FOR RELEASE: Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Professor Examines Teacher Education in Revised Book
Christopher J. Lucas takes a closer look at teacher education in the second edition of his book, "American Higher Education," published in March by Palgrave.
Lucas, a University of Arkansas professor of higher education and educational foundations, revised his 1994 text on the history of American higher education, which traces its beginning to the dawn of recorded history.
Lucas' revision added pages to the second edition that offer perspective and updated information on debates over access to higher education, cost, academic quality, social impact and curricula.
The first edition of Lucas' history of American higher education made an impact on the education community's perception of higher education when it was published. It is used in graduate programs around the country in courses to prepare people for positions in administration, student services and higher education. Several reviewers commented on the first edition's readability for a general audience.
The second edition covers the infusion of market values into academia, as well.
"The student as the customer, knowledge as the commodity, the professor as the storekeeper – these are all parts of that ideology," Lucas said. "Keep the customer happy, the customer is always right. That is the thinking."
Administrators of higher education institutions analyze courses on cost-benefit ratios, and professors find their salaries tied to the face value of grants they secure in this cult of efficiency, Lucas said.
"Do you make money for us?" administrators want to know.
Lucas, a professor in the College of Education and Health Professions, pointed out that the University of Arkansas is distinctive among the nation's land-grant universities in that it incorporated teacher education from its inception. A legislative act of 1871 established the "Arkansas Industrial University with normal department therein." The normal department opened in 1872, and for decades the university was the largest supplier of teachers statewide.
"If you look at all four-year institutions, the largest enrollment – 'the cash cow' – is teacher preparation," Lucas said. "A lot of people who go to college do so with the expectation of seeking certification and teaching."
Lucas said some of the most well-known books on the topic of higher education start with colonial America and stop after World War II, leaving a lot of ground to be covered.
Despite his focus on a longer period of history, Lucas tells a story in his book of fewer than 400 pages, keeping it concise and topical. He doesn't consider it a reference work.
He described the challenge of establishing free-standing education colleges as academic components within universities, a challenge that lasted from the late 19th century to midway through the 20th century.
"The process was also a noisy one, it might be observed, accompanied as it often was by acrimony and vigorous debate," Lucas wrote.
He quoted A. Ross Hill, the dean of a teachers' college at the University of Missouri, in 1905: "Courses in the philosophy of education, the history of education and in genetic and educational psychology have the same right to place in a scheme of liberal education that have general philosophy, ethics, sociology."
Lucas, who has taught in Fayetteville since 1993, is the author of several other books, including "Teacher Education in America," "Crisis in the Academy" and "New Faculty," all also published by Palgrave.
More information about the book can be found at http://www.palgrave.com/ and through other online and local bookstores.
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Contact:
Heidi Stambuck, director of communications
College of Education and Health Professions
(479) 575-3138, stambuck@uark.edu