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What the Best College Students Do
The author of the best-selling book "What the Best College Teachers Do" is back with more humane, doable, and inspiring help, this time for students who want to get the most out of college--and every other educational enterprise, too.
The first thing they should do? Think beyond the transcript. The creative, successful people profiled in this book--college graduates who went on to change the world we live in--aimed higher than straight A's. They used their four years to cultivate habits of thought that would enable them to grow and adapt throughout their lives.
Combining academic research on learning and motivation with insights drawn from interviews with people who have won Nobel Prizes, Emmys, fame, or the admiration of people in their field, Ken Bain identifies the key attitudes that distinguished the best college students from their peers. These individuals started out with the belief that intelligence and ability are expandable, not fixed. This led them to make connections across disciplines, to develop a "meta-cognitive" understanding of their own ways of thinking, and to find ways to negotiate ill-structured problems rather than simply looking for right answers. Intrinsically motivated by their own sense of purpose, they were not demoralized by failure nor overly impressed with conventional notions of success. These movers and shakers didn't achieve success by making success their goal. For them, it was a byproduct of following their intellectual curiosity, solving useful problems, and taking risks in order to learn and grow.
The first thing they should do? Think beyond the transcript. The creative, successful people profiled in this book--college graduates who went on to change the world we live in--aimed higher than straight A's. They used their four years to cultivate habits of thought that would enable them to grow and adapt throughout their lives.
Combining academic research on learning and motivation with insights drawn from interviews with people who have won Nobel Prizes, Emmys, fame, or the admiration of people in their field, Ken Bain identifies the key attitudes that distinguished the best college students from their peers. These individuals started out with the belief that intelligence and ability are expandable, not fixed. This led them to make connections across disciplines, to develop a "meta-cognitive" understanding of their own ways of thinking, and to find ways to negotiate ill-structured problems rather than simply looking for right answers. Intrinsically motivated by their own sense of purpose, they were not demoralized by failure nor overly impressed with conventional notions of success. These movers and shakers didn't achieve success by making success their goal. For them, it was a byproduct of following their intellectual curiosity, solving useful problems, and taking risks in order to learn and grow.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published July 16, 2012
117 people are currently reading
875 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
July 21, 2013
As a student entering college as a freshman this fall, I felt the book was very encouraging, although not exactly insightful. The book's main argument focused on what it meant to be a "deep learner" versus a "strategic learner". Personally, I felt in an ideal world a student must be a blend of the two. I didn't like that Ken Bain rejected the idea that students should be focusing on grades. Grades should reflect if you've done the work, shouldn't they? And if a student completely reject their grades and simply "follows their curiosity", wouldn't that land them an F in the course? In life, you are sometimes forced to do things you don't like. Sometimes you will not want to do your readings because it's a textbook and it's boring and you don't find the course particularly enlightening. Should I not do it and read something else that I want to? Or should I do the course work and power through the boring parts? I felt a lack of balance in his argument. I also feel that in order to get A's, you almost have to be a deep learner- but not a learner that reject his studies just because it doesn't interest him. However, I did enjoy all the personal narratives and stories throughout the book highlighting some of his different subjects, as well as the overall advice he offered for enjoying college classes for the pure fact that you get to embark on the educational journey of a lifetime for the next four years. It was a confirming and pressure-reducing read. The total of the book's advice in a sentence: It's not all about getting a job and getting high marks, and things will work out just fine if you do the work thoughtfully and pursue your interests.
August 14, 2013
It wasn't what I was expecting. In many ways, I really wanted to get into what he was saying about being a deep learner. I feel like as an older student, I get that concept much better than I did when I was 18 and in college. However, I felt like many of his anecdotes pertained to overly political and biased points of view. There was a lot of discussion about students who found passion through combating the policies of Republican administrations, but nothing that tackled students who questioned the other side of the political spectrum. And for a book all about questioning everything, that was disappointing.
Secondly, I think that a certain amount of strategic learning is important in college. It definitely is possible to get a good grade and learn a lot. This is done through interaction with the professor through the entire course and seeking guidance where necessary. And sometimes that means changing focus to meet what your professor expects. There isn't anything wrong with that, I do it in my full-time job all the time.
Any way, it was mildly interesting, not life changing, but I'm glad I read it.
Secondly, I think that a certain amount of strategic learning is important in college. It definitely is possible to get a good grade and learn a lot. This is done through interaction with the professor through the entire course and seeking guidance where necessary. And sometimes that means changing focus to meet what your professor expects. There isn't anything wrong with that, I do it in my full-time job all the time.
Any way, it was mildly interesting, not life changing, but I'm glad I read it.
May 30, 2013
This book had an interesting and unexpected effect on me. I read it through a teacher's lens thinking about what I, as a teacher of students about to head to college, could do to facilitate the kind of learning that will most benefit good college students. And while I chafed at the book's anecdotal and seemingly unacademic style, it actually made me think about teaching and learning more than any other book I've read recently, and I try to delve into professional literature quite a lot, actually.
I've already started planning lessons differently for next year, and I'm really looking forward to continual reassessment of what I ask students to do, and how it will most influence them as they head past high school and into college.
Ultimately, really good stuff. I will try to get as many of my colleagues as possible to read it, and yes, my daughters, too.
I've already started planning lessons differently for next year, and I'm really looking forward to continual reassessment of what I ask students to do, and how it will most influence them as they head past high school and into college.
Ultimately, really good stuff. I will try to get as many of my colleagues as possible to read it, and yes, my daughters, too.
May 11, 2015
Bleh. Read for a class in which I was a TA, and I had a hard time motivating myself to read this, and I was getting paid for it. So, it's safe to say very few of the students actually read it. I get what Bain set out to do here, but it was terribly repetitive, and sort of dumb, to be blunt.
July 2, 2018
378.198 BAI
my review: before I read this book, I saw one review which says this book has not so much themes, but several loose connected strings. I really feel like this way when I read the book, but it is really writing style the author applied. When I read in details, there are definitely methods how to be a deep learner, curious, creative, critically thinking individual. Whatever the author tries to address in this book, I already figure these out myself. Chap 1 deal with how to become a deep learner, Chap 2 explain our brain.
Chap 1: The roots of success
This chapter focus on Paul Baker 's Integration of Abilities course at Drama department
Integration of abilities: exercises for creative growth by Paul Baker
Baker insists creative arts that works with five elements: space, time (or rhythm), motion (direction or line), sound (or silence), and silhouette(or color) p16
5 examples: Ernest Butler, Sarah Goodrich (Baker's student, art); Liz Lerman(Dance Exchange); Sherry Kafka (Baker's student); Will Allen(farmer, black, Athlete, Growing Power, urban farming)
chap 2: What makes an expert?
3 types of learner
Surface Learner, work avoidance
Strategic Learner , ego-oriented, procedure learner , routine expert: ace the exam, honor focus, free of risk, difficult to handle new situation, rarely become path-breaker. Surface and Strategic Learner either survive or shine.
Deep Learner , task-oriented, concept learner, adaptive expert: to improvise, invent, overcome unexpected.
e.g. Students get A's in physics class do not understand motions. What they learn has precious little meaning for them, no influence on the way they would think, act and feel. They approach college like a series of hurdles to jump rather than exciting ride of a life. p38
Factors promote deep learner
1. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. Danger of school structure, like gold star and good grade, can reduce interesting,
Why We Do What We Do: Understanding Self-Motivation by by Edward L. Deci
2. Find a purpose for education
3. Take Control of your education.
4. Avoid "Learned helplessness" (people have faced repeated obstacles that prevent them from succeeding still acts as if they can't help themselves even when those obstacles disappear. p56
5. Learn from "expectation failure" (Experience does not conform to the model in the brain). e.g work with a different social group even if you feel social discomfort to challenge you thinking in different way. p68
6. have rich opportunities to speculate.
chap 3 Managing yourself
3 types of brain
Spock brain: big and complex, reasoning, making decision. 2 modes. mindful brain vs. mindless brain. Mindful brain is the brain which pay attention, consciously aware of, deeply think. Mindless brain is the brain which repeat behaviors become mindless habits. 3 characteristics of mindful brain: continuous creation of new categories; openness to new information; an implicit awareness of more than on perspective.
The Power of Mindful Learning by Ellen J. Langer
The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation by Drew Westen
Alligator brain : amygdala, small,fast, fight or flee. When stress, can release cortisol, block Spock brain to function well. e.g anxious about test can have a low grade.
Pleasure brain : innate capacity of brain linking between having fun and learning.
Automatic or negative convention p 77, because of our brain tend to follow easy path to save energy.
a. myside bias also called confirmation bias, tendency to think from their own perspective.
b. vividness bias: a single vivid example can distract us from a dull statistic data. e.g 10 death in 100 people vs. 100 in 1000 people (latter is more vivid)
c. Framing prejudice: a frame around a problem can influence how you will answer it. e.g a tax reduction for homeowner can be address as "the rent payers' penalty".
d. society influence, stereotype influence.
To overcome all, in science, look for evidence that invalidate the proposition. in statistic, think in terms of probabilities. In history and anthropology, develop a historical perspective (that is , in that time's culture, environment.. social context).
Chap 4 Learning how to embrace failure
again Carol Dweck's research: fixed, helpless mindset vs. growth, mastery mindset.
be aware of danger of praise for smart not effort, focus on getting better yourself each day, instead of comparing to others.
p118 Analogy: fixed mindset like a intelligent ladder fixed at birth, Carol Dweck's mindset still like a ladder, but can be climbed up. Baker's view, intelligence like tree, each branch with uniqueness.
self-efficacy: believe that you can do it and know how to do it. p118
p119 Contingent self-worth: value of a person depend on where you rank, lead to fix-mindset.
Case: Jeff Hawkins's mobile computer, inventor of Palm Pilot, First smart phone, Treo.
Chap 5 Messy problems
case: David Protess and Chicago Innocence Program
Gone in the Night by David Protess
A Promise of Justice by David Protess
p151 - p156 7 stages of judgment
Stage 1- stage 3 Pre-reflective thinking
Stage 4- stage 5 Quasi-reflective thinking
Stage 6 - stage 7 reflective thinking.
You don't learn from experience, you learn from reflecting on experience.
Evaluating the Quality of Learning: The Solo Taxonomy by John Biggs
Solo stand for: Structure of the Observed Learning Outcomes
"Teaching Teaching & Understanding Understanding" is a 19-minute award-winning short-film about teaching at university and higher-level educational institutions. It is based on the "Constructive Alignment" theory developed by Prof. John Biggs. The film delivers a foundation for understanding what a teacher needs to do in order to make sure all types of students actually learn what the teacher intends.
Chap 6 Encouragement
Self-esteem can lead to narcissism, need to be self-kindness, self-compassion, not self-indulgence, not harshly self-criticized, take responsibility but understand as human we make mistakes, so treat ourselves with forgiveness.
Chap 7
case : Duncan Campbell: Wood Johnson Foundation's Purpose Award
This chapter is examples of creative, curious, compassionate, concerned , caring human beings, citizen of the world
Chap 8 Making the hard choice
practical advices how to become a good students
I. What keeps you working?
pp226 In one of Paul Baker's exercises ..Students thought about some creative work they had done in the past, whether is as baking a pie, writing a story, .... They would then examine what it took for them to do that work. What attitudes did they have? Did they control their actions or respond to someone's command? What rituals did they perform, such as making out a schedule or eating a ice cream? What did they tell themselves? What did they visualize? Where did you work, for how long, and at what time of day? What did they value? Did they connect the job to some larger purpose? Did they keep constantly in mind the feeling they world have once they had finished, did they focus on each along the way, or both? How did they feel when they finished the work? Did they enjoy the task, or simply value the results? They had to talk to themselves and to understand their own minds and how they work, and it was that personal examination that led to particular practices that drove their labors rather than some tight prescription of activities and procedure. -- My words: self-control and delay gratification is hard, you must understand yourself to overcome the difficult of the study.
II. What teachers should you choose? p228-232 15 points
III. What do you do when you bored?
IV. How will you read? p232 - p241 11 points.
V. How will you study? p241-248
Elaborate; Develop an understanding before trying to remember; Repeat, Repeat; Testing is better than rehearsing (Guess before reading); Do not always study in the same spot; Don't multitasking.
VI. How will you write?
VII. Are you going to join the club? -- that is, what academic culture, e.g policy of late work.
Books:
What the Best College Teachers Do by Ken Bain
my review: before I read this book, I saw one review which says this book has not so much themes, but several loose connected strings. I really feel like this way when I read the book, but it is really writing style the author applied. When I read in details, there are definitely methods how to be a deep learner, curious, creative, critically thinking individual. Whatever the author tries to address in this book, I already figure these out myself. Chap 1 deal with how to become a deep learner, Chap 2 explain our brain.
Chap 1: The roots of success
This chapter focus on Paul Baker 's Integration of Abilities course at Drama department
Integration of abilities: exercises for creative growth by Paul Baker
Baker insists creative arts that works with five elements: space, time (or rhythm), motion (direction or line), sound (or silence), and silhouette(or color) p16
5 examples: Ernest Butler, Sarah Goodrich (Baker's student, art); Liz Lerman(Dance Exchange); Sherry Kafka (Baker's student); Will Allen(farmer, black, Athlete, Growing Power, urban farming)
chap 2: What makes an expert?
3 types of learner
Surface Learner, work avoidance
Strategic Learner , ego-oriented, procedure learner , routine expert: ace the exam, honor focus, free of risk, difficult to handle new situation, rarely become path-breaker. Surface and Strategic Learner either survive or shine.
Deep Learner , task-oriented, concept learner, adaptive expert: to improvise, invent, overcome unexpected.
e.g. Students get A's in physics class do not understand motions. What they learn has precious little meaning for them, no influence on the way they would think, act and feel. They approach college like a series of hurdles to jump rather than exciting ride of a life. p38
Factors promote deep learner
1. Intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. Danger of school structure, like gold star and good grade, can reduce interesting,
Why We Do What We Do: Understanding Self-Motivation by by Edward L. Deci
2. Find a purpose for education
3. Take Control of your education.
4. Avoid "Learned helplessness" (people have faced repeated obstacles that prevent them from succeeding still acts as if they can't help themselves even when those obstacles disappear. p56
5. Learn from "expectation failure" (Experience does not conform to the model in the brain). e.g work with a different social group even if you feel social discomfort to challenge you thinking in different way. p68
6. have rich opportunities to speculate.
chap 3 Managing yourself
3 types of brain
Spock brain: big and complex, reasoning, making decision. 2 modes. mindful brain vs. mindless brain. Mindful brain is the brain which pay attention, consciously aware of, deeply think. Mindless brain is the brain which repeat behaviors become mindless habits. 3 characteristics of mindful brain: continuous creation of new categories; openness to new information; an implicit awareness of more than on perspective.
The Power of Mindful Learning by Ellen J. Langer
The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation by Drew Westen
Alligator brain : amygdala, small,fast, fight or flee. When stress, can release cortisol, block Spock brain to function well. e.g anxious about test can have a low grade.
Pleasure brain : innate capacity of brain linking between having fun and learning.
Automatic or negative convention p 77, because of our brain tend to follow easy path to save energy.
a. myside bias also called confirmation bias, tendency to think from their own perspective.
b. vividness bias: a single vivid example can distract us from a dull statistic data. e.g 10 death in 100 people vs. 100 in 1000 people (latter is more vivid)
c. Framing prejudice: a frame around a problem can influence how you will answer it. e.g a tax reduction for homeowner can be address as "the rent payers' penalty".
d. society influence, stereotype influence.
To overcome all, in science, look for evidence that invalidate the proposition. in statistic, think in terms of probabilities. In history and anthropology, develop a historical perspective (that is , in that time's culture, environment.. social context).
Chap 4 Learning how to embrace failure
again Carol Dweck's research: fixed, helpless mindset vs. growth, mastery mindset.
be aware of danger of praise for smart not effort, focus on getting better yourself each day, instead of comparing to others.
p118 Analogy: fixed mindset like a intelligent ladder fixed at birth, Carol Dweck's mindset still like a ladder, but can be climbed up. Baker's view, intelligence like tree, each branch with uniqueness.
self-efficacy: believe that you can do it and know how to do it. p118
p119 Contingent self-worth: value of a person depend on where you rank, lead to fix-mindset.
Case: Jeff Hawkins's mobile computer, inventor of Palm Pilot, First smart phone, Treo.
Chap 5 Messy problems
case: David Protess and Chicago Innocence Program
Gone in the Night by David Protess
A Promise of Justice by David Protess
p151 - p156 7 stages of judgment
Stage 1- stage 3 Pre-reflective thinking
Stage 4- stage 5 Quasi-reflective thinking
Stage 6 - stage 7 reflective thinking.
You don't learn from experience, you learn from reflecting on experience.
Evaluating the Quality of Learning: The Solo Taxonomy by John Biggs
Solo stand for: Structure of the Observed Learning Outcomes
"Teaching Teaching & Understanding Understanding" is a 19-minute award-winning short-film about teaching at university and higher-level educational institutions. It is based on the "Constructive Alignment" theory developed by Prof. John Biggs. The film delivers a foundation for understanding what a teacher needs to do in order to make sure all types of students actually learn what the teacher intends.
Chap 6 Encouragement
Self-esteem can lead to narcissism, need to be self-kindness, self-compassion, not self-indulgence, not harshly self-criticized, take responsibility but understand as human we make mistakes, so treat ourselves with forgiveness.
Chap 7
case : Duncan Campbell: Wood Johnson Foundation's Purpose Award
This chapter is examples of creative, curious, compassionate, concerned , caring human beings, citizen of the world
Chap 8 Making the hard choice
practical advices how to become a good students
I. What keeps you working?
pp226 In one of Paul Baker's exercises ..Students thought about some creative work they had done in the past, whether is as baking a pie, writing a story, .... They would then examine what it took for them to do that work. What attitudes did they have? Did they control their actions or respond to someone's command? What rituals did they perform, such as making out a schedule or eating a ice cream? What did they tell themselves? What did they visualize? Where did you work, for how long, and at what time of day? What did they value? Did they connect the job to some larger purpose? Did they keep constantly in mind the feeling they world have once they had finished, did they focus on each along the way, or both? How did they feel when they finished the work? Did they enjoy the task, or simply value the results? They had to talk to themselves and to understand their own minds and how they work, and it was that personal examination that led to particular practices that drove their labors rather than some tight prescription of activities and procedure. -- My words: self-control and delay gratification is hard, you must understand yourself to overcome the difficult of the study.
II. What teachers should you choose? p228-232 15 points
III. What do you do when you bored?
IV. How will you read? p232 - p241 11 points.
V. How will you study? p241-248
Elaborate; Develop an understanding before trying to remember; Repeat, Repeat; Testing is better than rehearsing (Guess before reading); Do not always study in the same spot; Don't multitasking.
VI. How will you write?
VII. Are you going to join the club? -- that is, what academic culture, e.g policy of late work.
Books:
What the Best College Teachers Do by Ken Bain
August 19, 2012
Every faculty member should read this book, despite the fact that it is actually written for students. Bain brings together a wide range of research on learning as well as synthesizing the experiences of several very successful people. What results is a thought-provoking little book on how to learn deeply instead of just making good grades in college. I am not sure the prose is consistently engaging enough to reach the students who most need to read it, unfortunately, and despite the fact that some of his examples are people who entered college with few financial resources, I do not believe that the author has spent enough time dealing with the student who might have some serious barriers to lingering in college in order to reap all its rewards. Still and all, an excellent, thoughtful complement to all the books I have been reading about the crisis in higher education. I wish What the Best College Students Do was required reading for legislatures!
August 9, 2016
As a soon-to-be college student (internal screaming), I found this book a good introduction to attitudes and a few habits to foster success. It led to a lot of thinking about what I want out of my education, myself, my life.
The entire book is summarized well in the last passage:
(My notes) Don't focus on yourself (fame, short-term rewards, etc.), focus "on what you want to learn, see, do, change; what questions you have; what passions drive you—not on your own emotions or desire to be creative." Find "something in the world that interest(s you) more than (yourself)... You have to care about something and let your passion drive your life."
"If you learn to realize the special contributions you can make and develop the capacity to benefit from other people's creations, you can flourish as a curious, creative, and critically thinking individual."
These lines mean a lot to me now, but maybe that's only because I read the entire book building on these ideas!
The only thing I didn't love was the writing. It didn't feel like Bain was a writer by trade, I suppose? It was difficult for me to find logic in the organization of chapters and sections. Within sections, he'd often conclude in the same way--with the "concluding paragraph" archetype of five-paragraph essays. But overall, the stories about individuals and studies were interesting, and I feel better off having read this book.
The entire book is summarized well in the last passage:
(My notes) Don't focus on yourself (fame, short-term rewards, etc.), focus "on what you want to learn, see, do, change; what questions you have; what passions drive you—not on your own emotions or desire to be creative." Find "something in the world that interest(s you) more than (yourself)... You have to care about something and let your passion drive your life."
"If you learn to realize the special contributions you can make and develop the capacity to benefit from other people's creations, you can flourish as a curious, creative, and critically thinking individual."
These lines mean a lot to me now, but maybe that's only because I read the entire book building on these ideas!
The only thing I didn't love was the writing. It didn't feel like Bain was a writer by trade, I suppose? It was difficult for me to find logic in the organization of chapters and sections. Within sections, he'd often conclude in the same way--with the "concluding paragraph" archetype of five-paragraph essays. But overall, the stories about individuals and studies were interesting, and I feel better off having read this book.
August 22, 2013
Could be titled "What the Best College Students Read." I'm not sure it's really geared to the average college freshman, but teachers and parents could benefit from reading it and potentially needling their students about it. Bain emphasizes the need for curiosity, love of learning and the liberal arts. His case studies include students rich enough to take summer service vacations in India and also families which were poor and marginalized, but sacrificed for education. The criteria for these "successful students" is hard, because how do you know when someone is successful. Grades obviously isn't the point, but why Stephen Colbert and not another successful comedian? As a proponent of the humanities myself, I definitely appreciate the way Bain encourages taking classes broadly, including electives and required general education classes, to create connections and help students to discover their interests creatively. The sample class that he profiles does get a little hokey ("Walk across the stage in a way that is happy. Now depressed."), but over all, I love to think about how to encourage students to take a step back from schoolcraft and consider their education.
April 29, 2015
Good intentions, but most students didn't quite connect with the overall themes. Lots of anecdotal fluff and too many success short stories distracted from rather than amplified the important messages. A level of implicitness is great, but a certain amount of explicitness is necessary especially considering the target audience for the book. Overall, the idea is terrific as it focuses on getting the most out of education and invoking curiosity and motivation in academia rather than giving basic strategies for successful studying, test taking, etc.
October 17, 2021
One of the best books I have ever read. It was literally life changing. I went in expecting it to be about practical guidance for the high school student, but it ended up actually being much better than that. Rather, the book focused on long term, purpose filled living and how to use college to make sure that you can achieve that in years to come. It strongly emphasized making a long term difference in the world as well as changing your thought process to apply what you learn in college to your life as a whole. I definitely recommend to any college student.
August 21, 2012
Wonderful synthesis of research on successful learning (not just doing well in college). It reads well and is easily comprehendable (and has some soaring and profound passages), but one would benefit reading it multiple times. It emphasizes creativity, metacognition, and self-directed learning. It also celebrates the joy of learning, and how that helps one live a fulfilled life. Should be required reading for every student (and teacher).
October 1, 2018
The content that this book holds is invaluable. Every student in or about to attend college should read it. Sometimes the narrative became boring to me and I would pass a page or two but the tips and examples this book holds are great in order to gain perspective and approach your studies in a more insightful and meaningful matter! This one I will definitely recommend!
Read
November 23, 2022I compulsively read pretty much any book I come across that discusses student learning, especially college student learning. This is one of my preferred titles in this vein--smart, not preachy (despite the tone of the title), reductive, or prescriptive, and emphasizing the essential points that 1. your education must be driven by your own choices, 2. your education cannot and should not look the same as everyone else's and 3. education is not only what you are expressly taught in coursework, but even more so, how, what, why, and to what end you learn to think.
February 7, 2022
While working in Higher Education, I wanted this book so desperately! My former boss/mentor got it for me for Christmas. Upon completing graduate school, I needed to take a mental break after nine long years of non-stop grueling college studying/graduating with three college degrees, I set this book down. I recently picked it back up and it’s like the synapses in my brain just started going crazy!
Bain’s book is such a great tool for both those being educated and educators alike! For, we are all all still learners, we never stop no matter what or how many degrees we have. I find this book to be a remarkable professional development tool. I also am so appreciative because it has revived my passion for Higher Education.
Bain’s book is such a great tool for both those being educated and educators alike! For, we are all all still learners, we never stop no matter what or how many degrees we have. I find this book to be a remarkable professional development tool. I also am so appreciative because it has revived my passion for Higher Education.
July 5, 2016
The practical advice in Bain's study should apply to students and their teachers, their counselors, and their parents. I appreciated his delineation between superficial, deep, and strategic learners and I concur. I thought his encouragement for students to seek out ambiguous or messy cases to learn from important as well as his advice to embrace failures and setbacks, strive always to be curious, and to be willing to make the hard choices.
Mostly filled with anecdotal accounts of deep learners--that rare but solid group of students determined to educate themselves at all costs--I can recommend reading Bain's study to anyone willing to grow, regardless of age.
Mostly filled with anecdotal accounts of deep learners--that rare but solid group of students determined to educate themselves at all costs--I can recommend reading Bain's study to anyone willing to grow, regardless of age.
February 28, 2013
This book has a very strong message, advocating deep, rich learning, rather than reaching for immediate success in good grades. Though longer than perhaps necessary, the chapters are full of stories and research promoting an idea of education which changes you as a person, and which wrestles with big questions and ultimately leads to a more profitable life. Did you know Martin Luther King Jr. got a C in public speaking? Didn't stop him.
May 28, 2014
Although this book is written for students, I've found it very useful for thinking about how I can best mentor students through their college years. While I have a passion for introducing students to the great questions facing political science, I also have a warm interest in how students develop wisdom, citizenship and a path in the world. Bain's idea of success is not high grades but rather developing a passion that motivates students to become creative and even joyful problem solvers.
November 5, 2016
Overly idealistic - for a real student to follow all of these proposals would be academic suicide. At best, this book is an interesting compilation of success stories from people with extraordinary circumstances, extraordinary ability, or extraordinary luck. It just doesn't speak to the average college student.
August 14, 2017
Essential Reading for College Students
Professor Ken Bain ha written an excellent book on how to be a successful college student , better , a successful human being. Lots of examples of how learning deeply, instead of being overly concerned with achieving good grades is the keys to be a healthy, happy and successful individual
Professor Ken Bain ha written an excellent book on how to be a successful college student , better , a successful human being. Lots of examples of how learning deeply, instead of being overly concerned with achieving good grades is the keys to be a healthy, happy and successful individual
November 19, 2013
I had the pleasure of listening to Ken Bain speak at the University of Houston. He is amazing! This book is inspiring and changes the way you look at education and learning, in general. I would recommend all college students and high school seniors to read it.
December 2, 2013
I have always believed that grades are a lousy way to determine the quality of learning . Glad to find that others seem to agree too . Tips for future generations , if you are memorizing blithely to regurgitate the next day and forget it after the exam, then read this book.
June 6, 2023
Maybe more like 3.5 stars, but decided to round up. I thought the book started out strong and had me very interested, but the anecdotes started to drag on and the takeaways started to become repetitive. Definitely something I wish I had read before heading into my own undergraduate experience.
September 25, 2023
had to read for class. a few good ideas like placing the importance on a small liberal arts college but was extremely redundant talked a weird amount about sa for being a book om how to succeed in college
May 17, 2015
This book was okay. I had to read it for a class and while I liked the intent behind the book, some of his claims were a bit outlandish. It just felt kind of average.
May 14, 2018
This book has a lot of great insights for students. While reading it as an instructor, I felt this would be a great book to gift a high schooler, even as a graduation gift.
September 20, 2023
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 Stars
This isn't a recipe for straight A's; it's a blueprint for an enriching college experience. Looking to transform your entire approach to learning and education? 'What the Best College Students Do' by Ken Bain is your guide—but not in the way you might expect. Successful college students are rooted in open-mindedness, critical thinking, and a thirst for understanding.
📕Summary📘
Overall, what is this book about?
Ken Bain's book is a compilation of success stories from individuals who have made notable contributions to various fields, often blending multiple interests in innovative ways. Despite challenges like neurodivergence, racial prejudice, or financial struggles, these people have succeeded both in college and in their careers. Bain extracts key lessons from their journeys, focusing on what fuels their creativity against formidable odds.
❗ Common Criticism of the Book ❗
I've seen a common criticism...
I understand the criticism this book is receiving in other reviews - people accurately grieve that Ken Bain downplays the importance of grades. Other reviewers have the same thought as me - a thirst for knowledge only will not land you the college degree. At some level, there needs to be concern for achieving good grades. However, I don’t believe Bain is encouraging readers to dismiss grades ENTIRELY. Alternatively, he is pressing readers to take an alternate approach to their college experience. Ken Bain’s entire book is a prompt to study for the value of knowledge. The goal is to lead a creative life. This may not be the answer an active college student is looking for (it definitely wasn’t the answer I was looking for when I started this book my freshman year of college).
However, please do not dismiss Ken Bain’s entire argument. While he does lean heavy towards an encouragement to study for knowledge, he is not actively discouraging good grades. You can have both. 😊
🌟 The Book’s Main Message 🌟
What should you take away from this book?
This book is a call to find intrinsic value in your education. Take ownership of the questions you ask, and probe deeper than the surface level. Take intellectual ownership of the information you learn - and scrutinize the information you receive. What are the implications? How does this affect me? How does this really affect the world we live in?
This approach will enrich your personal and professional life by fostering a deeper understanding of the world around you 🌎. It's a mindset that can lead to a more nuanced view of the world and a “Creative Life.”
There is also an ongoing concept of a “Creative Life”. In the book, success is measured by the creativity people experience in their career and personal life. As opposed to traditional metrics, such as salary, grades, or trophies, a marker of a “Successful College Student” is actively living a life they feel passionate about and contributing work to a field they're genuinely tied to.
Thank you for reading my review 🙂 Join me in future reviews, and please recommend something you think I’d enjoy!
© Marissa Reads
https://www.goodreads.com/marissa-reads
This isn't a recipe for straight A's; it's a blueprint for an enriching college experience. Looking to transform your entire approach to learning and education? 'What the Best College Students Do' by Ken Bain is your guide—but not in the way you might expect. Successful college students are rooted in open-mindedness, critical thinking, and a thirst for understanding.
📕Summary📘
Overall, what is this book about?
Ken Bain's book is a compilation of success stories from individuals who have made notable contributions to various fields, often blending multiple interests in innovative ways. Despite challenges like neurodivergence, racial prejudice, or financial struggles, these people have succeeded both in college and in their careers. Bain extracts key lessons from their journeys, focusing on what fuels their creativity against formidable odds.
❗ Common Criticism of the Book ❗
I've seen a common criticism...
I understand the criticism this book is receiving in other reviews - people accurately grieve that Ken Bain downplays the importance of grades. Other reviewers have the same thought as me - a thirst for knowledge only will not land you the college degree. At some level, there needs to be concern for achieving good grades. However, I don’t believe Bain is encouraging readers to dismiss grades ENTIRELY. Alternatively, he is pressing readers to take an alternate approach to their college experience. Ken Bain’s entire book is a prompt to study for the value of knowledge. The goal is to lead a creative life. This may not be the answer an active college student is looking for (it definitely wasn’t the answer I was looking for when I started this book my freshman year of college).
However, please do not dismiss Ken Bain’s entire argument. While he does lean heavy towards an encouragement to study for knowledge, he is not actively discouraging good grades. You can have both. 😊
🌟 The Book’s Main Message 🌟
What should you take away from this book?
This book is a call to find intrinsic value in your education. Take ownership of the questions you ask, and probe deeper than the surface level. Take intellectual ownership of the information you learn - and scrutinize the information you receive. What are the implications? How does this affect me? How does this really affect the world we live in?
This approach will enrich your personal and professional life by fostering a deeper understanding of the world around you 🌎. It's a mindset that can lead to a more nuanced view of the world and a “Creative Life.”
There is also an ongoing concept of a “Creative Life”. In the book, success is measured by the creativity people experience in their career and personal life. As opposed to traditional metrics, such as salary, grades, or trophies, a marker of a “Successful College Student” is actively living a life they feel passionate about and contributing work to a field they're genuinely tied to.
Thank you for reading my review 🙂 Join me in future reviews, and please recommend something you think I’d enjoy!
© Marissa Reads
https://www.goodreads.com/marissa-reads
February 19, 2019
I picked up this book, because I found "What the Best College Teachers Do" helpful and informative, and I thought if this book was similar I might add it to my list of books I recommend to my students.
Unfortunately, this book was tough to slog through. It is pretty obvious that the origin of this work went something like "hey, we have all these interviews with students of the best teachers leftover from our research, let's see if we can find some common threads in them, then write a book for students!" What that resulted in is a scattered and disorganized grouping of anecdotes, loosely bound together with cherry-picked research. The main flaw in the work is that "best" is arbitrarily defined as "creative deep thinker", and then progresses in this thread without ever justifying why that choice was made, but instead treating it as self-evident. (To be fair, I do think it's a worthy goal, but compared to the clear reasoning of "Best College Teachers" it was pretty sparse logical reasoning here) Would a strategic learner be convinced to change, based on appeals to their sense of justice and emotional development, rather than other measures of success? I'm doubtful.
The main issue with this book is that it purports to be written to help students become the "best", but I can't imagine a student who would persist in actually reading through this and working to glean ideas and insights from it, unless they already fit the book's definition of "best". So who is the audience? Good students who want to boost their ego, and teachers with nothing better to do, or who were misled by the other book into thinking it would be worthwhile.
All that said, I gave a second star, because if you're willing to sort through the chaff that is the bulk of the text, there is some worthwhile information in it.
Unfortunately, this book was tough to slog through. It is pretty obvious that the origin of this work went something like "hey, we have all these interviews with students of the best teachers leftover from our research, let's see if we can find some common threads in them, then write a book for students!" What that resulted in is a scattered and disorganized grouping of anecdotes, loosely bound together with cherry-picked research. The main flaw in the work is that "best" is arbitrarily defined as "creative deep thinker", and then progresses in this thread without ever justifying why that choice was made, but instead treating it as self-evident. (To be fair, I do think it's a worthy goal, but compared to the clear reasoning of "Best College Teachers" it was pretty sparse logical reasoning here) Would a strategic learner be convinced to change, based on appeals to their sense of justice and emotional development, rather than other measures of success? I'm doubtful.
The main issue with this book is that it purports to be written to help students become the "best", but I can't imagine a student who would persist in actually reading through this and working to glean ideas and insights from it, unless they already fit the book's definition of "best". So who is the audience? Good students who want to boost their ego, and teachers with nothing better to do, or who were misled by the other book into thinking it would be worthwhile.
All that said, I gave a second star, because if you're willing to sort through the chaff that is the bulk of the text, there is some worthwhile information in it.
December 2, 2019
I originally got this book to read for information because I am familiar with Bain's work. Subsequently, I read it because it was the assigned textbook for a course I am teaching to assist freshmen transition to college. The book describes an interesting approach to learning that focuses on deep learning from multiple perspectives. There are first person stories of students who have been successful from this strategy. The book encourages students to focus on the learning and not the grade. The freshmen hear this loud and clear, but I fear they interpret it as a blanket "grades do not matter."
In my opinion, this is a good book for teachers to think about stretching their teaching strategies. I would consider it for a text book for masters students who are focusing on teaching. I do not believe it was the best book for undergraduate students, especially freshmen. Although the concepts presented in the book are interesting, they do not meet freshmen where they are. My teaching philosophy focuses on meeting a student where they are and bring them to where they need to be. This book does not meet the student where they are. It also seems more appropriate for liberal arts majors rather than those in professional programs.
As for those success stories used as examples in the book - most became successful after graduate school or work experience. There were no descriptions of counter experiences related to all the students who were enrolled in this type of approach but were not successful. It is always important to see both the successes and the failures. If you only look at those who succeed, it is difficult to differentiate if they succeeded because of the applied teaching strategy or their innate ability and the knowledge they brought into the course.
In my opinion, this is a good book for teachers to think about stretching their teaching strategies. I would consider it for a text book for masters students who are focusing on teaching. I do not believe it was the best book for undergraduate students, especially freshmen. Although the concepts presented in the book are interesting, they do not meet freshmen where they are. My teaching philosophy focuses on meeting a student where they are and bring them to where they need to be. This book does not meet the student where they are. It also seems more appropriate for liberal arts majors rather than those in professional programs.
As for those success stories used as examples in the book - most became successful after graduate school or work experience. There were no descriptions of counter experiences related to all the students who were enrolled in this type of approach but were not successful. It is always important to see both the successes and the failures. If you only look at those who succeed, it is difficult to differentiate if they succeeded because of the applied teaching strategy or their innate ability and the knowledge they brought into the course.
August 31, 2024
I found the book highly engaging. The length, breadth and depth of the process of learning is tackled nicely while also maintaining pace and a concise size of the book. I think it is a must read for every college student and teacher as well. Some of the noticeable phrases I highlighted while reading the book are as follows;
1. We must realize how languages shape our thinking, and then we can imagine other words and categories for everything we encounter (p.75).
2. In scientific thinking, you learn, among other habits, to look for evidence that will invalidate the proposition, rather than just for the information that will support your suspicions (p.81).
3. You don't learn from experience; you learn from reflecting on experience (p.163).
4. Humans construct their memories each time they bring them to mind, and those repeated constructions when I test myself make it easier to rebuild next time (p.246).
The book challenges you as a student to reflect on the larger aim of your learning, the ethics involved and the role of educational institutions and your own intrinsic motivations.
1. We must realize how languages shape our thinking, and then we can imagine other words and categories for everything we encounter (p.75).
2. In scientific thinking, you learn, among other habits, to look for evidence that will invalidate the proposition, rather than just for the information that will support your suspicions (p.81).
3. You don't learn from experience; you learn from reflecting on experience (p.163).
4. Humans construct their memories each time they bring them to mind, and those repeated constructions when I test myself make it easier to rebuild next time (p.246).
The book challenges you as a student to reflect on the larger aim of your learning, the ethics involved and the role of educational institutions and your own intrinsic motivations.
March 16, 2019
I have a daughter who is currently beginning her college search process; in light of this, I found Ken Bain's book to be a very interesting and timely read. The book was recommended to me by a family friend who has seen all three of her children graduate from college and become successful and productive citizens. I value this friend's opinion greatly, so I began reading it the day she loaned it to me and devoured it within a matter of three days. The book provided many insights and anecdotes which ultimately supported the concept of a deep, broad liberal arts education. From my perspective, the last chapter was the most interesting because it provided some practical wisdom for prospective college students in terms of studying, reading, and writing strategies and habits. I have encouraged my daughter to read the book as well; hopefully this will give her some food for thought and open up further family dialogue about her goals for college and beyond.
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