Grade inflation in America’s colleges and universities is a serious issue. It is also an issue in the nation’s elementary and high schools. The curious thing is that while the problem is the same, the causes contrast sharply. The culprit in the colleges is a kind of emotional blackmail that students, aided and abetted by … Read more
Decades ago, the quest for superior grades acquired a catchphrase—the “paper chase.” Those who aspired to be the best students went to extreme lengths to earn superior grades. However, there were also many who wanted grades for which they were unwilling to work. Part of the university’s task was to separate the best from the … Read more
In too many schools, teaching handwriting—especially cursive—is extinct. Over the last half-century, America’s public, private, religious and charter schools became obsessed with “critical thinking.” As that obsession grew, mechanical processes were discarded. Emphasizing grammar, the doctrine taught, inhibited children from expressing their thoughts. Teaching historical facts repressed students’ creative opinions about past events. Memorizing mathematical … Read more
Distraction has always been a teacher’s biggest problem. After all, lessons can only take root if students are paying attention. Distractions are inevitable. No teacher, no matter how skilled, can filter them all out. Kids bring their distractions to school with them. A sick parent, a lost dog, lack of breakfast, an argument on the … Read more
By any reasonable standard, organic chemistry Professor Maitland Jones, Jr. would be a star on any faculty. He literally wrote the book on the subject. His career began at age thirteen, washing test tubes in a Yale University laboratory. He taught at Princeton University for forty-three years. In 2007, he retired from Princeton and moved … Read more
President Biden’s plan to forgive student debt is very controversial. Most students will get a $10,000 debt reduction, while lower-income students will be eligible to double the amount. Biden’s August giveaway adds half a trillion dollars to the Federal Government’s debt deficit by some estimates. It’s easy to be generous with other people’s money. Conservatives … Read more
News commentator Matt Walsh has just released a documentary titled “What is a Woman?” He interviews many in the woke establishment, asking for a clear and concise reply to this simple question. The answers are full of academic gobbledygook and politically correct jargon about social constructs and “gender” identity. None of those he interviewed gave … Read more
The “woke” movement subscribes to a curious moral code. Its nature is unforgiving. Fall short in any way, and there is no road back. The acts in question may be recent or past, mistaken or deliberate—that does not matter. Absolution is impossible. At the same time, the woke reject any sense of responsibility. If caught … Read more
Sometimes, I despair for the future of education. This occasional anguish was recently triggered by a videotaped lecture from a University of Michigan education professor. Her central premise was that elementary school math teachers must be constantly vigilant, lest they fall into verbal traps perpetuating racism. Free Book: Return to Order: From a Frenzied Economy … Read more
The latest benefit scheme making the rounds in time for the elections is student loan forgiveness. Given the great debt burden on graduates, candidates are piling on the bandwagon to find a platform from which to show how benevolent they can be with taxpayers’ money. Student debt now stands at $1.46 trillion with an additional … Read more
