By Laura Tropp. Around this time of year (midterms, advising) students often come to me crying about being overwhelmed or some perceived unfairness. I haven’t quite figured out a technique for how to respond to the “criers.” I’ve tried different responses, including telling the student that it’s okay to cry and offering tissues, pretending that I don’t notice the tears streaming down their face, or, if they are particularly embarrassed, reassuring them that it’s okay to express their emotions in that way. Read more...

By Steven Mintz. eneral education requirements were instituted to ensure that every undergraduate receives the rudiments of a liberal education. The goal was to expose students to the methods, theoretical and conceptual frameworks, essential knowledge and skills, and habits of mind of diverse disciplines Read more...

By Steven Mintz.  MOOCs are not dead, but MOOC mania has certainly abated.
Predictions made in 2012 that MOOCs would totally disrupt the existing higher education model were certainly exaggerated. But that does not mean that MOOCs won’t have an profound impact on the future of higher education. Read more...

By Dan Butin. In one of the most memorable movie scenes ever about teaching, Robin Williams, as the high school English teacher John Keating, stands up on his desk and asks the stunned class “Why do I stand up here?” When a student replies “To feel taller!” Williams responds, “No! Thank you for playing Mr. Dalton. I stand upon my desk to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way.” Read more...