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A review by cmloia
Excellent Sheep: The Miseducation of the American Elite and the Way to a Meaningful Life by William Deresiewicz
Disclaimer: I definitely dozed off a few times while trying to get through this before my Libby checkout period ended today, so I'm not gonna give it an official star rating, but my unofficial hovers between a 2 and 3.
Most of the book didn't feel like anything I didn't already know, though I suppose if you think our elite universities in the U.S. are a meritocracy and equalizer, you may benefit from a listen.
There were some good points made throughout, such as the transition to a customer service model in education and the way that graduation rates affect school rankings, which in turn disincentives real grading.
However, Deresiewicz also attempts to make the argument that universities used to do a better job of creating class equality...back when access to universities for anyone who wasn't a white male was not easily accessible.
***quotes***
"True self-esteem means not caring whether you get an A in the first place. It means recognizing, despite all you've been trained to believe, that the grades you get do not define your value as a human being. It means deciding for yourself what constitutes your success." (3:05:29)
Most of the book didn't feel like anything I didn't already know, though I suppose if you think our elite universities in the U.S. are a meritocracy and equalizer, you may benefit from a listen.
There were some good points made throughout, such as the transition to a customer service model in education and the way that graduation rates affect school rankings, which in turn disincentives real grading.
However, Deresiewicz also attempts to make the argument that universities used to do a better job of creating class equality...back when access to universities for anyone who wasn't a white male was not easily accessible.
***quotes***
"True self-esteem means not caring whether you get an A in the first place. It means recognizing, despite all you've been trained to believe, that the grades you get do not define your value as a human being. It means deciding for yourself what constitutes your success." (3:05:29)