SUP-442: Tackling the Toughest Controversies in Modern American Higher Education

Semester: Not Offered

Credit: 1.0

Faculty: Richard Light

Schedule

Day Time Location
First Day
Meet Day
Review

Description

This course explores nine controversies in American Higher Education. The overarching theme is how to help all students to succeed and prosper in a broad variety of universities, at a time where students bring increasingly different backgrounds to campus and financial constraints are real. The nine topics include: (1) Diversity - - on some campuses diversity among students works wonderfully well, while on others it is a disaster. What concrete, policy decisions can enhance the good? (2) Student services - including advising, running an effective orientation, helping students with problems - - how to structure such services. (3) What are ways to assess rigorously how well a college is serving its students? What are ways to assess value - added, what students are actually learning? (4) Why do some students transition so smoothly into universities, while others struggle? What formal policies can help students to make this transition most effectively and successfully? (5) Is the future of America's liberal arts colleges bright or grim? (6) Most American students attend large, public universities. What are challenges facing public universities in next few years? How can public universities increase graduation rates for their students? Is a gap between privates and publics widening to become a chasm? If yes, what can be done about it? (7) How can universities incorporate discussions of non-academic topics to enrich students' overall experiences on a campus? (8) Privatization of public universities - - when and how? (9) How can universities deal with some politically sensitive topics, such as admitting and financially assisting undocumented students?

Also offered by the Graduate School of Education as S-123, but not offered in 2012-13.