The Incomplete Cynic

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What college ought to be about

This is what I’m saying…

But what about the [insert field here] mission of [same field here] departments? They’re not vocational schools! It shouldn’t be their job to train people to work in industry. That’s for community colleges and government retraining programs for displaced workers, they will tell you. They’re supposed to be giving students the fundamental tools to live their lives, not preparing them for their first weeks on the job. Right?

The Perils of JavaSchools - Joel Spolsky

Universities ought not be concerned with giving students ‘real world skills’ or ‘job competence’…that’s someone else’s job. They ought to be concerned with identifying bright and capable students, and pushing them to expand their minds, become intellectually flexible, and (God help me for using this phrase…) think outside the box.

Filed under education university college

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rooftopsedge asked: Do you think women deserve less than men?

Sorry I’ve been out of town for several days, in a land without interwebs…

I assume this is in response to my comments on the recent HuffPo article, “The Penis Mom.” It’s an odd question, really. First, I’m pretty surprised that someone could come to the impression that I think women are somehow less valuable than men. I don’t post much about feminism or women’s issues. That makes sense, though, because I’m a single man. 

What I do post is almost entirely influenced by my desire to see my daughter grow up with positive messages around her. So I’ve posted about media treatment of teenage girls who try to sail around the world, crazy parents who hide their kids gender for years, and toys that send a message similar to the email in “The Penis Mom” article. I’m pretty clear about how I feel about those messages.

Aside from that, this question isn’t particularly useful. It’s much too broad, and it’s only intent seems to be to put me on the defensive. Instead I have questions of my own.

Less of what? Less violence? Sure. Less responsibility? No.

What do you mean by “deserve”? Does anyone “deserve” anything? (I’m inclined to think not). If people do deserve things, how is that determined? If no one deserves anything, is it possible for women to deserve less than men?

I have more specific questions. For instance, violence against women is a big political deal. Laws and programs and education. Why isn’t there laws and programs and education about violence against men? It seems a large segment of the population thinks men deserve less safety than women.

In the end, it’s not really possible to answer your question. But I’ll leave you with this verbally unfortunate, but logically useful, proposition: men and women are not equal, but equivalent. In a mathematical sense, equal means identical, whereas equivalent is closer to equal in measure or value, but different in form.  With men and women, the differences are many, but always the same value.

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Karen Mangiacotti: The Penis Mom

It all started way back in early November, when my 13-year-old’s teacher sent an email to parents saying they were doing a little Pumpkin Chunkin’ — this is a very cool physics project where the kids launch pumpkins with a trébuchet. Awesome. Except the email asked for help setting up the trébuchet. Help from dads. That’s right, dads. Are there any strong dads who can help? So if you know me, you know I’m cautious. I sat down at my computer to check the facts, first looking at the calendar to see what year we were in — yep, still 2011. So with time-travel ruled out, we were only left with the possibility that we had somehow slipped into an alternate universe, one where teachers have giant balls. Balls clearly big enough to toss such gender-biased questions out into the wind without concern for where they might land. And thus began my verbal rant. I am uncertain how long it lasted, however when I finally came up for air my husband/editor had made dinner, cleaned up, and put the kids to bed.

At that point, I sat down to respond to the email. 

Dear teachers and parents:

Are you guys seriously only asking for Dads?

Is lifting done with a penis?

Thoughtfully yours,

- Karen

[…]

Parents were horrified. Who knew this might happen? Not us. OK, we probably knew — but seriously? Asking exclusively for dads to help is offensive on so many levels to me. I am freakishly strong and could mount a trébuchet with the best of them [Editor’s note: Um, honey, you don’t actually mount a trébuchet]. As someone who was a single mom for a good long time, I take issue with the assumption that every home has a dad to contribute. But most of all, I resent the message we are giving to our daughters that because of their gender, they are unwelcome to participate in physical tasks — that they are not strong enough and that only a man qualifies. I resent the message to all our children that we judge the value of contribution based on sex and not competence. What the hell year is this? I better double-check that.

Still 2011.

So, I received a slap-on-the-wrist email about how correspondence should be g-rated because some of the students are on the email list. I was slightly confused by this because, in my mind, “penis” is g-rated. Honestly, I would love to have been more colorful — but that would have been inappropriate. I was also slightly confused because it seemed perfectly OK with everyone to send socially regressive requests out that diminish our girl’s sense of worth, but they are now circling the wagons because I used the word penis? To thirteen-year-olds? Really?

I have a general distaste of feminism, but I’m totally onboard with this sentiment.

Filed under feminism

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After all, Race to the Top — a competition that has states vie for federal funds by promising to implement reforms championed by the Education Department — does, in fact, extend NCLB’s obsession with standardized testing. How? By requiring that teacher evaluation be in part measured by the scores students get on these exams. There is no concrete evidence that any of the Race to the Top reforms actually improve student achievement, but when has education policy paid attention to research?
Jon Stewart takes on Obama’s school reform — again - The Answer Sheet - The Washington Post

Filed under politics education race to the top

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Women have a right to drink. We have a right to drink as much as we want and we have a right to drink as much as we want without being raped. But just as we warn each other that certain neighborhoods are safer in daylight than others, why is it that some feminist activists have a tough time warning other women that women who drink — but not to the point of being intoxicated — will in fact be safer from a variety of crimes, including being mugged, than women who drink to extremes? Why is saying that out loud without fear of retribution not an option for any of us who identify as feminists, or anyone else who doesn’t want to be vilified? I’m not advocating that we become a society who never drinks. But we should work towards being a society where people — of both genders — are both encouraged and educated to drink responsibly.

Keli Goff: Why Are Feminists Afraid to Admit the Connection Between Alcohol and Rape?

This might be the first time I’ve ever agreed with Keli Goff.

Filed under safety feminism rape

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How about electronic publishing? Try reading a book on disc. At best, it’s an unpleasant chore: the myopic glow of a clunky computer replaces the friendly pages of a book. And you can’t tote that laptop to the beach. Yet Nicholas Negroponte, director of the MIT Media Lab, predicts that we’ll soon buy books and newspapers straight over the Intenet. Uh, sure.
Clifford Stoll: Why Web Won’t Be Nirvana - The Daily Beast - 2/26/95