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No One Said There Would Be Reading . . .

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Henry Farrell provides his reading list for his fall PhD-level course on institutions and politics at George Washington University.

How to Use an Apostrophe

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Useful “How To Use An Apostrophe” flowchart from The Oatmeal:

75 Percent of Freshmen Not Ready for College

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Most students need remedial classes. Whose fault is that?

Virginia School District Bans Sherlock Holmes Book

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The desire to shield children from controversy has led another school district to ban a classic novel.

International Relations Graduate School Pros and Cons

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So, you want a career in foreign policy field and are weighing your options….

Stay in School, Drink More

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The more education you have, the more you’re likely to spend on booze.

How Students Use Tech

A cool infographic courtesy onlineeducation.net:

Rick Perry’s Grades

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Texas Governor Rick Perry got lousy grades as an undergrad at Texas A&M. Does it matter?

In Defense Of Chris Christie And Rahm Emanuel

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Chris Christie and Rahm Emanuel are being criticized for the brusque manner they handled questions about their children’s education.

Quote of the Day – Winklevoss Twins Edition

One of the things you learn as a college president is that if an undergraduate is wearing a tie and jacket on Thursday afternoon at three o’clock, there are two possibilities. One is that they’re looking for a job and have an interview; the other is that they are an a**hole.

New Book Criticizes Old War College

Howard Wiarda’s book on the National War College is based on his experiences from 1991 to 1996.

Is College a Scam?

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It’s the marketing of college as a panacea that’s a scam, not college itself.

Oral History, Confidentiality, and the Courts

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The Obama Justice Department is siding against historians trying to protect the confidentiality of their sources.

Film School Bubble

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More people are chasing careers in film than there are careers in film. And not just in front of the camera.

The Latest Salvo in the Debate over the Value of Higher Education

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A new study indicates that college degrees lead to higher wages even in fields that do not require a degree.

Brooks Brothers Selling College Gear

The venerable Brooks Brothers is getting into the college apparel business, selling sweaters and polos for Boston College; the U.S. Naval Academy, Auburn, Cornell, Harvard, New York, Ohio State, Princeton, Stanford, and Vanderbilt Universities and the Universities of Alabama, Georgia, Notre Dame and Virginia.

Michele Bachmann: Schools Should Teach “Intelligent Design”

Minnesota Congresswoman, and Presidential candidate, Michele Bachmann thinks that public schools should teach so-called “Intelligent Design” alongside evolution in science classrooms: Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann explained her skepticism of evolution on Friday and said students should be taught the theory of intelligent design. Bachmann, a congresswoman from Minnesota, also proposed a major overhaul of [...]

What Sarah Palin Can Teach Us About Writing

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A distinguished linguist is quite impressed with Sarah Palin’s facility with the written word.

Class Times and Drinking Behavior

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A new study shows that college students who take late classes drink more alcohol.

Single-Sex Dorms Are No Sex Dorms?

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Catholic University president John Garvey explains “Why We’re Going Back to Single-Sex Dorms.”

Professor Bias and Student Perception

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Do ideologically radical professors impose their biases on their students?

University of Texas Professors: Already Teaching

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Texas A&M professor finds serious flaws in college faculty productivity study.

Unemployment and Education

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Your major matters. But not as much as simply having a degree.

Teaching Math, Science, and the Humanities

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Is the college curriculum too heavy in humanities and social sciences and too light on science and mathematics?

Make Professors Teach!

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A new study finds that college tuition costs could be cut in half if lazy professors got off their butts.

Law School Grad Sues Alma Mater Because She Isn’t Working

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One law school grad seems to think the solution to her employment problems is to sue her law school.

The First Memorial Day

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David Blight recounts the story of the first Memorial Day.

Tyler Cowen’s Productive Mind

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A profile of George Mason economist and blogger Tyler Cowen offers this amusing description: “Cowen, 49, has round features, a hesitant posture, and an unconcerned haircut.”

Copyright Law and Higher Education

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Academic publishers want to end the Fair Use of scholarly journal articles in the classroom.

Civil War Park Battles

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The rebel and onion armies showed grose negligence by having many of their battles right inside national parks, like Gettysburg.

Study Finds 47% Of Detroit Residents Are Functionally Illiterate

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A new study shows the staggering degree to which public education has failed in one of the most economically depressed cities in the United States: According to a new report, 47 percent of Detroiters are  ”functionally illiterate.” The alarming new statistics were released by the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund on Wednesday. WWJ Newsradio 950 spoke with the Fund’s Director, [...]

Diploma Mills: Close Enough For Government Work

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Most good government jobs require a college degree–but they don’t care much whether it’s a real one.

Military-Academic Conflict

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America’s war colleges have some problems but we can’t close them.

Higher Education Bubble: Another Brick in the Wall?

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An increasing number of bright observers are questioning the notion that everyone needs to go to college.

Chicago School Bans Kids From Bringing Lunch From Home

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Should kids be required to buy their lunch at school rather than bring whatever their parents might pack for them to eat?

Seattle School Allegedly Renames Easter Eggs “Spring Spheres”

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A Seattle area school seems to have declared “war” on Easter: A sophomore at a local private high school thinks an effort to make Easter politically correct is ridiculous. Jessica, 16, told KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson Show that a week before spring break, the students commit to a week-long community service project. She decided to [...]

GOP Controlled Tennessee House Passes Anti-Evolution Bill

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The Republican war against geology, anthropology, cosmology, biology, and archeology continues apace: Tennessee’s House Bill 368 passed the House of Representatives on a 70-23 vote on April 7, 2011. “The debate ranged over the scientific method, ‘intellectual bullies,’ hair spray and ‘Inherit the Wind,’” reported the Chattanooga Times Free Press (April 7, 2011). The bill, [...]

Rutgers University Pays Snooki $32,000 For Campus Appearance

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Count this as a sign of the apocalypse: Snooki ruined Bryan Orellana’s day. Not just Snooki, but the $32,000 a Rutgers’ student activities group paid her to appear at the university. “Appear” in this context should mean showcase a talent. Snooki’s talent, is well, you know. She’s a reality star, an oxymoron if there ever [...]

How Not to Get Tenure

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The experiences of two well-known academics denied tenure at Chicago provide some clues.

UNF Oral Sex Photo Controversy

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A photo suggesting oral sex on the cover of a student newspaper has generated controversy.

America The Ignorant

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Another survey shows that Americans don’t know much about their own history, but does it really matter?

Proposed Texas Law Would Bar “Discrimination” Against Creationists

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Yet another example of the plethora of creationist legislation that Republican control of state legislatures has brought about: Unlike many other states, Texas does not ban workplace discrimination based on gender identity, sexual orientation, or marital status. But don’t be alarmed; the Lone Star State is working on that whole civil liberties thing. Last week, [...]

Information Overload Not New

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While complaints that there’s too much information for intellectuals to sort through, much less read, are constant, they’re not new. Harvard historian Ann Blair argues in her new book Too Much to Know: Managing Scholarly Information Before the Modern Age that this stress goes back at least to Seneca’s time.

Teachers Unions Explained

This video “Teachers Unions Explained” isn’t particularly fair but it’s nonetheless amusing.

3% Say Ivy League Produces Better Workers

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79% do not think Ivy League students make better workers. 18% are undecided.

Education Reform: Lectures at Home, Homework at School

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Salmon Khan argues that students should watch videos at night and practice during the day.

Obama High School Speaker Contest Gets Few Entrants

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Would you like President Obama to speak at your graduation? You’re the only one.

GMU Law Students Protest Graduation Gowns

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George Mason University law students are petitioning against the requirement to pay $136 to rent cap and gown regalia in order to attend their graduation ceremony.

A Quick Thought on Education Reform

We live in a country where Creationists can run for President without being laughed out of the room, homeopathy is seen as real medicine, millions of people buy into “The Secret” that wishing for something hard enough makes it happen, and the cast of the Jersey Shore is rich. Until that changes, I find it [...]

Northwestern University Live Sex Show

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Northwestern’s Human Sexuality course includes a naked woman being brought to orgasm with a dildo.

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