Mark Hopkins at One End of a (B)log and a Student at the Other: Deconstructing Curriculum and Delivery

Authors

William Charland, Western Michigan UniversityFollow

Document Type

Poster

Department

Art

Publication Date

2013

Abstract

Referring to one of the foremost educators of the day, President James Garfield expressed his concept of an ideal university as “Mark Hopkins on one end of a log and a student on the other” (Kunitz & Hatcraft, 1964, p. 384). As unrealistic as this one-to-one faculty/student ratio might be, the image supports the idea that a student learns best when approached as an individual. Such accommodation to individual students’ needs is rarely the case, today, as the demands of fiscal accountability encourage institutions to maximize class sizes, and the perceived function of higher education is recast from a social boon to a business transaction.

Comments

This poster was presented at the WMU Leadership Colloquium on October 31, 2013, at Western Michigan University. William Charland was part of the 2012-13 Academic Leadership Academy cohort.

WMU ScholarWorks Citation

Charland, William, "Mark Hopkins at One End of a (B)log and a Student at the Other: Deconstructing Curriculum and Delivery" (2013). Academic Leadership Academy. 43.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/acad_leadership/43