http://digitaldigs.disqus.com/enThu, 28 Feb 2008 20:30:53 -0000http://www.alex-reid.net/2008/02/more-on-wasting.html#comment-1864109410<p>Yeah, I know that calling profs experts in content and pedagogy might be a little optimistic, regardless of their rank. So we'll see what happens.<br>Clearly the research faculty do is also valuable and necessary. I know that if I was talking about science or medicine, everyone would agree with that. With humanities, the culture is less sure, but maybe we can do something about that by rethinking what we do and making our work freely available.<br>It's curious what happens to value here, though. I mean, could you imagine the web without search engines? And yet, they're free. Same deal here. I just think that the thing that students pay for when they pay tuition is NOT the course materials but rather interaction with faculty and the opportunity to participate in the open-but-managed learning environment of the classroom.</p>Alex ReidThu, 28 Feb 2008 20:30:53 -0000http://www.alex-reid.net/2008/02/more-on-wasting.html#comment-1864109411<p>Alex, what you're proposing is that *teaching* should be valued.<br>Ha! Simple, but revolutionary.<br>One of the reasons I love the C.C. (at least, the one I was fortunate enough to work in) is that teaching is very much the focus, there.<br>In the university, it's perhaps tougher going to put teaching (that thing that adjuncts, TA's, and the untenured put so much loving time into) at the center, economically or in terms of "psychic income."<br>The psychic income keeps the adjuncts coming around, especially in writing. Experts in content and pedagogy? Well, sometimes they are, despite much suspicion to the contrary. At the very least, they often have a breadth of classroom experience that few can (or wish to) match.<br>Meanwhile, I love teachers who put all of their modules and materials online. As a "mature" (not to say old and gray) learner, I'm perhaps less in need of the day-to-day feedback,and can run with some of that on my own. On the other hand, lots of interaction with experts, too, is free.<br>Hmm.<br>Anwyay, I like the idea of envisioning the teaching as the real value--the service?</p>KafkazThu, 28 Feb 2008 17:35:54 -0000