Topic: Innovation

The Credibility Issue in Nutrition Science Is a Sign for All of Higher Ed

Nov 27, 2019 · · No Comments on The Credibility Issue in Nutrition Science Is a Sign for All of Higher Ed

In recent years, psychology has dealt with a legitimacy crisis. Many influential psychological studies could not be reproduced by other psychologists, discrediting some key insights and weakening academic faith in the entire field. Nutrition science has a similar problem. The loudest critics argue that the methodologies relied on by researchers give bad data that are … Continue reading “The Credibility Issue in Nutrition Science Is a Sign for All of Higher Ed”

Healing Civic Culture One Conversation at a Time

Nov 18, 2019 · · No Comments on Healing Civic Culture One Conversation at a Time

We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature. —Abraham Lincoln A certain degree of polarization is a natural consequence of political discourse. The … Continue reading “Healing Civic Culture One Conversation at a Time”

How Colleges Can Survive the Coming Enrollment Crash

Nov 13, 2019 · · No Comments on How Colleges Can Survive the Coming Enrollment Crash

Nationwide, higher education enrollment has been trending down for several years. According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, 2019 was the eighth straight year of decline, with an overall drop of nearly 10 percent since 2011. The reasons for this are many, including political, economic, and social factors. But the main one is demographic: Fewer … Continue reading “How Colleges Can Survive the Coming Enrollment Crash”

Architecture Programs Need a Change: Put People First—Not ‘Art’

Nov 6, 2019 · · No Comments on Architecture Programs Need a Change: Put People First—Not ‘Art’

This essay responds to the British architecture schools’ “Open Letter to the Architectural Community: A Call for Curriculum Change.” Since educating architects is a global problem, the analysis presented here is aimed at an international audience. We are at a pivotal point in recognizing the relationship between the built and natural environments and human health … Continue reading “Architecture Programs Need a Change: Put People First—Not ‘Art’”

The Benefits of Renewing Education with the Socratic Method

Oct 21, 2019 · · No Comments on The Benefits of Renewing Education with the Socratic Method

“I cannot teach anybody anything. I can only make them think.” —Socrates Classical education—a tradition of education with ancient roots—is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to the current K-12 public education model. Its emphasis on reading the Great Books and making students active participants in their own education is appealing to parents and educators who … Continue reading “The Benefits of Renewing Education with the Socratic Method”

Can Independent Christian Study Centers Restore the Soul of Higher Education?

Oct 9, 2019 · · No Comments on Can Independent Christian Study Centers Restore the Soul of Higher Education?

In The Soul of the American University published in 1994, the historian George Marsden gave a powerful account of how once-great pillars and trend-setters of American higher education have abandoned even a residual commitment to the Christian foundations on which they were founded. The cultural, political, social and economic upheavals of the 20th century moved … Continue reading “Can Independent Christian Study Centers Restore the Soul of Higher Education?”

The Free Online Courses that Cultivate the Mind

Sep 27, 2019 · · No Comments on The Free Online Courses that Cultivate the Mind

The task of learning never ends for those who want to grow in wisdom. But in a world of eight- or ten-hour workdays, traffic jams, and daily responsibilities, it can be easy to put the life of the mind on the back burner. Besides time constraints, another difficulty is that education is expensive. For those … Continue reading “The Free Online Courses that Cultivate the Mind”

Which Country’s Higher Education System Is Best?

Sep 18, 2019 · · No Comments on Which Country’s Higher Education System Is Best?

Many Americans crow that our higher education system is “the envy of the world,” even though it’s nearly impossible to point to any proof of that. In truth, however, some Americans look down on our system, saying that it is clearly inferior to that of other nations, such as Japan and Finland. A recent study … Continue reading “Which Country’s Higher Education System Is Best?”

The 20th-Century Idea of a Cultivated Man

Sep 11, 2019 · · No Comments on The 20th-Century Idea of a Cultivated Man

Editor’s Note: This article is adapted from the 1910 introduction to The Harvard Classics by Charles W. Eliot, a long-serving president of Harvard and an advocate of a liberal arts education. In light of its wisdom about the value of the liberal arts and Eliot’s goal in making the classics accessible to every American, the … Continue reading “The 20th-Century Idea of a Cultivated Man”

Advising and Peer Connections: Helping Transfer Students Earn a College Degree

Sep 9, 2019 · · No Comments on Advising and Peer Connections: Helping Transfer Students Earn a College Degree

Jumping right into a four-year university after high school isn’t for everybody. There are numerous reasons why, for some students, attending a community college and then transferring to a four-year university is the most prudent decision. For some, it’s financially practical. The low cost of community college allows students to virtually cut the cost of … Continue reading “Advising and Peer Connections: Helping Transfer Students Earn a College Degree”