This is my response to a front page article in the Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304851104579361451951384512 Who knows, maybe I’m being unfair. Maybe it is a fine topic for study. But I don’t think so. (Speaking of English, I think I had better go to my “English Usage” book to make sure I used “who knows” […]
Good News: WSJ article notes that “Cash-Conscious Families Clamor for Numbers on How Much Students Learn”
February 21, 2014 by
The article is here. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304899704579391513428597546 Here is my comment. “I am a former professor. Far too many universities cater to their naive and uneducated customers – once quiantly called “students”. They do this even when it means NOT educating them – just fooling them into believing they are getting the education they need. This new […]
American 15-Year-Olds Fall Further Back in Math
December 3, 2013 by
The New York Tims and the Wall Street Journal both reported the results of the 2012 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/03/education/american-15-year-olds-lag-mainly-in-math-on-international-standardized-tests.html?ref=us&_r=0 http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304579404579234511824563116) I commented on wsj.com and I wll follow up with a post that contains another personal story. Here is my comment. “I am a former math professor who taught at an […]
Compare “Feeder Schools”: Another Addendum to the Previous Post
November 12, 2013 by
Just posted a reply to Mel Murphy, who wrote, “Read your article. Having kids in the college selection mode, and having received mailings and invitations from WUSTL as well as other “prestigious” institutions, I am most appreciative and find it eye-opening. Caveat emptor, indeed” I think the following is useful advice for anyone looking at schools. “Maybe, […]
Addendum to “Peter Cappeli” Post – Another Testimony About Higher Ed
November 11, 2013 by
Dan Laroque put this comment on the WSJ “… In the latter years of my teaching career, it got very frustrated dealing with students and administration. The universities have literally turned the curriculum standards over to the students. It is all about garnering as many students in a major as possible with no rules on rigor. It is ‘take […]
Peter Cappelli’s Article in The Wall Street Journal
November 11, 2013 by
Professor Cappelli is the George W. Taylor Professor of Management and Director of the Center for Human Resources at the Wharton School and Professor of Education. His article is titled “Why Focusing Too Narrowly in College Could Backfire” http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324139404579016662718868576 It gives some good practical advice and I think it is well worth reading. Some of […]
Just Interesting: Teachers Cheating, Students Cheating, Chic Smelling College Brands
November 10, 2013 by
Here are the articles I’m referring to: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/10/opinion/sunday/how-i-helped-teachers-cheat.html?ref=opinion http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304200804579163983479119364?KEYWORDS=perfume+college A quote from this article: “At LSU,… he says there is a benefit to having the school’s brand associated with a chic product.” There is an earlier post (http://www.inside-higher-ed.com/another-wsj-article-illustrating-university-focus-and-insight-of-great-thinkers/ )linking to another WSJ article that quotes a consultant saying, “…Prospective freshmen and their families…increasingly view themselves […]
Wall Street Journal’s David Wessel Supports Plan for College Loan Solution.
November 8, 2013 by
But I think we need to ensure the product is worth it first. It seems to me that it is a little like the mortgage crisis. You have to start by making sure the house is in good shape, and appropriate for the buyer. The article is here http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304672404579181632945326834 I posted two comments on the […]
New SAT: As Usual I Worry But…
I better learn more before I comment. To see why I worry go to On Mark Bauerlein’s Commentary in “The Chronicle of Higher Education”. Here are some links to articles I will be reading http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/09/magazine/the-story-behind-the-sat-overhaul.html?hp http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/03/this-is-what-the-new-sat-will-be-like/284245/ http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303369904579421141753757748?mod=WSJ_hppMIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsSecond&mg=reno64-wsj http://chronicle.com/article/Plans-for-New-SAT-Spark-Mixed/145141/