Those plans raise a lot of issues. Some professors are camera shy—at least when it comes to their teaching. Others say they discuss ideas with their students that are not yet ready for prime time. And some administrators are nervous about giving away too much of their educational content as the cost of college continues to rise.”

Read more at The Chronicle

Read more at The New York Times

When applying to VIA, I listed this as a future concern that Vietnam would one day face. China’s economic growth in low-skill labor markets and education were impressive, but where were the high-skill jobs that students were training for? I argued that the education of students was far outpacing the actual growth of white-collar jobs by merely comparing graduation numbers to the number of jobs available. Vietnam, I believed, would be heading in the same direction.

“The history of publishing is swimming with pirates—far more than Adrian Johns expected when he started hunting through the archives for them. And he thinks their stories may hold keys to understanding the latest battles over digital publishing—and the future of the book.”

Read more at The Chronicle

It’s an interesting prospect- to remove the youth culture from education. There are so many ways to tackle education reform. I’m glad that many people are bringing forth their ideas and working to create positive change.

http://www.indystar.com/article/20090212/LOCAL010302/902120521/1274/LOCAL06

This is an idea I’ve had since I gave my first-ever traditional lecture to 93 students in the Introduction to Database Management course. I had their attention for the first few classes, but as the semester continued, it became more and more difficult to keep their attention. While teaching these classes, I always wanted to split them into four smaller classes and deliver lectures to each individual class at different times. This would, however, increase the lecture and contact hours considerably. But is that a bad thing?

I didn’t do it then, but I am reconsidering it now.

NYTimes: At M.I.T., Large Lectures Are Going the Way of the Blackboard

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/13/us/13physics.html?_r=1&scp=2&sq=MIT&st=cse

NYTimes: Tax Cuts for Teachers

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/11/opinion/11friedman.html?em

Is it such a difficult question to answer? Is it impossible to have a job that you love? Think about it. We spend, on average, 8 hours a day at work. Why not get a job that you love?

A dear friend of mine made the same connection with beds because throughout my college years I slept on okay beds, air mattresses, or the ground. (I like the ground, though…) Then one day, the conversation came up again and he made the point that people spend at least 6-10 hours in bed each night. Laying in the same place all night. Ideally, I would prefer 10 hours (and today, I did sleep 10 hours =D and I make no apologies because I woke up happier and more productive). The following weekend, I went bed shopping- my first grown-up bed. I spent about $300 on it, which, to me, is a lot of money. That sum actually bloomed because I bought other things to accessorize my room because I believe that you can’t half-ass a purchase like that. The whole room had to change. And it did. It felt comfortable and I fell asleep easily and woke up loving each morning. The bed was the answer.

If that was the answer to sleep, think about how that can translate into the 8+ hours of your working day. You owe it to yourself to do the work that makes you happy and in an environment that you are comfortable to be in. When you have that, you’ll be able to do so much more, and live, instead of survive.

That doesn’t mean that you will never, ever, encounter problems again- but at least you’ll be physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually equipped to handle that problem.

What’s my ideal job?

I love working with people. I love teaching. I love education. I love personal development- not just my own, but also helping people to realize their full potential. That’s where you’ll find me.