Featuring the writing of Edward Shils on the topic of education, this text articulates the ethical demands of the academic profession, directing attention to the integration of teaching and research. Other pieces focus on perennial issues in higher learning, such as the meaning of academic freedom.

Throughout his long and prolific career, Edward Shils (1910-1995) brought an extraordinary knowledge of academic institutions to discussions about higher education. THE CALLING OF EDUCATION features Shils's most illuminating and incisive writing on this topic from the last 25 years of his life.