The Big Test: The Secret History of American Meritocracy

Shortly after World War II, a confluence of events resulted in the creation of the Educational Testing Service. James Conant Bryan, President of Harvard, wanted to extend the pool of students his university typically drew to the Midwest and other regions of the country. IBM perfected a machine that efficiently graded score sheets. Psychometrics matured under the war effort. Henry Chauncey, an assistant dean at Harvard, was given the opportunity to start a new organization that would handle entrance exams for the Ivy League.

Various historical figures make cameo appearances in this well-written social history. It tells the story of the testing movement in America from its origins around World War I to the modern day. Most interesting is the description of events surrounding the genesis of the ETS. The more recent evolutions and convolutions of the story are not as interesting as the occasionally coincidental circumstances surrounding the birth of the ETS.

Educators will enjoy reading this book to discover many things that are not well-known about the private organization whose influence, through the SAT and other tests, has become quite powerful in American life. Nicholas Lemann is a journalist and offers a perspective and style decidedly different than if this book had been written by one within the educational establishment. Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1999.

The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher

For years Harry Wong has been at the forefront on the lecture circuit, and his books and tapes have sold in the millions. Teachers everywhere have learned myriad positive strategies from his lifelong experiences as a teacher. Now, the book he and Rosemary Tripi Wong wrote together has been revised, and has shot up the sales chart at Amazon. If you teach, you simply must obtain and read this book. Harry K. Wong, 1998.

Check out our online interview with Harry Wong! Click here.

The Educator's Guide to Texas School Law

Authors Frank Kemerer and Jim Walsh have written one of those "must-haves" that belongs in your professional library. If you are an educator in Texas, you need this book. Readable and thorough, the book touches all areas of concern, with emphasis on how the law applies in Texas. Kemerer is Regents Professor of Education Law and Administration at UNT and Walsh is senior partner in the Walsh, Anderson, Underwood, Schulze & Alderidge firm which has been heavily involved with districts across the state for some time now. This one is a needful reference, no matter what level you teach. University of Texas Press, 2000.

Majoring in the Rest of Your Life: Career Secrets for College Students

Teachers, do you have a student who just doesn’t know what direction to take in life? Do they remind you of a boat adrift without a rudder? Carol Carter has written an excellent book aimed at that student. Majoring in the Rest of Your Life; Career Secrets for College Students, is outstanding in filling the need of providing a good overall sense of direction for the drifting college student.

Many of us have been there, or know others who have: entering college with no clue what to major in. Or picture this scenario: a recent college graduate who has no idea where he or she will get their first job. This book seeks to deal with the situations in which those students find themselves.

Carol Carter is Vice President and Publisher of Student Success and Career Development at Prentice Hall. She is particularly suited to writing this book, with unique personal qualifications based on her own experience and her work at Prentice Hall.

The book walks through interest and ability inventories to help students discern strengths and weaknesses. Tips on obtaining first jobs, networking, and handling rejection are interwoven with advice on internships, time management, and resumes.

Succinctly, we can’t think of a better book for high school seniors and college students. Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1999.