nick Clegg, he will tell the truth behind key relationships, the U-turns, the shifts in policies, the dramatic fights and arguments and the warring within the party. A breathtaking book that takes you into the heart of government, it reveals the truth behind the corridors of Whitehall and Number 10.Matthew d'Ancona is the award-winning political columnist for The Sunday Telegraph, a position he has held since 1996. He was Deputy Editor of that paper before becoming editor of The Spectator in 2006. During his editorship, the magazine enjoyed record circulation and he was named Editor of the Year (Current Affairs) in the 2007 BSME awards.
Empire: What Ruling the World Did to the British
by Jeremy PaxmanThe influence of the British Empire is everywhere, from the very existence of the United Kingdom to the ethnic composition of our cities. It affects everything, from Prime Ministers' decisions to send troops to war to the adventurers we admire. From the sports we think we're good at to the architecture of our buildings; the way we travel to the way we trade; the hopeless losers we will on, and the food we hunger for, the empire is never very far away.In this acute and witty analysis, Jeremy Paxman, bestselling author of The English goes to the very heart of empire. As he describes the selection process for colonial officers ('intended to weed out the cad, the feeble and the too clever') the importance of sport, the sweating domestic life of the colonial officer's wife ('the challenge with cooking meat was "to grasp the fleeting moment between toughness and putrefaction when the joint may possibly prove eatable"') and the crazed end for General Gordon of Khartoum, Paxman brings brilliantly to life the tragedy and comedy of Empire and reveals its profound and lasting effect on our nation and ourselves.
Running the Show: The Extraordinary Stories of the Men who Governed the British Empire
by Stephanie WilliamsFrom Sierra Leone to Fiji, Australia to Sri Lanka, Running the Show is a vivid portrait of empire and of men from another age, who formed so much of the world we live in today.Running the Show is the story of ordinary men, who in their way, were heroes. Made up of episodes from the lives of governors serving around the British Empire, it presents a kaleidoscope of people, places and events - and stories of how, for better or worse, attempts were made to bring order to often chaotic situations.Drawing on an astonishing cache of Colonial Office dispatches, private letters, diaries and memoirs, governors recall their strange experiences, parade their eccentricities and complain about dysentery as they plan new towns, build railways, create assemblies, draft laws, negotiate with tribesmen, set up schools and hospitals, and introduce sanitation systems in the farthest reaching corners of the world.
The Dismissal: In the Queen's Name
by Troy Bramston Paul KellyThere is no more dramatic event in our political history than the dismissal. This book is the definitive story, filled with fresh documents, revelations and new interviews that change our understanding of this event. It is also a brilliant forensic analysis of the ruthless, proud and stubborn main players - Malcolm Fraser, Gough Whitlam and Sir John Kerr. As keys to our understanding, Kelly and Bramston examine four central aspects of the dismissal- the real attitude of Buckingham Palace towards Kerr; whether Kerr tipped Fraser off about his plan; Kerr's deception of Whitlam; and Kerr's dealings with former High Court judges Sir Garfield Barwick and Sir Anthony Mason. In the gripping story that follows, the ambitions and flaws of Whitlam, Fraser and Kerr are laid bare as never before. Drawing on a range of new sources, some of which have never before been made public - including hundreds of pages from Kerr's archives - this remarkable account is dispassionate in its analysis, vivid in its narrative and brutal in its conclusions. It exposes the true motivations, the extent of the deceit and the scale of the collusion.
The Dismissal: In the Queen's Name (PDF)
by Troy Bramston Paul KellyThere is no more dramatic event in our political history than the dismissal. This book is the definitive story, filled with fresh documents, revelations and new interviews that change our understanding of this event. It is also a brilliant forensic analysis of the ruthless, proud and stubborn main players - Malcolm Fraser, Gough Whitlam and Sir John Kerr. As keys to our understanding, Kelly and Bramston examine four central aspects of the dismissal- the real attitude of Buckingham Palace towards Kerr; whether Kerr tipped Fraser off about his plan; Kerr's deception of Whitlam; and Kerr's dealings with former High Court judges Sir Garfield Barwick and Sir Anthony Mason. In the gripping story that follows, the ambitions and flaws of Whitlam, Fraser and Kerr are laid bare as never before. Drawing on a range of new sources, some of which have never before been made public - including hundreds of pages from Kerr's archives - this remarkable account is dispassionate in its analysis, vivid in its narrative and brutal in its conclusions. It exposes the true motivations, the extent of the deceit and the scale of the collusion.
Major Problems in American History Since 1945 (PDF)
by Robert GriffithThis text presents a carefully selected group of readings on topics such as the Cold War and Watergate, organized to allow students to evaluate primary sources, test the interpretations of distinguished historians, and draw their own conclusions.
Extremisms in Africa Volume 2
by Alain Tschudin Craig Moffat Stephen Buchanan-Clarke Susan Russell Lloyd CouttsOver the past two decades, the rapid emergence and spread of both local and transnational extremist organisations has become a primary source of insecurity in Africa. Extremist organisations represent the fluid and variable nature of conflict systems today and are at the heart of some of Africa’s most enduring conflicts. Moreover, the inability of African states to contain the threat of extremism, or of heavy-handed security responses, has led to the loss of thousands of lives, displaced millions, and deeply impacted the continent’s democratisation and development goals.This is the second anthology published by Good Governance Africa (GGA) on the topic of extremism and political violence in Africa. Extremisms in Africa, one of the first anthologies of its kind on this topic to be authored - and published - on the African continent, provided an account of how extremist groups arose in Africa and the various ways in which they have harnessed their global agendas to local conflict dynamics and structural challenges, enabling them to exploit the grievances of individuals and communities for their cause.This anthology, Extremisms in Africa Volume 2, looks forward, giving special attention to the ways in which emergent trends, global geopolitics and conflict dynamics merge to impact upon the African continent. To this end, we have sought to engage diverse topics ranging from ecological concerns surrounding climate change and migration, the implications of such human movement for modern-day trafficking and slavery, and the roles of women and youth.State responses to extremisms on the African continent are not uniform; the capacity of individual states to detect/identify, police, investigate and prosecute is highly variable. At the most fundamental level, extremisms are ripe to arise in contexts where governments are failing, especially when democracy is on the wane.This anthology identifies some of the most pressing challenges in addressing extremisms today and provides chapters that could offer actionable policy insights to governments and civil society. Given the nature of Africa’s geopolitical landscape, state and security services alone cannot prevent extremism. It will take a ‘whole-of-society’ approach, where government, civil society, academia, communities, families, and individuals collaborate to better understand the local dynamics of recruitment and radicalisation and develop context-specific strategies in response. This anthology will hopefully provide practitioners with improved insight into some of the key challenges and potential solutions in preventing extremism, while also being of interest to the general reader.
Lift As You Rise: Speeches and Thoughts on Leadership
by Bonang MohaleBonang Mohale is a highly respected South African businessman, who is known as much for his patriotism and his active role in seeking to advance his country’s interests as for the leading role he has played in companies like Otis Elevators, Shell South Africa and South African Airways, among others. Developed over 30 years of business experience, his insights have motivated change in organisations and individuals alike.As CEO of Business Leadership South Africa, he frequently shares his insights through speeches and articles on the role of business in South Africa and the core tenets of leadership. Lift As You Rise is a compilation of some of his spoken and written words in which Mohale reveals the issues he is passionate about, among them transformation, people development, constructive collaboration and integrity, and how they came to define his career and his life. He looks into the ideas behind his words and offers fresh thoughts on the subjects they cover.This well-balanced compilation is enhanced by contributions from others he has mentored or met on his journey which underscore who Mohale the man is, a fearless and energetic leader whose compassion, humanity and eternal optimism promote hope and encourage action.There is value in this book for leaders in all walks of life, but it is Mohale’s hope that young people specifically, those rising through the ranks, will find his insights and experience inspiring, for they are the country’s future leaders.
The Birth Of The Modern World, 1780-1914: Global Connections and Comparisons (Blackwell History Of The World Ser.)
by C. A. BaylyThematic history of the world from 1780 to the onset of the First World War.
The Making Of Modern British Politics: 1867 - 1945 (PDF)
by Martin J. PughThe third edition of this successful text has been revised to include a new chapter on the politics of the Second World War, and to reflect recent developments in research into the period. Third edition of this insightful survey of changes in British politics Now extended to cover the politics of the Second World War and the election of 1945 Extensively revised in the light of recent research Looks at the Labour Party's evolution into a national rather than sectional party Includes updated suggestions for further reading
Third World Child: Born White, Zulu Bred
by GG AlcockGG Alcock's parents, Creina and Neil, were humanitarians who gave up comfortable lives to move to rural Zululand. In a place called Msinga, a dry rock-strewn wilderness and one of the most violent places in Africa, they lived and worked among the Mchunu and Mthembu tribes, fighting for the rights of people displaced by the apartheid government's policy of "forced removals". They also fought against the corruption of police and government officials, as well as local farmers, which did not sit well with their white fellow citizens. When GG was fourteen his father was assassinated by rival tribesmen. GG's early life in rural Zululand in the 1970s and 80s can only be described as unique. He and his brother Khonya, both initially home-schooled by their mother, grew up as Zulu kids, herding goats and playing with the children of their neighbours, learning to speak fluent Zulu, learning to become Zulu men under the guidance of Zulu elders, and learning the customs and history of their adopted tribes. Armed with their father's only legacy - the skills to survive in Africa - both young men were ultimately forced to move into the "white" world which was largely unknown to them. In many ways, GG Alcock's story mirrors that of many of his people, the journey of a tribal society learning to embrace the first world. He does not shy away from the violence and death that coloured his childhood years surrounded by savage faction fighting, nor how they affected his adult life. His story in Third World Child is one of heartbreak and tragedy and, paradoxically, of vibrant hope and compassion. A restless energy and sardonic humour permeate his writing, which is compelling in its honesty and spontaneity.
Commonist Tendencies: Mutual Aid beyond Communism
by Jeff ShantzAs capitalist societies in the twenty-first century move from crisis to crisis, oppositional movements in the global North have been somewhat stymied (despite ephemeral manifestations like Occupy), confronted with the pressing need to develop organizational infrastructures that might prepare the ground for a real, and durable, alternative. More and more, the need to develop shared infrastructural resources — what Shantz terms “infrastructures of resistance” — becomes apparent. Ecological disaster (through crises of capital), economic crisis, political austerity, and mass produced fear and phobia all require organizational preparation — the common building of real world alternatives. There is, as necessary as ever, a need to think through what we, as non-elites, exploited, and oppressed, want and how we might get it. There is an urgency to pursue constructive approaches to meet common needs. For many, the constructive vision and practice for meeting social needs (individual and collective) is expressed as commonism — an aspiration of mutual aid, sharing, and common good or common wealth collectively determined and arrived at. The term commonsim is a useful way to discuss the goals and aspirations of oppositional movements, the movement of movements, because it returns to social struggle the emphasis on commonality — a common wealth — that has been lost in the histories of previous movements that subsumed the commons within mechanisms of state control, regulation, and accounting — namely communism.