Do We Need to Abolish Grading?
Many generations of young Americans have learned in school under the grading system. We took tests in subjects and would find out how well we had done when the instructor…
The Great AP Score Recalibration
Average course grades tend to be lower in some college subjects than others. Engineering and the “hard” sciences, for example, retain reputations for being “harder” subjects than the humanities and…
It’s Time for a Liberty-Loving Sociology
In the sociological imagination, capitalism is now regarded as a sin standing next to sexism and racism. Routinely, sociologists call for their colleagues and students to oppose capitalism and use…
Did Hard Grading Spur UNC Greensboro’s Cuts?
Earlier this year, the Martin Center’s Ashlynn Warta wrote convincingly that faculty opposition to academic cuts at UNC Greensboro was best understood as an act of self-preservation. We stand by…
Restore the Science Section
For decades, aspiring college students have had to submit with their applications scores from standardized tests, such as the SAT or the ACT. Variation of test scores is inevitable—that’s the…
“A Hard, Gemlike Flame”
Today, August 12, 2024, is the birthday of the University of Austin. This is the very first meeting of the assembled faculty and the first day of the first faculty…
A Medical Professor Learns That Dissent About Diversity Won’t Be Tolerated
In the good old days of American education, professors could speak their minds freely. Disagreements would often result, with others disputing the case that the speaker had made. The solid…
An Unconvincing AI Tract
MIT SMR Connections, an “independent content creation unit within MIT Sloan Management Review,” recently published an AI “strategy guide” commissioned by Anthology, Inc. Anthology is perhaps not as recognizable as…
The Fayetteville Fahd Fiasco
I’m a law professor and also a columnist for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Late last year, I began a series on the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville’s King Fahd Center for…
STEM-ing the Tide of Scientific and Mathematical Illiteracy in the Law
In 1897, before becoming a justice of the Supreme Court, Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote, “For the rational study of the law … the man of the future is the man…