Customer Reviews

The College Fear Factor: How Students and Professors Misunderstand One Another

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This is a wonderfully written book. It captures the essence of why so many students do not complete a college degree. The book is a great read for both prospective college and even high school students for that matter, and teachers of all stripes to understand how large the disconnect is between teacher and student. The book relates in many ways the truth that just because teachers are well-qualified in a given discipline, that doesn't mean they can connect to the students ways in which those students can be successful.

The book has clear examples through interviews ways in which all members of the educational community can improve. To highlight one specific example, teachers generally hve students write research papers and those teachers are befuddled as to why the papers turn out so badly. The writer insists that a solution such as giving the student a sample paper would cure most evils, rather than long drawn-out explanations. This was brought out in one clearly written conversation.

This book addresses a big gap in our understanding of effective college teaching by examining how students approach teaching. Using qualitative data from four studies, Cox shows how students' expectations, their fears, the way they interpret instruction, their external commitments and their learning strategies all play a major role in the success of teaching. We teachers focus so much on pedagogical approaches, but they way the students interpret and respond to the pedagogy can undermine any pedagogical approach. The result can be disappointment for both teachers and students. The teacher then blames the pedagogy, the students, or high schools for not preparing students adequately. The student blames the teacher or the subject. In the book, Cox describes a case that I found particularly instuctive where both teacher and student were well intentioned and trying hard, but due to how the students misconstrued the teacher's pedagogy, the class failed. Cox's emphasis is on community college students, but there is plenty that applies to all college teaching.

The book reminded me of Bain's "What the College Teachers Do" because clearly an effective teacher must know how to communicate the goals of a class and correct student misconceptions about both the content and the pedagogy. It also reminded me of Light's "Making the Most of College: Students Speak their Minds" because it examines the student perspective, but this goes much more into depth about teaching. Although the book examines the student perspective on teaching, it really isn't a book for college students to read who want to overcome their fears and anxieties. There are better books for that.

The book doesn't offer easy answers, but it does raise many important questions relevant to teaching. I recommend this book to teachers and administrators who care about effective teaching and student retention.

The College Fear Factor is very well written and provocative. The book is obviously a product of countless hours of field research in which extensive classroom observations and interviews reveal previously unexplored teaching and learning interactions between students and their professors. The author provides a clear and persuasive analysis of how underlying student fears lead to self-destructive behavior, and how professors' misunderstandings of these fears lead to frustration and less than optimal student outcomes. Clear prose and the author's success in weaving students' personalities throughout the analysis provide "story lines" that make for captivating reading!

The book would give any educator interested in honing their craft a deeper understanding of the importance of their students' perceptions in the learning process. As importantly, higher education practitioners involved in retention related work would glean important insights from the book regarding the role of relationships in teaching, learning, and student success.

This book is an interesting read based on four separate research studies on college education. Although the book focuses on community college students, the issues discussed are applicable to all types of college students.

Much of what is discussed in the book has likely been on the minds of those who teach; however Profesor Cox supports these thoughts with concrete evidence and clear examples. She also demonstrates how professors can help students to overcome the fear factor that they often experience.

The book is aptly timed, given the recent coverage community colleges have had in the news, i.e., the focus given by President Obama and others on the importance of community colleges.

A must read for every college professor that wants to ensure that students are successful.

This book is (a) not scary and (b) the best book ever written on any topic (that I've read). Read it. I recommend it.