Engineering Education: Social Engineering Rather than Actual Engineering

Aug 2, 2017 · Indrek Wichman · 164 Comments

We engineers like to solve technical problems. That’s the way we think, that’s why we chose our major, that’s why we got into and stayed in engineering. There are several other reasons why we got into engineering. One of them was the absence of what I describe here as “social engineering,” where the professor/instructor is … Continue reading “Engineering Education: Social Engineering Rather than Actual Engineering “

Free Expression at Duke: What Do Freshmen Blue Devils Think? Jan 20, 2020
As director of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Campus Free Expression Project, I am always eager to get beyond the DC beltway to learn how students understand free expression on their particular campus. So, to return to Duke University, my alma mater, was particularly welcome. Duke has a legacy of defending the expression of controversial views. … Continue reading “Free Expression at Duke: What Do Freshmen Blue Devils Think?”
Emerson’s Vision of the American Scholar Jan 17, 2020
Editor’s Note: This is an abridged version of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s The American Scholar, a lecture he gave to Harvard’s Phi Beta Kappa Society in 1837. This is the third of a Martin Center “History of Higher Ed” series where the Center will republish overlooked writings that shaped American higher education. In the light of … Continue reading “Emerson’s Vision of the American Scholar”
Did You Know? Parental Income Across UNC Schools Jan 16, 2020
The University of North Carolina system boasts a diverse set of institutions. There are many ways in which the 16 schools differ: size, geography, research intensity, curriculum, and student characteristics. They also differ in terms of students’ family income. As part of the Opportunity Insights project at Harvard University, Raj Chetty and a team of … Continue reading “Did You Know? Parental Income Across UNC Schools”

Free Expression at Duke: What Do Freshmen Blue Devils Think? Jan 20, 2020
As director of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Campus Free Expression Project, I am always eager to get beyond the DC beltway to learn how students understand free expression on their particular campus. So, to return to Duke University, my alma mater, was particularly welcome. Duke has a legacy of defending the expression of controversial views. … Continue reading “Free Expression at Duke: What Do Freshmen Blue Devils Think?”
Russell Kirk on Higher Education Jan 8, 2020
Russell Kirk isn’t known as a policy wonk. The Great Books, not the mathematical or statistical models of economic technicians, were his organon of choice. He devoted essays to broad, perennial themes like “the moral imagination,” “liberal learning,” and “the permanent things.” Read his numerous columns about higher education, however, and you might come away … Continue reading “Russell Kirk on Higher Education”
Loosening Social Justice’s Iron Grip on Academia Jan 6, 2020
Social justice education—which teaches young people to view the world through the lens of oppression and demands unquestioning conformity—pervades nearly every nook and cranny of higher education: the administration, general education requirements, extracurriculars, university mission statements, and academic departments. On December 6, the National Association of Scholars (NAS) co-sponsored an event with the Martin Center … Continue reading “Loosening Social Justice’s Iron Grip on Academia”

Free Expression at Duke: What Do Freshmen Blue Devils Think? Jan 20, 2020
As director of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Campus Free Expression Project, I am always eager to get beyond the DC beltway to learn how students understand free expression on their particular campus. So, to return to Duke University, my alma mater, was particularly welcome. Duke has a legacy of defending the expression of controversial views. … Continue reading “Free Expression at Duke: What Do Freshmen Blue Devils Think?”
Emerson’s Vision of the American Scholar Jan 17, 2020
Editor’s Note: This is an abridged version of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s The American Scholar, a lecture he gave to Harvard’s Phi Beta Kappa Society in 1837. This is the third of a Martin Center “History of Higher Ed” series where the Center will republish overlooked writings that shaped American higher education. In the light of … Continue reading “Emerson’s Vision of the American Scholar”
Did You Know? Parental Income Across UNC Schools Jan 16, 2020
The University of North Carolina system boasts a diverse set of institutions. There are many ways in which the 16 schools differ: size, geography, research intensity, curriculum, and student characteristics. They also differ in terms of students’ family income. As part of the Opportunity Insights project at Harvard University, Raj Chetty and a team of … Continue reading “Did You Know? Parental Income Across UNC Schools”