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A. Right-Left
On a speaking tour of colleges, Nadine Strossen, the president of the American Civil Liberties Union, said she was shocked to find so few liberal political groups on campuses. Whereas the conservative Federalist Society had a large network of campus chapters, she said she found only one unit of the ACLU in the northeast and few liberal political groups elsewhere. Are there political groups on your campus? Describe their orientation, purpose, membership, funding. Attend a meeting and report the discussion.
B. Grade Inflation
A debate has been ongoing about whether faculty members are easy graders, that grade inflation is rampant on campuses. Alan Wolfe, who has taught at Boston University and Boston College, wrote in The Chronicle of Higher Education:
...no one who has followed academic life can disagree that grade inflation is real. And surely it is hard to deny that, among the many reasons for grade inflation, faculty self-interest plays a role. Grading hard means trouble. Students show up during office hours expecting to find you there. Deans question the financial consequences if too many students flunk or drop out. Colleagues treat you like a rate buster, worried that your example makes life difficult for them.
