The age of student dissent has left its mark on higher education by improving the quality of educational institutions. (HS)

Effectively assessing higher education will require new partnerships, a close look at the goals of teaching and learning, and respect for each system's diversity. An arrangement through which institutions and state systems could work together in experimenting with assessment alternatives is advocated. (MLW)

Current college faculty have little internal motivation to learn how to teach, their interests and rewards lying in the other domains for which their personalities, education, and training have prepared them. Students who have the potential to be good teachers do not see teaching as a feasible career, while good researchers do. (MLW)

Accrediting agencies step up requirements for evidence of institutions' efforts to improve student learning. Congressional leaders call for increased accountability and transparency in higher education. Business leaders worry about the growing gaps between their workforce needs and the numbers of Americans actually prepared for the available jobs.…

Seven liberal arts college students were recruited to seriously audit first year science courses, keeping a journal about how the class was structured, their reactions to the material, and the classroom culture. The students' experiences are discussed, and the implications for improvement of science education are examined. (MSE)

Four new books typify the constructive search for ways to improve the quality of undergraduate education. "Achieving Educational Excellence" (Alexander Astin), "Careerism and Intellectualism" (Herant A. Katchadorian et al.), "Increasing Student Retention" (Lee Noel et al.), and "Success in College" (Warren Willingham) are analyzed. (MLW)

Higher education's principal reason for being is seen as that of developing student talents. This premise suggests that a high-quality institution is one that maximizes the intellectual and personal development of its students. Student involvement is seen as the cornerstone of academic excellence. (MLW)

The issue of quality at regional state colleges and universities is discussed. While aspiring to become a major research institution is inappropriate for a regional state college or university, research and scholarly activities consistent with the norms of the faculty's disciplines are critical to the development of institutional quality. (MLW)

A three-year case study of education at "Oakwood Community College," an anonymous urban institution with an open access admissions policy, is described. What is happening to the students at open-access institutions, their learning styles, their objectives, their behavior, and whether these students are serviced or taught is discussed.…

Four books are reviewed including: "Fostering Minority Access and Achievement in Higher Education" (a Ford Foundation study by Richard Richardson and Lewis Bender); "In Pursuit of Equality in Higher Education" (Anne Pruitt); "Latino College Students" (Michael Olivas); and "Toward Undergraduate Student Quality in…

An institution devoted to education must do its best to study the learning process and to assess the effects of its programs. Without such critical self-examination, no endeavor can make sustained progress. An excerpt from the book "Higher Learning" by Derek Bok is presented. (MLW)

Efforts and concerns addressed in the very recent, rapid revitalization of China's higher education are discussed, including virtual cessation of education during the Cultural Revolution, students in the postCultural Revolution, instructional television, part-time and factory education for workers, youth unemployment, and academic quality. (MSE)