Blogs

I took a few weeks off from blogging in order to participate in some end-of-semester faculty development, finish my grading, and otherwise wrap up the school year. So what did I miss? Naomi Schafer Riley blogged irresponsibly, sparked a call for a boycott, apologized weakly, and lost her blogging gig, all in the time I was away from the blogosphere. (See the first paragraph of Liana Silva’s recent post for the details—and read the rest for her smart thoughts on why minority scholars’ voices need to be heard.) There was an election in France. Some more pseudo-mommy-wars seem to have flamed up. And Maurice Sendak died.

Some new reading on the complex, surprisingly little understood, and much debated topic of 'internationalization' was published today by NAFSA. To access a PDF of this free 26 pp. report, written by Madeleine F. Green, click on the cover page image below.

"Technology is neither good nor bad, only thinking makes it so" is a paraphrase from Hamlet that crossed this English major's mind a number of years ago when I began working in this field. It came to mind again recently as I have been reflecting on the irony of how technology has affected higher education. When in 2001 I became aquatinted with EDUCAUSE, and by that I mean the larger thinking about information technology in higher ed, I was not only thrilled to be part of a world where people talked about big ideas but in a community that swelled with optimism and hope about the transformation that technology would bring to my calling. The underlying assumption was loud and clearly a positive one. The transformation would take us all to a new and better level.

I talk to a former student about being an English major and having a job at graduation, as well as a new writing/tutoring program she's launching in Greenville, S.C.

It’s funny. Tuesday night I wrote a blog post addressed to students in a course I teach about why I find Twitter such an indispensable tool for keeping up with new developments of professional interest. They had fanned out across campus to interview faculty and pretty much determined that I’m a freak. Nobody else used Twitter for keeping up. Last night, I updated that blog post with a good example: before calling it a night, I checked my Twitter feed and learned that a decision had finally been handed down in the GSU case. This is big news.

With the proliferation of free educational resources, why pay for school? Why pay to learn? Sure, there's the argument about college credits and certification. There's the argument too that "you get what you pay for." I'm particularly interested in the question of free learn-to-program resources (along with what works and what doesn't work -- paid or free -- for learners) in part due to the pivot that the folks at the startup Bloc have made.

In my state, as in many, there’s a move afoot at the state level to impose greater “accountability” throughout public higher education, but especially on community colleges. (In the words of Spider-Man’s uncle, “with small appropriations come great responsibility.” No, wait...) A few legislators heard a few anecdotes, and bad ideas are starting to snowball.

In early May, my wife, our two small children and I will pack up our serendipitously named 2003 Honda Odyssey and travel 262 miles from our home near Indianapolis to the campus of Michigan State University. There I will proudly don my newest prized possession: my master’s hood. However, unlike many others who will also walk through such a ceremony this spring, this trip is different in that it will be just my third time on campus as 100% of my degree has been completed online.