This post is a stunning piece of writing by Eli Saslow, which was recently published in the Washington Post. Here's a link to the original. It's about a problem that has become increasingly apparent in contemporary American life: the downward mobility of many middle-class families. The reporter followed one 39-year old Michigan man in Lincoln Park, … Continue reading A Case of Downward Mobility
on An Unlikely Triumph: How US Higher Education Went from Rags in the 19th Century to Riches in the 20th This is a piece I published in Aeon in October, 2017. It provides an overview of my book that came out that year, A Perfect Mess: The Unlikely Ascendancy of American Higher Education. It's a highly improbable … Continue reading Rags to Riches: How US Higher Ed Went from Pitiful to Powerful
This post is a remarkable essay by Sarah Hepola, which appeared recently online at Atlantic. Here's a link to the original. I'm posting this for two compelling reasons. First, it's a simply stunning piece of writing, which provokes in me feelings of both awe and jealousy. If only I could write this well. The other … Continue reading Sarah Hepola — The Things I’m Afraid to Write About
I'm posting this as a public service. Read it and you won't need to read -- much less buy -- my 2004 book with the same title. It provides an overview of the book's argument, which was originally published in Educational Foundations in 1996. Here's a link to the original. This is an overview: Everyone … Continue reading The Trouble with Ed Schools
This post is a piece by Matt Yglesias that raises an interesting question. Maybe the Habsburg's Austro-Hungarian empire was not just one of the dead-on-its-feet empires -- along with the Ottoman and Russian empires -- that were finally put of its misery by World War I. His argument is two-fold. In part he's saying that … Continue reading Matt Yglegias — The Habsburgs Were on to Something
This piece was published in Inside Higher Ed in June, 2020. Here’s a link to the original. It speaks for itself. Doctoral Dysfunction Many doctoral students today are tending to fall into one of two disturbing categories: academic technician or justice warrior, writes David F. Labaree. David F. Labaree June 18, 2020 After nearly 40 years as a … Continue reading Doctoral Dysfunction — We’re Creating Too Many Academic Technicians and Justice Warriors
My post today is a short piece by Anika Okrent about some of the many English word pairs that seem to be etymologically related but actually are not. Here's a link to the original. Enjoy. 15 pairs of words that seem etymologically related but aren't There's no bomb in bombast ARIKA OKRENT MARCH 10, 2015 Share … Continue reading Anika Okrent — Pen and Pencil, Male and Female Come from Different Roots
My post today is a classic document from American political history, Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address. He delivered it on March 4, 1865, only 41 days before his assassination. At only 702 words, it's one of the shortest political speeches of all time, but it's amazing to watch how Lincoln deploys these words. The last … Continue reading Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address
This post is a new piece I just published in Kappan. Here's a link to the original. It's a response to an essay by Jal Mehta proposing a new US grammar of schooling, and it refers to a piece I wrote for Kappan with my take on understanding the roots of this grammar. In it … Continue reading The Attractions of Doing School
David Labaree on Schooling, History, and Writing 