Education
Statements from USC Dean and Provost About the Greg Patton / "Neige" Controversy
The framing is now that Prof. Patton's example was unduly "polarizing" -- but does that normally call for a professor to be switched in the middle of the course?
University's Center for Social Justice and Inclusion Hosts Race-Segregated Virtual Events
University of Michigan-Dearborn offers one discussion space for students of color, and another for whites.
Should We Quit Teaching Cursive in a Digital Age?
While script may wire the brain, connect to history, and come more naturally to many kids, digital print is winning.
Trump's Struggle To Win the Gary Johnson Vote
Sadly for the president, 2016 Libertarians are not "all Republican voters." Sadly for us, his opposition to "endless wars" doesn't translate into ending them.
Letter from USC Marshall School of Business Alumni About the "Neige" / Prof. Greg Patton Controversy
"This current incident, and Marshall's response so far, seem disturbingly similar to prevalent behavior in China [during the Cultural Revolution]—spurious accusations against innocent people, which escalated into institutional insanity."
School Calls Cops on 12-Year-Old Boy Who Held Toy Gun During Zoom Class
Isaiah Elliott also received a five-day suspension, but plans to transfer.
This Labor Day, Police and Teachers Unions Are Making a Bad Year Worse
Americans are being forced to confront the downsides of powerful organized labor in an already miserable year.
Study Finds More School Arrests In Florida After the State Doubled The Number of Police in Schools
There were four times as many incidents of physical restraint against students the year after Florida doubled the number of police in its schools.
Hispanic Parents Want More Choices for School
School choice programs can help Hispanic families ease their fears about the coronavirus.
Teachers Unions Push Families Out of Public Schools
Kids are beside the point when government officials and union leaders keep them waiting on labor negotiations that serve everybody but students and their families.
USC Communications Professor "on a Short-Term Break" for Giving Chinese Word "Neige" as Example …
in a class discussion of filler words in conversation (which "neige" apparently is).
USC Suspended a Communications Professor for Saying a Chinese Word That Sounds Like a Racial Slur
Greg Patton was describing the Chinese filler word "nega," which earned him a temporary suspension.
Tenured Professor Fired for Accurately Quoting Leading Campus Speech Code Case
The professor, chair of the Central Michigan University journalism department, was teaching a media law class, and quoted a case that discussed the use of the word "nigger" at public universities.
"Some [Academics] Fear for Their Career Because They Don't Believe Progressive Orthodoxies"
From Prof. John McWhorter (Columbia) in The Atlantic.
Should Universities Recommend (or Demand) Epithet Filtering on Students' and Professors' Internet Devices?
A thought experiment that came to my mind; I'd love to hear what others think about it.
The Controversy Over Quoting Racial Epithets, Now at UC Irvine School of Law
Plus a new draft law review article on the subject, by Prof. Randall Kennedy (Harvard Law School), a leading scholar of race and the law, and me.
The First Night of the RNC Offered a Full-Throated Defense of School Choice
Republicans have turned away from freedom in many ways during the Trump era, but at least they've embraced school choice at the national level.
Political Conventions Should Be NC-17
The Reason Roundtable assesses one convention, previews another, and pleads with everyone to get their kids out of politics.
Science Denialism on the Left: Sex, Gender, and Trans Identity
In The End of Gender, Debra Soh stands up for impartial research—and for LGBTQ rights.
Study: More Cops in Schools Lead to Harsher Discipline, Don't Make School Safer
"Our findings suggest that increasing SRO staffing in schools does not improve school safety and that increasing exclusionary responses to school discipline incidents increases the criminalization of school discipline."
School Reopenings Linked to Union Influence and Politics, Not Safety
New data suggest that school districts in states with stronger teachers unions are significantly less likely to reopen in person this fall.
Iowa State English Professor Forbids Papers "Against Gay Marriage, Abortion, Black Lives Matter,"
threatens to kick students out of class for "othering." Fortunately, the university has stepped in and rejected this position.
When Teachers Call the Cops on Parents Whose Kids Skip Their Zoom Classes
Punishing families for struggling with distance learning is doubly wrong.
UConn Will Pay White Fragility Author Robin DiAngelo $20,000 To Train School Administrators
The three-day retreat will help 44 top officials "come to grips with the critical questions of racism and inclusion."
"How Racist Are Universities, Really? Hyperbolic Accusations Do More Harm Than Good"
An excellent piece by Harvard law professor Randall Kennedy, one of the nation's leading scholars of race, law, and society.
Media Alarmism Is Making It Difficult To Assess School Reopening
Kids do not catch or spread or suffer from coronavirus at the same rate as adults, no matter what your newspaper is telling you this week.
Video: Key West Police Arrest and Try To Handcuff 8-Year-Old Child
His wrists were too small for the cuffs, though.
Chicago Cuts School Police Budget by More Than Half
In other news, Chicago Public Schools will still spend $15 million on school police.
Teachers Unions Try To Protect Their Monopoly as Parents Flee Traditional Schools
As families flock to virtual charter schools and "pandemic pods," California blocks the money from following the child.
UMass Democrats Bar a 31-Year-Old Progressive Gay Candidate for Dating College Students
To the extent that the accusations against Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse get into specifics, they're pretty dubious.
Fund Students Instead of Systems
Sen. Rand Paul wants to help families find a route around the public school monopoly.
Diversity Training Isn't Just Expensive, It's Counterproductive
"Well-intentioned efforts to celebrate diversity may in fact reinforce racial stereotyping," say two Carleton College faculty.
Once Marginalized, Homeschooling Hits the Mainstream
DIY approaches to education—including homeschooling, learning pods, and microschools—are gaining popularity as public schools fold under pressure.
Tulane Canceled a Talk by the Author of an Acclaimed Anti-Racism Book After Students Said the Event Was 'Violent'
In Life of a Klansman, Edward Ball reckons with a white supremacist ancestor. Try explaining that to the students.
'Cancel Culture' at U.S. Colleges Not Getting Worse, Say Liberal Professors. Conservative Colleagues Disagree.
Plus: Georgia makes it a hate crime to damage police property, SCOTUS denies relief to prisoners, Trump escalates war on Chinese apps, study casts doubt on "diversity training," coronavirus in schools, and more…
Med School Professor Removed from Fellowship Director Post, Apparently for Publishing Anti-Affirmative-Action Journal Article
This happened at University of Pittsburgh, a public university.
Trump Urges Floridians To Vote by Mail While Suing Over Remote Voting in Nevada
Plus: Tuesday primary results, TikTok may move to London, polls show growing distrust in media, and more...
