Since there has been an institutionalized system of orientation, dividing young people into school subjects, and then into trades, we constantly denounce the difficulties and cruelty of this system. But can there be, in society as it is, a “happy orientation”? If the processes of orientation and the social inequalities that are linked to them are […] … learn more→
Author Archives: Kevin
School Choices: Is “Happy Orientation” Possible?
Sub-prime College crash quietly continues
“Sub-prime” refers to loans which basically should never be made, because the borrower has no legitimate chance of paying it back. The sub-prime real estate crash of 2008 came very close to revealing the fundamental fraud of the entire economic system, only the last minute printing of trillions of dollars and handing it over to […] … learn more→
University students: how to manage the stress of studying for your degree
According to the recently published Natwest Student Living Index, 64% of university students rated the stress of studying for their degree as seven or above out of ten. Other studies have estimated that up to 82% of UK university students suffer from stress and anxiety, and the number of students dropping out of university due to mental health problems […] … learn more→
How to turn your PhD into a book
Turning your PhD into a book is a mark of success in many disciplines, especially the humanities. Many people pursue this goal immediately upon finishing their PhD as part of an overall academic career strategy. I didn’t have to, because I already had a job and I wanted to start building a research reputation in […] … learn more→
The far right’s love/hate relationship with social science
“Discover what your professors never taught you in school,” an American white supremacist group’s website declares. Many of the site’s “education” links lead, predictably, to neo-Nazi and right-wing extremist publications. But tucked in-between a description of “white identity” and “the perils of diversity” is a link to Robert Putnam’s mainstream scholarly treatise, Bowling Alone – […] … learn more→
Catastrophe overload? Read philosophers and poetry instead of headlines
For almost two years now, Americans have been confronted daily by ominous tidings. We are living through stressful times. Reading the news feels awful; ignoring it doesn’t feel right either. Psychologist Terri Apter recently wrote about the “phenomenon in human behavior sometimes described as ‘the hive switch,’ where “catastrophic events eliminate selfishness, conflict and competitiveness, rendering humans […] … learn more→
Federal funding for higher ed comes with strings attached, but is still worth it
When nonprofit colleges and universities get federal funding for research and to support students, do government regulations make it difficult to fulfill their missions? As a professor who studies the organizational performance of nonprofits and government agencies, I’ve tried to understand if accepting that money has any downsides in terms of the main mission of many […] … learn more→
Girls creeped out by old scientists luring them to STEM (?)
Sometimes it’s really hard to believe the academic word works the way it does, and I’ve highlighted many of the surreal aspects of higher ed. A recent article highlights just how bizarre the endless emphasis on “must have more females in STEM” obsession in higher ed today is: Young Girls Creeped Out By Older Scientists […] … learn more→
Battles over patriotism, Pledge of Allegiance in schools span a century
When a California school principal called controversial quarterback Colin Kaepernick an “anti-American thug” for his protests during the national anthem at NFL football games, passions were inflamed anew over whether patriotism should be taught in America’s schools. As our new book “Patriotic Education in a Global Age” demonstrates, such debates are longstanding in American history. Posting schoolhouse flags Seventy-five years ago, […] … learn more→
Debate: Mobilizing collective intelligence in the service of ecological transition
Faced with the all-out degradation of our environment, society is struggling to mobilize. Paradoxically, education is rarely seen as a way to respond to the issues. However, many initiatives know how to make children and students actors of the ecological transition. The march for the climate will have gathered tens of thousands of people. It is both a lot and […] … learn more→
