[MD] The Academy is Evil! Here's what I'd do instead...

[118]

Hi Arlo,
Just sent off a post to answer your last question.

I am fully familiar with the paper mill that academia forces on
professors.  It is the number of publications that matter, not the
quality.  Talks and seminars is part of a static network, kind of a
back scratching exercise.  The feedback of students is minimal in the
research institutions (which are all the top ones).  There are many
brilliant researchers who are terrible teachers.  Student feedback is
more prevalent in city colleges.

I do not think there should be tenure, and that professors could be
fired at any time.

The notion of intellectual qualities is based on static deliveries.
If one gets a lot of money for a grant, he/she may not be necessarily
intellectual, but will get the praise of the institution.  Number of
publications is no measure of intellect, but rather how many
post-doctoral students are available and how easy the discipline is
for getting publications.  Break throughs are typically accidental and
not a matter of intelligence.  This whole concept of intellect is
static, which is why we are bringing this subject up.  Intellect
should be measured and refreshed on a monthly basis.  How well are you
doing with the research, what kind of break throughs have happened?
Typically once a grant is funded, it is refunded for a while.  I know
that some are trying to change this.  But this is like trying to
control the salaries of congress, when they decide their own salary
raises.  Not even the president can stop this, he is not the boss.

Mark

On Thu, Dec 2, 2010 at 4:26 PM, ARLO J BENSINGER JR <ajb102 at psu.edu> wrote:
> [Mark]
> Do you think continuing tenure is based on intellectual qualities?
>
> [Arlo]
> Different institutions have different criteria for tenure. Many require a
> certain number of publications, often based on performing a certain number of
> research projects. Some consider the frequency of talks or seminars the
> candidate has performed. Some require a certain number of courses be taught,
> and of these all I know weigh heavily student feedback and course evaluations.
>
> What do you think tenure is based on, and what would you suggest it be based on
> instead?
>
> Why do you not feel any of the above measure "intellectual qualities", and what
> measures would you suggest instead?
>
>
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