Cracked.com

[chcsportsfan]

http://www.cracked.com/article_19849_5-infuriating-things-nobody-tells-you-about-college.html

Not sure who reads this site (it is amazing), but an Mu reference to them increasing applications to look more selective in #3

Not the great kind of publicity to get.

[warriorchick]

http://www.cracked.com/article_19849_5-infuriating-things-nobody-tells-you-about-college.html



The good news:  It's not in the section about covering up crimes.

[4everwarriors]

Reality is that colleges are in a very competitive business. Any marketing advantage helps.

[Ari Gold]

I think #1 speaks to how professors care more about writing letters about Ryan's budget than they do about teaching


I've pretty much determined that the only reason one goes to college is to realize they didn't need to go to college

[forgetful]

Professors work a minimum of 60-80 hours a week, teaching, doing research and mentoring students.  The reason they don't have formal training in education is because they spent the majority of their lives perfecting their discipline.  Frankly they are grossly underpaid.

The article frankly is ignorant.  Most classes at major Universities are taught by PhD's.  The statistics are skewed by junior colleges that don't have such requirements.  As for selling information, yeah it sucks, but if they didn't do it that is more money that has to come from tax payers or from tuition.

The practice of boosting applications is also of new impact to the students.  The metrics employed to boost applications do not have application fees associated with them.

The only one of the five that actually is real or applies to the students is the covering up criminal behavior.  That is reprehensible and something needs to be done about it.

[GGGG]

http://www.cracked.com/article_19849_5-infuriating-things-nobody-tells-you-about-college.html

Not sure who reads this site (it is amazing), but an Mu reference to them increasing applications to look more selective in #3

Not the great kind of publicity to get.

Regarding #3...almost every school of Marquette's "type" does that now.  It's because people pay too much attention to USN&WR rankings and the ranking criteria are completely flawed.  I am not exactly sure how accepting a smaller percentage of your applicants makes you a better school...I am not sure how having a greater percentage of your alumni donate makes you a better school, etc. etc. etc.

[GGGG]

Professors work a minimum of 60-80 hours a week, teaching, doing research and mentoring students. 

I agree that the section regarding PhDs is misleading, but this line is laughable.  I have worked in higher education almost my entire career and the idea that professors work 60-80 hours a week is absurd.  You do realize that 80 hours is almost 12 hours a day...7 days a week right???

[MerrittsMustache]

There are a lot of educators in the US with degrees in education that are not qualified to teach - primarily those teachers who go into education because they want to have summers off.

[Lennys Tap]

Professors work a minimum of 60-80 hours a week, teaching, doing research and mentoring students.  The reason they don't have formal training in education is because they spent the majority of their lives perfecting their discipline.  Frankly they are grossly underpaid.

So the slackers, the ones doing the "minimum" work 60-80 hours a week? What do the go-getters work, 100-120 hours a week? Please.

I like teachers. In general, I think they do a pretty good job, but calling them "grossly underpaid" is absurd. The only ones who fit that category are those who inspire and that's a very low number.

[Hards Alumni]

There are a lot of educators in the US with degrees in education that are not qualified to teach - primarily those teachers who go into education because they want to have summers off.

I wouldn't use the word qualified, because they are qualified... but maybe they aren't fit to teach.

But you could say the same about any profession.  Which makes this a fairly pointless comment.

I worked in a pharma lab, and there were plenty of coworkers that didn't know diddly poo about the chemistry that was going on, but could follow directions just fine.

[MerrittsMustache]

I wouldn't use the word qualified, because they are qualified... but maybe they aren't fit to teach.

But you could say the same about any profession.  Which makes this a fairly pointless comment.

I worked in a pharma lab, and there were plenty of coworkers that didn't know diddly poo about the chemistry that was going on, but could follow directions just fine.

It depends on whether one believes that "qualified" means having the necessary education/experience or if it means having the ability to effectively do a job. My wife is a teacher and, believe me, she has worked with plenty of teachers who don't fit the latter definition. I definitely have too (in the engineering world) so I don't think that teachers are alone in this regard.

[Lennys Tap]

It depends on whether one believes that "qualified" means having the necessary education/experience or if it means having the ability to effectively do a job. My wife is a teacher and, believe me, she has worked with plenty of teachers who don't fit the latter definition. I definitely have too (in the engineering world) so I don't think that teachers are alone in this regard.

Having the ability is one requisite, using that ability is another. At least there's a chance that teacher's who lack the ability might be "found out" before tenure gives them lifetime job protection. There's no recourse against teachers who start mailing it in post tenure. Bad teachers being protected at the expense of our children is an uncomfortable but necessary subject for discussion.

[Hards Alumni]

Having the ability is one requisite, using that ability is another. At least there's a chance that teacher's who lack the ability might be "found out" before tenure gives them lifetime job protection. There's no recourse against teachers who start mailing it in post tenure. Bad teachers being protected at the expense of our children is an uncomfortable but necessary subject for discussion.

I am the son of a school administrator, and a teacher, and there is nothing my parents hated more than teachers that mailed it in.

[Lennys Tap]

I am the son of a school administrator, and a teacher, and there is nothing my parents hated more than teachers that mailed it in.

I'd be willing to wager that your parents are like most administrators/educators - able and dedicated.

[Hards Alumni]

I'd be willing to wager that your parents are like most administrators/educators - able and dedicated.

My mother was the super.  She did it for years, but got burned out by school board members that didn't know the first thing about budgets and curriculum.  She had her doctorate.

My father had his masters, and started out teaching 'special ed' (I'm sure they don't call it that anymore).