Blogs

Consider this post to be the last time I write about Vimeo.

The People have sustained libraries longer than the companies that legislate against libraries and the Internet have been in existence. There is no reason we can't spend our money differently to sustain a model that respects openness and sharing to advance knowledge for all - if we choose to.

Researching and writing a dissertation can be one of the most exciting parts of graduate study; that final stage as we move from student to colleague. I behave as professionally as I can in all of my dealings with my committee members,* but recently I encountered a situation that I did now know how to handle at first. Two of my committee members completely disagree about something in the first draft of one of my chapters. After a brief moment of panic, some of which was aloud to one of my supportive peers, I realized that this particular problem has a couple of possible solutions. The easiest and perhaps most common solution when committee members disagree is to do what your committee chair wants. After all, this is the main reason that committees have chairs--someone has to make the final call when ideas conflict. In this post is advice from a professor who has served on many committees.

“How to Handle Good News” should be a handout given to every new administrator. It’s remarkably easy to handle it wrong.

Riddle: How can you attract a roomful of academic parents from all fields together for two hours starting at 7 pm on a weeknight (without food)?

The semester has begun for most of us, and like many other semesters, most of us are teaching or TAing or doing something in the classroom. Teaching truly is one of the loves of my life. I find it invigorating, challenging, and, often, nerve-racking. But, I wouldn't have it any other way. I realized long ago that I belong in front of the classroom; however, I know that some of my colleagues sometimes struggle in front of a classroom. They're nervous, trembling, and unsure of themselves. While teaching surely isn't for everyone, it still is something that's expected from most graduate students, so you should be comfortable in front of a classroom. I know the title of this piece may seem shocking, but I've held to this philosophy, since I began teaching. It works for me. The most planning I do is putting together the syllabus for a class at the beginning, but I then just relax and teach. That's it.

Speculation runs rampant about Apple's education announcement in New York on Thursday. Let's connect the digital dots.

Coursekit's announcement on 1/2/12 that it had secured a $5 million Series A round of venture capital financing is important news in our industry. Perhaps more interesting than the money is that the investment is being led by a venture firm, Social+Capital Partnership, that was started by former Facebook executive Chamath Palihapitiya. This investment will give the founders of Coursekit something perhaps even more valuable than development capital, that is networks and guidance within and from experience and plugged-in Silicon Valley veterans.