<p>[The</a> Magic of Education by Bryan Caplan](<a href=“The Magic of Education - Econlib”>The Magic of Education - Econlib):</p>
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<p>Here’s a quote from that article that, for me, throws into question most of what the author says:</p>
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<p>My problem with that is that there is an instrument, the Collegiate Learning Assessment, that (when administered to the same students multiple time) does measure the extent to which students develop critical thinking skills while they are in college. And the results, reported in the book “Academically Adrift,” show that (a) some students do indeed significantly improve their critical thinking skills, and that (b) the students who do improve their critical thinking skills and those who do not tend to differ in predictable ways. Some of the factors that lead to a higher probability of gaining in critical thinking skills are major field (liberal arts graduates, including math and science, are most likely to grow in critical thinking ability), SAT/ACT scores (smarter students, at least as measured by the tests, are more likely to grow in critical thinking), rigor of courses taken (measured by number of pages of required reading and number of writing assignments), and time spent studying alone. (There are others, but I’m working from memory here and don’t remember them all.)</p>
<p>So when the author in the linked article says “Education is very narrow; students learn the material you specifically teach them,” I would respond, “It depends on the student and on the teaching (broadly defined).”</p>
<p>And I don’t have data to support this at hand, but I know I’ve seen some: students who are required to process information and apply it to unique problems are likely to learn “how to think” a lot better than those who are only required to sit in a lecture hall and regurgitate what they’re told.</p>
<p>So my response to the author: If your students aren’t learning how to think, that’s because of your teaching methods and the expectations you have of those students.</p>
<p>I think the author of this article needs to read the following: [The</a> University of Chicago Magazine: October 2003](<a href=“http://magazine.uchicago.edu/0310/features/zen.shtml]The”>The University of Chicago Magazine: October 2003)</p>
<p>I am pleased to say that the author does NOT speak for all of us professors. Personally, I have worked several years in private practice and conducting NIH research, both in military and civilian settings. While clearly many academicians do go straight from grad school to a university position, MANY do not. I know this is particularly true for my university’s business school and I am confident it is true of many university professors across the board.</p>