Why the Professor Still Can’t Teach is a depressing article, with an intriguing title.
But the scholarship of teaching and learning has failed to live up to its promises. In the first place, it has failed liberal education.
Since I work in the scholarship of teaching, I was surprised to read that.
A 2006 study by the National Commission on the Future of Higher Education also shows that most college graduates have not mastered reading, writing, and critical thinking skills appropriate to their level of education. Since 1992, for instance, literacy rates among them have actually declined.
I am not surprised. The percentage of students attending college has risen dramatically and we have lowered entrance and graduation standards. That doesn’t mean our teachers can’t teach. It means they aren’t being allowed to teach.