4 ms·
Ha. I've told new hires that one thing they must keep in mind is that this job is not about teaching.
by skh 8y ago
Ha. I've told new hires that one thing they must keep in mind is that this job is not about teaching.
- sevensor 8y agoI was fortunate (?) enough to have a Ph.D. advisor who told me flat-out: "Don't express an interest in teaching. It's career suicide. Undergraduates are stupid and you'll waste your time." It still bums me out, first of all that this is how a tenured professor thinks about undergraduates, and second that this is probably a clear-eyed and honest appraisal of the system as it stands. What exactly are we doing at big land-grant universities, if not trying to educate the young citizens of our state?
- Scoundreller 8y agoChange the system for professional program admissions, internships, masters, etc. If they depend on marks and references so much, resourceful students will focus on acquiring those.
- Sharlin 8y agoAs Robin Hanson has said, school is not about learning [1]. Increasingly it feels that higher education is becoming a cargo cult, a coming-of-age ritual where you jump through certain hoops in order to be awarded a piece of paper which then gives you access to jobs. [1] http://www.overcomingbias.com/2010/08/school-isnt-about-learning.html http://www.overcomingbias.com/2010/08/school-isnt-about-lear...
- shoguning 8y agoIMO there is a difference between K-12 and higher ed. K-12 is actually more about enforcing cultural norms of dilligence, punctuality and ideally some civic norms. Higher ed (paraphrasing Peter Thiel) is a mix between insurance and a tournament. It is _supposed_ to ensure a basic living standard. But it's also a competitive tournament where the high prestige colleges grant access to higher pay/prestige careers.
- dragonwriter 8y ago> Higher ed (paraphrasing Peter Thiel) is a mix between insurance and a tournament. It is _supposed_ to ensure a basic living standard. No, it's not.
- shoguning 8y agoWhether it's supposed to or not, that's how it's viewed. Also viewed as an economic ladder by lots of people including low-income and minority.
- Sharlin 8y agoAgreed that Hanson focuses on primary education in that article. I could've sworn he has written similarly about higher education but couldn't find anything relevant by quick googling.
- WillPostForFood 8y agoYeah, Hanson has similar thoughts on higher education: https://www.businessinsider.com/is-college-a-waste-of-time-and-money-bryan-caplan-2018-2 https://www.businessinsider.com/is-college-a-waste-of-time-a...