Dec 16, 2019

The relational university

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In higher ed, we have been innovating a lot, but mostly in the wrong areas. The information technology has done very little to improve inst...
Dec 9, 2019

Just tell me why, or the Tale of the Lost Rationale

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You know how good newspapers do this idiot-proof summary at the end of their articles, for people who may not know the context. They were u...
Dec 2, 2019

Why is outcome-based education so wrong?

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Focusing on outcomes means losing focus on the process. Philosophically, the outcome-based education is a soft extension of “ends justify t...
Nov 25, 2019

The hell of micro-tasking

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None of these things is a big deal. Complete another required training. Approve a request. Sign a contract. Confirm a transaction. Find and...
Nov 18, 2019

Is preschool a deniable service?

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Karen, and Associate Dean, and I had exactly the same thought while visiting a preschool in Shenyang: “Why they can afford it, and we canno...
Nov 11, 2019

Gingko leaves

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In California, fall comes gradually; as if unsure it is welcome. In New England or in Siberia, it invades the world quickly, uninvited, an...
Nov 1, 2019

How to avoid being manipulated

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If you speak with someone and suddenly start feeling anger, resentment, or irritation against another person or a group, a red flag should ...
Oct 27, 2019

False kindness and kicking the can down the road

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Academic admissions is never a perfect process. Sometimes we realize a student is not going to make it through the program. S/he may not ha...
Oct 20, 2019

No place for democracy in standard development

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At a recent state-wide Deans of Education meeting, I asked why our state’s standards for teacher preparation (TPEs) are so long. For exampl...
Oct 14, 2019

Why some people never reply to your emails, and how to stay cool about it

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On every campus I know, a few people can be counted on to never return an email - not soon, not within a week – never. I always wonder why ...
Oct 4, 2019

Join the Google Revolution. An open letter to CTC

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In California, 45 main and 14 additional standard elements describe requirements for elementary teaching preparation. Each of the main elem...
Sep 30, 2019

What do deans actually do?

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Every trade has a particular way of thinking. Teachers develop a specific thought process about instruction and classroom management. Plumbe...
Sep 23, 2019

The miracle technology

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Online survey platforms are quietly improving organization development in the Academia, and I suspect, elsewhere. That is not what the auth...
Sep 16, 2019

The celestial world of policy

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Long time ago, I used to assume that a mind greater than human has designed the world of policies for all eternity. These rules and policie...
Sep 9, 2019

In praise of scarcity

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Free stuff is always problematic for it leads to over-consumption and hoarding. For example, sending an e-mail is free, so spam floods us. ...
Sep 3, 2019

Can I teach what and how I want?

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Like many other things in universities, academic freedom with respect to teaching is regulated through a mishmash of formal regulations, an...
Aug 26, 2019

First day of classes: A big secret revealed

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On the first day of classes, I always look for an excuse to walk around the campus. This morning, I went to the Library to return a couple ...
3 comments:
Aug 19, 2019

Beware of good ideas

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Where something looks like a great idea, turn on your critical brain. If something instantly looks good, there is a good chance no one had ...
Aug 10, 2019

What is going on in Moscow and why you should care?

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We will never know if Russian troll factories put Trump in office. Given the narrow margins in a number of states, it is entirely possible....
1 comment:
Aug 2, 2019

Winter is coming, and Trump is the Night King

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Game of Thrones has a terrifying scene, where the Night King raises hundreds of dead bodies to join his Army of the Dead. Jon Snow watches ...
Jul 20, 2019

The orgiastic pleasure of Trumpism

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The most troubling thing about Donald Trump is his supporters. They are numerous, consolidated, and show no signs of weakening their resolv...
1 comment:
Jun 10, 2019

The secret lives of proxies

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We need them, we get used to them, and they take on lives of their own. This is a pitch to always remember that a proxy measure is just a ...
Jun 3, 2019

Relation-Centered Education, a Call to action

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Critiques of test-based accountability abound; alternatives to it are few and far between. The demand for accountability is not an aberrati...
2 comments:
May 28, 2019

The optimism bias and starting a university from scratch

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Apparently, bad planning is in our genes. According to this Freakonomics show , we humans have an inherent optimism bias, and a related bia...
May 13, 2019

The third spiral, or Why education is so interesting to study

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Understanding education is key to understanding the story of our species. Like many of our animal cousins, we supplement the gifts received...
May 5, 2019

We are not that similar

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There was an interesting discussion about generational misunderstanding in my Russian part of Fb. A teacher considered why a certain histor...
1 comment: