The State of AI-Chatbot Detection
On April 4 of this year, the academic-services firm Turnitin activated a software designed to catch a certain kind of student plagiarist. As has been widely discussed on the Martin…
The Strange World of “Citational Justice”
The latest fresh hell is citational justice. Which is quotas for footnotes. Now we’re supposed to track the group identity of the authors we cite and make sure there are…
Undoing “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” Requires Alumni Effort
An historic battle is waging over the future of higher education in the U.S. And the stakes couldn’t be higher. The presenting issues are critical social justice theory and freedom…
The Department of Education’s “Secret Shoppers”
Students around the country pay top dollar and take on mountains of debt to earn a degree. They hope doing so will pay dividends in the future. But some colleges…
The True Story of UNC-Chapel Hill’s New School
Last month, UNC-Chapel Hill faculty penned an open letter airing criticism of both the North Carolina General Assembly and the UNC Board of Trustees. Among their complaints was the allegation…
A Collegiate Renaissance?
Intelligent observers of American higher education know that colleges generally are in great trouble: falling enrollments, declining public and political support, often dubious outcomes, and excessive tuition and other costs.…
Let’s Improve Student Engagement
Undergraduate student engagement is on the decline. That’s according to the publishing and research firm Wiley, which, in February, released a “State of the Student” survey indicating that student engagement…
“Social-Emotional Learning” Is a Dangerous Fad
Last year’s “CRT” is this year’s “SEL.” For those normal folks who don’t obsessively follow education news, “social-emotional learning” (SEL) is the latest progressive fad in schools to ignite the…
The General Assembly’s Long Higher-Ed Reach
Last week, the North Carolina General Assembly marked a special occasion: crossover. May 4, the official “crossover deadline,” was the last day on which bills could pass out of the…
Are English Departments Really Dying?
In an earlier millennium, yours truly undertook graduate studies in history and persisted a couple of years before getting cold feet. Some new PhDs could not find academic positions; some…