 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
About the Author
Bob Zemsky describes himself as being old and round enough to be mistaken for a pooh-bah. He was a member of the Spellings Commission and, as an author and researcher, has focused on making colleges and universities mission-centered and market-smart. He has focused on what globalism might really mean for higher education, on what technology has not accomplished, and how to make learning important to the higher education market. Bob currently serves as professor and chair of The Learning Alliance at the University of Pennsylvania.
About Brainstorm
Brainstorm is The Chronicle Review's team of bloggers on ideas, culture, and the arts.
Gina Barreca
Mark Bauerlein
Marc Bousquet
Laurie Fendrich
Dan Greenberg
John L. Jackson Jr.
Stan Katz
Stephen Joel Trachtenberg
Bob Zemsky
Mark Bauerlein
Marc Bousquet
Laurie Fendrich
Dan Greenberg
John L. Jackson Jr.
Stan Katz
Stephen Joel Trachtenberg
Brainstorm Alumni
Marty Nemko, guest bloggerBob Zemsky
Recent Posts
Lessons From the Cost-Quality Curve | Comment [2]
Quality -- Reform's Fourth Horseman | Comment [4]
Access to Success | Comment [2]
Is Access Still the Question? | Comment [3]
Affordability: Devil in the Details | Comment [2]
Featured Articles By the Author
Guns vs. Markets as Topics of Interest
Contributing to Brainstorm has turned out to be a learning experience — in no small part because I am learning what does and does not draw comments. Tuesday’s posting about guns has, as of this posting, drawn 17 comments. My musings on markets and change strategies draw hardly any at all. There’s got to be a lesson there somewhere. Right?
Posted at 06:35:31 AM on March 14, 2008 | All postings by Bob ZemskyComments
Commenting is closed for this article.
Previous: Students Packing Guns Are Not the Answer
Next: Investment in Improved Learning
Yes, there is a lesson, one I’ve learned from several years of blogging. People are far likely to make comments to the simple posts, those that don’t require a whole lot of thinking, then the more complex ones – like your posts on markets and assessment issues. I don’t know if it is because they have little time and it takes time to think about what you write and to make a thoughtful response to it. It just might be that people comment on the things the are either very familiar or are hot button topics. Those sorts of comments don’t take much time because most people have well prepared knee jerk reactions. At ACRLog when I write my philosophical posts or something risky about change in the library profession, there are few comments. A post I wrote a few weeks ago about “what’s obsolete in the library” – just a throwaway fun piece – got 50 comments. Go figure. But I don’t think we should be in the market for comments, so don’t change your style to boost them. It’s great to get a conversation going, but the absence of comments doesn’t mean your complex posts haven’t had an impact. It might just be it’s going to take longer for people to process it – and by the time they do – you’ll have written your next challenging post.
— stevenb · Mar 14, 07:58 PM · #