Mark R. Cheathem Liberal arts, MOOCs, Teaching

Knowledge vs. Box-Checking

Chronicle poster polly_mer recently posted this assessment of the importance of a college education: This is why our responsibility in Gen Ed and even majors classes is to sell the benefits of knowing things instead of checking the boxes.For example, I tell my students that being able to fake interest in deathly dull material is … Continue reading Knowledge vs. Box-Checking

Mark R. Cheathem Liberal arts, MOOCs

Selling The Matrix Revolution in Higher Education

"Our belief is that deep, radical and urgent transformation is required in higher education as much as it is in school systems. Our fear is that, perhaps as a result of complacency, caution or anxiety, or a combination of all three, the pace of change is too slow and the nature of change too incremental." … Continue reading Selling The Matrix Revolution in Higher Education

Mark R. Cheathem Higher education, Liberal arts

In Defense of the Liberal Arts

I've previously written about the value of a liberal arts degree, and I've highlighted some of the ways in which the traditional classroom experience is superior to online courses, particularly MOOCs. Tom Hilpert's request for academics to make their case for why the liberal arts degree is important in the face of the challenge presented by … Continue reading In Defense of the Liberal Arts

Mark R. Cheathem Higher education, Liberal arts, MOOCs

An Outsider Looks at MOOCs

My friend Tom Hilpert sent me the following thoughts on MOOCs and gave me permission to post them. I'll respond on Thursday. Dr. Mark Cheathem, a friend of mine who happens to be a college professor, often post links to articles critical of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). At various points in my life, I … Continue reading An Outsider Looks at MOOCs

Mark R. Cheathem Liberal arts

Is The Liberal Arts Degree Still Valuable?

The recent Salon.com article "Is It Time to Kill the Liberal Arts Degree?" sparked an interesting discussion on my personal Facebook page. I argued that employers want graduates who can write well, think critically, and solve problems--all things a liberal arts degree prepares one to do. Others agreed but pointed out that it's not necessarily an … Continue reading Is The Liberal Arts Degree Still Valuable?