Some subscribers to Phys-L ight be interested in a recent
discussion-list post "Re: Foundations' Newfound Advocacy" [Hake
(2012)].
The abstract reads:
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ABSTRACT: Norman Stahl of the LRNASST list has called attention to
Doug Lederman's (2012) "Inside Higher Ed" report "Foundations'
Newfound Advocacy" at <http://bit.ly/HG3wc2>. Lederman, in turn,
points to a paper " 'Advocacy Philanthropy' and the Public Policy
Agenda: The Role of Modern Foundations in American Higher Education"
[Hall & Thomas (2012) at <http://bit.ly/HHNcIw>.
Lederman wrote: "Hall and Thomas channel fears that the consensus
that Gates and Lumina have built through their common agenda-setting
(in league with federal and state officials) and their comparatively
massive, widely distributed dollars (to a cottage industry of
'intermediaries') has given them 'outsized influence' and squelched
alternative points of view."
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"The academic area is one of the most difficult areas to change in
our society. We continue to use the same methods of instruction,
particularly lectures, that have been used for hundreds of years.
Little scientific research is done to test new approaches, and little
systematic attention is given to the development of new methods.
Universities that study many aspects of the world ignore the
educational function in which they are engaging and from which a
large part of their revenues are earned."
Richard M. Cyert, former president of
Carnegie Mellon University as quoted in Tuma & Reif (1980)
REFERENCES [All URL's shortened by <http://bit.ly/> and accessed on
14 April 2012.]
Hake, R.R. 2012. "Re: Foundations' Newfound Advocacy,"online on the
OPEN! AERA-L archives at <http://bit.ly/HyCGik>. Post of 14 Apr 2012
08:23:38-0700 to AERA-L and Net-Gold. The abstract and link to the
complete post are also being transmitted to several discussion lists
and are on my blog "Hake'sEdStuff" at <http://bit.ly/HIAjw3> with a
provision for comments.
Tuma, D.T. & F. Reif, eds. 1980. "Problem Solving and Education:
Issues in Teaching and Research," Lawrence Erlbaum. Amazon.com
information at <http://amzn.to/jcAK2d>.
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