They Say / I Blog

“The people we want to become”: Jorge Salles Diaz on elite universities

Many of the students at top-ranked universities have worked enormously hard to get there. They know that a degree from such an institution will pay off in “the market.” Such an emphasis, however, has its own costs and consequences. Vanderbilt University student Jorge Salles Diaz takes a step back and poses some larger questions in this November 2017 essay in the student newspaper Vanderbilt Hustler.

Read it here: Salles Diaz, “Let’s be honest about why we’re here”

 

Polynomials and apple pie: Andrew Hacker on obligatory algebra

When was the last time you used the quadratic equation in your real life? Yeah, we didn’t think so. Still, agility with mathematical concepts and operations is important. Does math education need a makeover? Emeritus political science professor Andrew Hacker assesses the situation in this July 2012 New York Times editorial.

Read it here: Hacker, “Is algebra necessary?"

 

“E Pluribus Dorm”: Conor Friedersdorf on dorm life at elite schools

Dorm life. Whether you love it or hate it, avoid or envy it, you likely don’t imagine it being very different from what it already is. Los Angeles Times staff writer Conor Friedersdorf proposes an interesting transformation of college dormitories in this July 2017 column.

Read it here: Friedersdorf, "Ban elite college dorms”

 

Not child’s play any more: Christopher Brown on changes in kindergarten curriculum

Did you memorize word lists and take tests in kindergarten? Probably not, but kindergartners in US schools today do. Clearly, not a very fun experience, but is such a direction pedagogically sound? Christopher Brown, early childhood educator and researcher, former kindergarten teacher, and father of three recent kindergartners, evaluates the changes in kindergarten curriculum in this April 2016 post on The Conversation.

Read it here: Brown, “Kindergartners get little time to play. Why does it matter?”

 

Pleasantly surprised: Devoney Looser on online education

The trend toward the growing availability of online courses generates a lot of debate among university professors and administrators, among students, and among the public at large. English professor Devoney Looser was not a strong advocate of online teaching until she had the opportunity (or rather, necessity) to do it herself. She writes about her experience and change of heart in this March 2017 essay in the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Read it here: Looser, "Why I teach online"

Talk to us, Mr. President: Brian Goedde on community colleges and prestige

At a time when the problems and challenges of higher education make headlines every day, and when so many students struggle to earn their degrees, community colleges quietly get the job done for millions of people. Haven’t they earned a little more respect than they usually get? Instructor Brian Goedde of Community College of Philadelphia thinks so, and he proposes a small plan with tremendous potential benefits in this May 2016 article in the New York Times.

Read it here: Goedde, "Talk to us, Mr. President"

“What are you afraid of?”: San Joaquin Valley College on going back to school

There may be as many reasons to not go to college as there are to go. In this 2016 commercial from San Joaquin Valley College, a jug of laundry detergent tries to convey a serious message to a potential future student. Would you be persuaded? Have a look and decide.

Read it here: San Joaquin Valley College, "Talking laundry detergent"

The structural properties of being human: Ottino & Morson dare to dream a bridge

We tend to think of engineering as a world very distant from the arts; and indeed, designing a highway and writing a poem are very different activities. Or are they? Might the skills required for one be useful in accomplishing the other? Professors Julio M. Ottino and Gary Saul Morson propose bridging engineering and the humanities in this February 2016 essay in the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Read it here: Ottino & Morson, “Building a bridge between engineering and the humanities”

Real people, real college: Kristin O’Keefe on academic snobbery

Harvard University, now that’s a real college. You know what? So are Kirkwood Community College in Iowa, Harold Washington College in Chicago, and every community college throughout the United States—over a thousand in all. In this February 2015 New York Times essay, writer Kristin O’Keefe argues that community colleges and their students merit more respect than they’re getting.

Read it here: O'Keefe, “The community college/’real college’ divide”

Not that Delta: Miriam Hall on education aspirations in rural Mississippi

What kinds of jobs would you describe as enviable? Is teaching assistant on your list? Probably not. In the Mississippi Delta communities around Greenville, however, the position of teaching assistant ranks quite high. Miriam Hall, education fellow at Columbia’s Graduate School of Journalism, explains why in this January 2016 article in Slate. 

Read it here: Hall, "In this impoverished Mississippi community, teacher assistant is a coveted job. It pays $9 an hour”