Tag: Augustine Confessions

  • Snark Polemics and Contrite Fallibilism

    Most people who know me in person would at least consider using the term “snarky” in their description of me, which is why John Barnes’ polemic against “snark” troubled me so:  It’s a currently fashionable powerful rhetorical weapon that allows the uninvolved and the never-to-be-involved to discredit people who do, or attempt – anything at…

  • Academically Adrift: How a First-Year Seminar Can Get the Academy Back on Course

    What follows is a proposal I’ve been working on to convince my university to switch from its General Education requirements to a first-year seminary, given the data in Academically Adrift. Executive Summary The best research available suggests that courses with demanding reading and writing requirements are the only way to teach the core competencies required…