This is a revision, based on comments made by the editors, of the essay I ran here earlier, “On democracy, economy, and the rise and fall of the MOOC.” The disappearing public university I I teach Latin American literature and culture in a public research university that, having lost half its state funding over the … More The disappearing public university
Deleted section of “On Democracy, Economy, and the Rise and Fall of the MOOC.” Needs a new title and expansion, along the lines of the interesting comments from the editors–which I would like to insert here. II The news just a few months ago was that MOOCs were the new paradigm for higher education. Costs … More A draft for future use
These changes constitute “reforms” in the way that school closings in poor communities have been dubbed “education reform,” or the way in which Reagan’s tax cuts for the super-wealthy were championed as “tax reform.” Early advocates of the prison system—the folks who brought us solitary confinement in the first place—called themselves “reformers,” too. And, by … More The neoliberalism connection
A few months ago, it was announced [Who announced? Change to active voice?] that massive open online courses, or MOOCs, would soon solve the crisis in higher education by replacing traditional universities. With their advent costs would fall, quality would soar, and access to learning would be greatly expanded. But soon, the discussion shifted. Now, … More Edited slice
This must be cut to 600 words. It may need another title, and it needs sculpting: there are too many ideas. Tell me what you think; then I will tell you what I was asked to do. Then, we will all compromise. I will be grateful, and so will Remaking the University. On democracy, economy, … More Essay draft, 1481 words. Comments required.
The neoliberal world and the corporate university have made an annoying appropriation of the verb “to learn.” To listen to advertising and infomercials is to “learn” or “learn more.” Training sessions on the use of Moodle and WebCT, or on the newest university policies, are “learning.” Now, my Coursera MOOC “invites” me to “visit” the … More Sobre el verbo aprender
In Langston Hughes, I Wonder as I Wander, page 397, we find a notice printed on Barcelona music hall programs in 1938: JUST A MOMENT, COMRADE The United Syndicate of Public Spectacles begs you to have the greatest respect for all the comrades you are going to see on stage. They are workers just as … More Vallejo
Set largely on slave plantations, all three novels are key works in their national canons. Like several other narratives from the Latin American nineteenth century, their plots feature romances that fail due to a varying combinations of incest and miscegenation. In Cecilia Valdés most clearly, the patriarch Cándido Gamboa is the literal father of both … More 282 and better
I must review Bhabha’s “third space” for current purposes, and write that man back about that paper. Axé.
I have won awards for beautiful offices and office doors at two universities. That is not me in the doorway, but it is my office. Axé.
coldhearted scientist وداد 