Gates Foundation Launches Lobbying Arm – With Higher Education in Its Crosshairs
The Gates Foundation’s Postsecondary Value Commission gives some insight into what the Gateses mean by educational outcomes. The commission aims to create a way to measure the value of certain degrees or certificates. If legislators adopt…
Student Op-Ed Argues Course Evals Should Ask Students About Feelings of “Acceptance, Support…
Professors are humans, and humans are prejudiced, and they definitely won’t become better if they don’t know that their words and actions are eliciting these kinds of reactions from their students. And while sometimes we feel comfortable…
New Law in Texas That Criminalizes Humor on Campuses is a Bad Joke
If there is one thing that marks American college life as the third decade of the 21st century dawns, it is a grim, cheerless opposition to humor. At one college, making jokes can get you reported to a “bias response team.” At another, the…
Under New Law, Profs Required to Reschedule Exams for Fasting Muslim Students
Passing this bill sends a powerful message to all students that students of faith, and especially those in minority faith traditions, matter and are welcome in our educational system.This article is only available to subscribers. If you're…
Better Classroom Discussions Are Just A Pinwheel Away
It doesn't take extensive research to realize that facilitating productive discussions in the college classroom is not something that should be done by the seat of one's pants or on the fly. Yet, faculty member evaluations from students on…
Book Review: Confessions of a Teacher Or, How to Be a Part-Timer
Put on your seatbelt when you decide to sit down and read, Confessions of a Teacher Or, How to Be a Part-Timer, by Mary Allen Redd. You’re about to experience an unfiltered, daringly bold and outspoken treatise about the experience of…
Herb Childress Thinks Working Off the Tenure-Track is a Kind of Abusive Relationship
According to Childress, this addiction-abuse cycle is killing the profession. I would argue that "the profession" is just fine, thank you. The self-proclaimed core of profession which consists of administrators, tenure-line and tenured…
Did SEIU Break the Rules to Organize Non-Tenured Faculty at Elon U?
In a letter to faculty and staff, Elon Provost Steven House outlined the allegedly unethical actions SEIU organizers took since they first arrived on campus in January 2018 — all with the intention of influencing the election, the…
Book Review: The Power of Blended Learning in the Sciences
Chapter 6 reminds the reader about the memory process and how easy it is for students to forget what they just learned as they carry on in other classes and about their days. Instructors need to help students retain information. This…
Essential Time Management Tips For Teaching Faculty: The Agenda
The most important time-saver that I have is the agenda; it's similar to a lesson plan. Some of my classes meet once per week, some twice, or three times per week. Thanks to my use of agendas, I have a 4-hour course, plus grading and…