Category: Higher Education

What is distance education for?

Until the twentieth century, organized distance education was primarily vocational in focus, with courses in shorthand, stenography, mine safety, and home economics being prominent. In the late nineteenth century, a few exceptions emerged (often targeting less privileged groups such as…

Should we burn our rubrics?

  Steven Conn’s post on “The Rise of the Helicopter Teacher” at the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Conversation blog raises important points about students looking for a precise series of steps to follow and instructors who, due to various institutional…

Beyond Trigger Warnings

I have seen good arguments against trigger warnings in the classroom and bad ones (sometimes in the same article). As I have said before, I oppose mandatory trigger warnings in higher education. But I want to move beyond arguing about…

Protesting Commencement Speakers

The critiques leveled against students objecting to their institution’s chosen commencement speakers are often dishonest. They appeal, vaguely, to academic freedom and the ideal of a free exchange of ideas. But neither of these ideals is endangered when students object…