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Op Eds
What the History of “Gradeflation” Means for its Solution
If we go back to assessing students for what they can actually do instead of how well they score on exams, we can finally break the cycle that turned the means into an end. And in doing so, we could remind ourselves of a truth lost in the arithmetic of academia: That education is, at its best, an intellectual transformation, not a number.
The Grade Inflation Report is Long Overdue
Wisdom says that democracy works only by adapting certain inequalities of excellence to qualify its main principle of equality. To expose them, professors have to grade sensibly.
We Lead the Intellectual Vitality Initiative. Harvard Needs To Set Its Standards Higher.
So yes, we’re fans of the report — not for its prescriptions, but for its provocation. It has forced Harvard, for the first time in a long while, to think out loud about what it’s doing. And that, finally, is something worth grading highly.
Grade Inflation is Bad. Grade Deflation Would Be Worse.
Changing the generosity of our grading system will not end the game of grade grubbing — it will just make the game far more toxic.
Grading the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Harvard
I suggest Trump drop the project — and his involvement with higher education — immediately.
The Harvard Square ‘KiOSK’ is a Waste of Space — and $12.6 Million
One look at the new KiOSK confirms that the old, eclectic Harvard Square has been strangled by the virulent spread of millennial gentrification once and for all.
Student Workers and the Fight for Academia
Harvard’s refusal to bargain in good faith makes clear that it will not change on its own. Real progress will come only through collective action — with graduate workers, faculty, staff, and students standing together — to resist the cuts to our programs and the assault on our rights as workers, as well as to demand a fair contract.
At Harvard Chan, We Need To Talk About Hard Things
We should be angry about these failures, but not certain in judgment. Certainty forecloses the possibility of dialogue that we need for actual accountability. Staying engaged with the complexity is crucial for any progress.
No, America Doesn’t Hate Harvard
It’s a neat narrative, though it doesn’t fit the facts. Yes, Americans are less confident in institutions like Harvard than they used to be. But the drop isn’t as steep as declinists say — and it’s not primarily driven by culture-war controversies.
What College Rankings Are Missing
If universities aspire to help students flourish, then surely it would be worth knowing whether their students think they are succeeding.
My Father Died Biking in Cambridge. We Can Build a Safer City By Voting on Nov. 4.
These are issues that affect Harvard students and our neighbors every day. Lives are at stake. No other families need to be destroyed. What greater impact could you make during your time at Harvard?
Harvard Must Take a Stand Against Trump’s Compact
Harvard, rather than quietly pursuing its own appeasement strategy, should lead the way to preserve academic freedom and democracy.
I’m a Non-Citizen Professor. Here’s Why I Testified Against Trump.
I am glad that I could re-learn this crucial lesson. Surround yourself with the right people. Stand in solidarity with them. Courses of action will make themselves known to you, along with the resources you need to follow through. Figuring out what to do isn’t something any of us needs to do alone.
To Avoid Federal Micromanagement, Harvard Must Earn Trust
The best way to promote a good deal with the Trump administration is to combine touting the great things at Harvard with a determination to fix the things that are not great. This is how to build the trust needed for Harvard to work together with the government to make universities great again.
The Trump Lawsuit You Haven’t Heard of Is the Real Game Changer
This week’s ruling is an important vindication of that core mission. And in winning our own independently enforceable judicial order, our organizations have helped protect our community’s essential rights from being bargained away in any backroom deal.
