40. The Hallmarks of a Student-Centered University

Higher education has lost track of its original and enduring purpose: to challenge the minds and imaginations of this nation’s young people, to expand their understanding of the world, and thus themselves.

—Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus, Higher Education? How Colleges Are Wasting Our Money and Failing Our Kids—And What We Can Do About It

What should you learn in college?

In higher-ed circles, you can find academics who believe specific disciplinary content is king. English majors, for instance, should have certain concepts, dates, and facts lodged inside their cranium before they graduate. I assume that would mean Beowulf, John Donne poems, Shakespeare, and a bunch of stuff found in a well-thumbed ...

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