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Book Summary and Reviews of The New Global Student by Maya Frost

The New Global Student by Maya Frost

The New Global Student

Skip the SAT, Save Thousands on Tuition, and Get a Truly International Education

by Maya Frost

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  • May 2009, 336 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

Good-bye, Old School. Hello, Bold School!

In 2005, Maya Frost and her husband sold everything and left their suburban American lifestyle behind in order to have an adventure abroad. The tricky part: they had to shepherd their four teenage daughters through high school and into college. This hilarious and conspiratorial how-to handbook describes the affordable, accessible, and stunningly advantageous options they stumbled upon that any American student can leverage to get an outrageously relevant global education.

Ready to ditch the drama of the traditional hypercompetitive SAT/AP/GPA path? Meet the bold American students who are catapulting into the global economy at twenty with a red-hot college diploma, sizzling 21st-century skills, a blazing sense of direction–and no debt.

Packed with myth-busting facts, laughable loopholes, insider insights, astonishing success stories, and poignant tales from the Frost daughters themselves, this inspiring romp is guaranteed to get you cheering.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Tremendous insight....Essential reading for any family yearning to step off the treadmill and plunge into the world." - Daniel H. Pink, New York Times bestselling author of A Whole New Mind

"Maya’s book lays out clearly and simply how our kids are going to be living as America's First Global Citizens." - Author of The Way We’ll be: The Zogby Report on the Transformation of the American Dream

"If we want our kids—and our country--to thrive in the global economy, we need to follow the excellent advice in this inspiring book." - Bill Bartmann, Billionaire Business Coach

"This book is chock-full of fresh ideas." - Peg Tyre, author of The Trouble With Boys: A Surprising Report Card On Our Sons, Their Problems at School and What Parents & Educators Must Do

"Depressed about college applications and costs? The New Global Student will lift your spirits. It's smart, practical and fun. I guarantee it will make a difference." - Peter Benson, Ph.D., author of Sparks: How Parents Can Help Ignite the Hidden Strengths of Teenagers

"Maya Frost may sound like a wacky mom who yanked her family somewhere south of the border. But once you read her engaging, witty and above all practical book, you realize: She's you...if you only took a step back and considered: what kind of life would really help my kids, my bank account and my family's future?" - Lenore Skenazy, author, Free-Range Kids: Giving Our Children the Freedom We Had Without Going Nuts with Worry

This information about The New Global Student was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Marcia R. (Fargo, ND)

Really? Skip the SAT!
I wish that this book was available 15 years ago when my children were in middle school. The educational system in the US needs to re-boot. This book goes the extra mile in informing educators, students, parents and grandparents on new approaches to traditional education. The author did all the research and experienced a global education with her family to make the decision a little easier for the student who would like to get off the treadmill and become a global student. A book worth reading!

Susan H. (Charleston, WV)

The New Global Student and I Want to go too!
I haven’t read a book like The New Global Student by Maya Frost ever. Ms. Frost’s book is an exceptionally inspirational parenting book for the 21st century. I was a bit skeptical about finances for an international education, but with the reliable web resources and other tips, those doubts have disappeared. This book is a friendly, enjoyable, and personal read while promoting the concepts and advantages of a global education. I highly recommend it to school and public libraries for purchase. I have recommended it to my friends and family with kids who want the broad life experiences of a non-traditional educational route. Thanks and kudos to the author and her family for sharing their global experiences and guiding others to this adventure.

David L. (Taft, CA)

Old Schooler Converts to Bold Schooler
The skeptic in me immediately wanted to “pooh pooh” Maya Frost’s notion of taking a nontraditional path towards international scholarship. I tried a nontraditional path and ended up adding decades to my completing my degrees and creating a mountain of debt that spelunkers have contacted me about climbing.

I am glad I turned the cover of this book. While I was not immediately buying into Frost’s argument that traditional American high school experiences are not preparing students for global competition, I was hooked by Mark Twain’s quote. This turned out to be one of many of the marvelous features in this book. Ms. Frost has liberally sprinkled her pages with pith and sassiness to wake up the stodgiest of readers. The physical layout of the pages pulls the reader along unobtrusively while the material she presents sinks into the brain. Her constant plays upon and inventiveness with words (I loved “FEGO!”) kept me reading far longer in a sitting than I had originally intended. Several chapters later I found that my skepticism had disappeared and was replaced by incredible enthusiasm and strong commitment to support my students and their families in their global quests for college credits abroad.

The premise of the book is well supported. It is entirely possible for today’s young people to say “Good-bye, old school” and “Hello, bold school” in their quest for international scholarship and getting “sizzling 21st-century skills” without debt. Maya Frost thoroughly documents her family’s journeys and enlists the stories of dozens of others to confirm her assertion. Most convincing are her daughters’ tales of initial concerns yielding to unique experiences that have shaped all of them into multi-talented young women in great demand by many international firms. It is hard to argue with success.

Laura A. (Tequesta, Florida)

The new Global Student
Maya Frost's assessment of the education system we feed our children into is brilliant. Although the ultimate goal seems to be encouraging our students to study abroad, the book is really about how to encourage our children to develop a love of learning. Right down to the last detail, Frost pushes us to think outside the box and embrace change without fear. This is a wonderful book for anyone who is willing to reevaluate the value of the education their child is receiving.

Linda K. (Belvidere, IL)

If I could do it all again...
If I could do it all again, I would wait about 40 years to be born so that I could read The New Global Student during my summer vacation after 8th grade, and begin my high school years with a different outlook. Fortunately, for those of you who were born in the late 90s and beyond, and my high school friends who were having your kids in the mid to late 90s, you still have a chance.

If you cannot imagine 'bucking the system' to follow Maya Frost's recommendations/suggestions, read the book for the sheer joy of her humor and the 'dream of what could be'. No one will walk away from this book without having learned something new and without being changed. Before, during, or after reading the book, visit Ms. Frost's website (www.mayafrost.com) for more information about the students profiled in the book, as well as additional pointers, and to read what others have to say about the book and more importantly, the vision.

NO ONE should miss this eye-opening true-life adventure. Besides, the possibility of graduating college just a year or two after high school is well worth the price of the book and your time!

Kathleen W. (Appleton, WI)

The New Global Student
I loved this book and have already recommended it to others; it is a book that can change lives. I truly wish that this book had been written ten years ago when my own children could have benefited from its unconventional but well-researched advice. While this book will not have a universal audience, I believe that it will be an eye-opener and have great value to readers looking for alternatives to the American model of outrageously-priced college tuition. The book tells the experience of the author’s family and contains many anecdotal stories, but is also well documented and provides website and other practical information.

...9 more reader reviews

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Author Information

Maya Frost

Maya Frost is a writer, researcher, and teacher. She lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Visit her online at NewGlobalStudent.com.

Read her blog entry at BookBrowse.

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