The focus is on the 20th Century, and especially the period since WW II.
Geiger says we study history of higher education because some things change and some do not. By looking at higher education’s development across time he sees evidence of continuity, persistence of forms, and recurrence of issues. Ultimately though he sees change as an “irreducible reality” (p. 3). In fact, he argues that the “character” of higher education in the US has perceptibly changed about every thirty years. His 10 generations, he says, offers a framework for monitoring change over time.
In his article, Ethan Ris is a little more cynical. He makes the following observation:
The impulse to reform higher education, especially at the undergraduate level, is not new. It is cyclical. Thus, what may seem to scholars and administrators as an unprecedented assault on the campus gates is no more than the latest cohort of prominent ideologues with strong opinions about the form and function of college. (p. 2)
In recent weeks, you have heard lots of comments about higher education being out of touch, too slow to change, resistant to change, going to fail and fade away if it doesn’t change, etc.
- Pick 3 of Mintz’ “Lessons” that you think are important for administrators of higher education in 2022 to know about. Your task is to write a briefing paper for your current leadership of your organization (college, university, related agency, etc.) outlining those lessons you feel are particularly relevant for your institution.
o Do you agree or disagree there are lessons to be learned that can inform issues faced by colleges and universities today? Which three lessons from Mintz are the most important from your perspective and for your institution?
o Expand on each lesson using readings from this course. In most cases, Mintz does not provide specific examples to illustrate the lesson. Flesh out his arguments, add to them. In other words, add concrete examples from the course readings. (Some of them will be hard to do well because we have not read in-depth about forms of pedagogy, for example. Although for this one, you could focus on the changing conditions of faculty expectations and work and how that affects attention to pedagogy. In general, avoid the ones that call for detail that we did not cover.) In answering this question, focus on the period from about 1900 to early 2000’s. (Historians do not think the present is history.)
Sample Solution