Apr 15, 2005

Some Noted Things ...

by Cliopatria

Scott McLemee's"Living on Edge," Inside Higher Ed," 14 April, takes us into the worlds of the Flat Earth Society and Thomas Friedman.

Have a look at the National Geographic's and the Genographic Project's"Atlas of the Human Journey." As Jason Broander at Maroonblog says, it"is indeed very cool."

Robbie Robertson's"Globalization Is Not Made In The West," Yale Global, 13 April, suggests the need to re-think our whole notion of"globalization."

Victor Davis Hanson is not everyone's cup of tea, but he is candid.

My curriculum is old-fashioned. It's a zero sum game, and there are only so many disciplines that will always exist: literature, mathematics, biology, hard science, foreign language, politics, philosophy. To make space, I would eliminate anything that has the word 'studies' in it: ethnic studies, women's studies, cultural studies, American studies. That would free up about 25 percent of the current therapeutic curriculum.
Most of the new things that universities are trying to introduce are not academic subjects. They're just popular culture dressed up as learning. Not only are these not university subjects, but they come at the expense of time diverted from real education. For every hour a kid is in Chicano studies or environmental studies classes, he's not learning history or philosophy.

Thanks to Stephen at Big Tent for the tip.

"The Big Night" by RubbereFigures is not work/safe, not for children or royalists, but it is, well, amusing. Thanks to Evan Roberts at coffee grounds for the tip.

Finally, Jon Dresner hosts History Carnival #6 here at Cliopatria sometime tomorrow or early Saturday. If you don't send your nominations of the best history posts you've done or read since 1 April to him at dresner AT hawaii DOT edu, he's perfectly within his rights to feature you at your worst and we know how bad that is. But, take care. As Brandon Watson at Siris notes, the Carnival of the Vanities has become a house divided.

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More Comments:

Ralph E. Luker - 4/16/2005

Both of your points are well taken, I think, Jeff. On the second one, I could take you just over a couple of blocks from where I live to palatial student housing at Emory. It's almost indistinguishable from what you'd find at an exclusive resort. Student services undoubtedly thought it was necessary to cater to a competative student application market -- and it was done just as faculty members were complaining rather loudly about restraints in what are, after all, reasonably generous benefits.

Jeff Vanke - 4/16/2005

Hanson's curriculum is British, not (just) old-fashioned. Remember that the Germans invented the modern university, and that they were much more practical and even vocational in conceiving many technical higher-degree programs. While I'm not thrilled with every "studies" program out there, there is certainly something to be said for understanding the science, laws, politics, economics, and determinant cultural mores behind what governs women, or the environment, or a range of other subjects, as respective coherent curricula. In the end, those skills might not produce many exportable goods, but neither does the study of ancient Greece.

As far as tuition inflation goes, blame modern science and computer technologies. There is more to learn, and more (useful) ways to learn it. Also, parents, students, and even federal legislation continue to demand increased services per student, which contributes to cost inflation, in addition (not opposed to) the causes cited by Hanson.

Jason Nelson - 4/15/2005

Mr. Luker,

The new CU President is going to be Hank Brown. While some or the readers have already labeled him a 'hack', it should be no surprise to anyone that I love the move.

I would actually like to thank Churchill for doing his part by being so radical that even the progressive Board of Regents from Boulder decided to bring in a new sheriff to clean up main street.

John H. Lederer - 4/15/2005

http://www.finaid.org/savings/tuition-inflation.phtml

...has a summary of tuition inflation versus the cpi since the 1950's.

Jonathan Dresner - 4/15/2005

As always, it depends on how you measure it. My parents say that the price of a college education has been pretty constant over their lifetimes: it's the same as buying a new car and driving it off a cliff once a year. The costs vary -- different models for different markets, of course -- but the basic principle is pretty sound. Only, with car prices depressed by over supply (actually, that's not so different, is it?) there seems to me to be a bit of a gap in the Car-Tuition index growing.

David Lion Salmanson - 4/15/2005

If Americans are so upset about costs, why are enrollments and applications at the most expensive schools at all time highs? Also, is actual tuition (as opposed to sticker price) increasing faster than inflation?

Jonathan Dresner - 4/15/2005

Nobody complained when inflation was higher than tuition increases: Markets "correct" all the time, and the value of products change relative to the market. Intellectual property has become more a valuable sector of the economy: it's entirely natural that the cost of acquiring the tools has increased. If you (or Hanson) are going to engage in economic analysis, try to remember that straight lines are for textbooks, not real life.

Ralph E. Luker - 4/15/2005

Mr. Lederer, I sense that Hanson gives voice to one of your concerns. There are boards of trustees and such, to whom administrators do have to report. In some cases, I assume, those bodies are doing no better job than are corporate boards of directors who appear to approve galloping increases of executive salaries without regard to profits, sales, improved management, etc. And if we are concerned with cost increases beyond inflation, you might direct some of this interest to medicine and the pharmaceutical industry. This is the second time in the last two days you've posted about this at HNN. May I ask what you are doing about it besides posting at HNN?

John H. Lederer - 4/15/2005

"HANSON: I don't know where to start. I guess it is really about the lack of accountability. Tuition rises faster than inflation. If you ask why nobody does anything about it, the answer is that with tenure and faculty governance there's no accountability. There's no accountability for administrators either. It's a fantasyland immune from the laws of American oversight and audit. I think that's coming to an end, because the people in charge are not doing a very good job. We can put up with the idea that universities are fat cats that overcharge Americans, but not when they also fail to educate kids. Americans are getting angry, and looking for new solutions."