Paul Tough

In this book the author reverses three decades of thinking about what creates successful children, solving the mysteries of why some succeed and others fail, and of how to move individual children toward their full potential for success. The story we usually tell about childhood and success is the one about intelligence: success comes to those who score highest on tests, from preschool admissions to SATs. But in this book the author argues that the...

First published as The Years That Matter Most
From best-selling author Paul Tough, an indelible and explosive book on the glaring injustices of higher education, including unfair admissions tests, entrenched racial barriers, and crushing student debt. Now updated and expanded for the pandemic era.
When higher education works the way it’s supposed to, there is no better tool for social mobility—for...

"The best-selling author of How Children Succeed returns with a devastatingly powerful, mind-changing inquiry into higher education in the United States"-- Can a college education today provide real opportunity to young Americans seeking to improve their station in life? Tough reveals how the landscape of higher education has shifted in recent decades, and exposes the hidden truths of how the system works and whom it works for. He introduces readers...

Challenges conventional views about standardized testing to argue that success is more determined by self-discipline, and describes the work of pioneering researchers and educators who have enabled effective new teaching methods.