The Global Achievement Gap

Why Our Kids Don't Have the Skills They Need for College, Careers, and Citizenship -- and What We Can Do About It

Contributors

By Tony Wagner

On Sale
Mar 11, 2014
Page Count
360 pages
Publisher
Basic Books
ISBN-13
9780465055968

Despite the best efforts of educators, our nation’s schools are dangerously obsolete. Instead of teaching students to be critical thinkers and problem-solvers, we are asking them to memorize facts for multiple choice tests. This problem isn’t limited to low-income school districts: even our top schools aren’t teaching or testing the skills that matter most in the global knowledge economy. Our teens leave school equipped to work only in the kinds of jobs that are fast disappearing from the American economy. Meanwhile, young adults in India and China are competing with our students for the most sought-after careers around the world.

Education expert Tony Wagner has conducted scores of interviews with business leaders and observed hundreds of classes in some of the nation’s most highly regarded public schools. He discovered a profound disconnect between what potential employers are looking for in young people today (critical thinking skills, creativity, and effective communication) and what our schools are providing (passive learning environments and uninspired lesson plans that focus on test preparation and reward memorization).

He explains how every American can work to overhaul our education system, and he shows us examples of dramatically different schools that teach all students new skills. In addition, through interviews with college graduates and people who work with them, Wagner discovers how teachers, parents, and employers can motivate the &”net”; generation to excellence.

An education manifesto for the twenty-first century, The Global Achievement Gap is provocative and inspiring. It is essential reading for parents, educators, business leaders, policy-makers, and anyone interested in seeing our young people succeed as employees and citizens.

For additional information about the author and the book, please go to http://www.schoolchange.org

Formats and Prices

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$12.99

Price

$16.99 CAD

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  1. ebook $12.99 $16.99 CAD
  2. Trade Paperback $18.99 $23.99 CAD

Tony Wagner

About the Author

Tony Wagner is senior research fellow at the Learning Policy Institute. He was formerly the expert in residence at the Harvard Innovation Labs and codirector of the Change Leadership Group at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Wagner is the author of numerous books including the bestsellers Creating Innovators and The Global Achievement Gap. He lives in New Hampshire. 
 
Ulrik Juul Christensen, MD, is the founder and CEO of Area9 Lyceum, a leader in personalized and adaptive learning systems. Formerly a member of the McGraw Hill board of executives, he is a frequent keynote speaker and regular contributor to Forbes, and he serves on a number of boards including the Technical University of Denmark. He lives outside Boston, Massachusetts.

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