The following presents a review and reaction to two books relevant to general higher education practice. The original rationale for the selection, what was expected to learn, and what was actually learned from the books is presented. Following this, how the books are related to innovative and creative approaches, best practices and model approaches are explained with suggestions of how this learning can be used in the future.
The first book is: Leadership in Continuing and Distance Education in Higher Education by Shoemaker (1998). This book was originally read because it provided information relevant to the needs of adults aged 22 years to 75+ years who want to pursue higher education. It was expected that the book would provide information about leadership of an institution that would provide the distance education program as an alternative to adults who want both an education and to continue working. In actuality, the book did provide information regarding methods to motivate staff, build resources and budgets, manage change and create work groups, and develop liaisons. Techniques and tools were provided along with a review of innovative programs. The tools included samples of documents and reports and a list of organizations to consult, worldwide.
This book provided important information that was creative. The information provided creative tools to help leaders motivate their staff. For example, the author provided guidelines for strategies to develop effective collaboration among staff with relevant questionnaires, diagrams, models, charts, and diagrams. The book provided innovative approaches since today's college/university leader must have an understanding of how to deal with distance education. This new approach to education is among the best practices and leaders must understand how this type of education changes the college or university. Today's college/university leaders must understand how to help ...