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Comment by ShabbyDoo | Hacker News Reader

I recall a mini-scandal in the math department of my alma mater. A department member (but not a tenure-track professor) with a PhD who primarily taught calculus courses was fired. By all accounts, he was a good teacher and required much of his students. However, I recall that the professors' union was opposed to allowing non-faculty to teach because it was a slippery slope toward faculty elimination. Nevermind that few math faculty members wanted to teach large calculus classes and that those professors probably weren't very good at it.

I understand the value of taking a higher-level course with a world-class expert in the subject, but calculus for poets barely requires a math undergrad to teach adequately.

Another sign that disruption in education is coming...

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I understand the value of taking a higher-level course with a world-class expert in the subject, but calculus for poets barely requires a math undergrad to teach adequately.

Imagine being 19 years old and already identifying yourself as a poet. Maybe you spend your time writing love poems (ha ha, cliché right?), after all you'd be surprised how much something like this can be attractive. Imagine being this poet and going to a school that allows you to be taught by a world-class mathematician without any requirements other than sheer tenacity and zeal. I admit the first thing that popped in my head is that a poet might be one of the most enthused in such a situation.

After all, who is anyone to trivialize the pursuit of knowledge from motivated students who are by their very nature yet to be categorized or to have created a deep identity. It's like so many universities are swaying towards vocational training. No, I'm not making fun here, vocational schools have their uses, but one of the great things of a higher-education is the continuance of encountering things that you wouldn't otherwise find without the help of someone who knows the terrain.

Just imagine.

Imagine being 19 years old and entering ANY unfamiliar course of study. Who's going to rock your world -- somebody who is engaged in esoteric research and finds lecturing a distraction, or someone who views himself less like a guardian of arcana and more like a streetcorner pusher who has recently run across the most AWESOME brain-twisting drug in the ENTIRE FREAKIN' UNIVERSE and YOU GOTTA TRY THIS SHIT!

That's not to say that somebody at the forefront of research (or, for that matter, somebody of "a certain age") can't generate that kind of enthusiasm for his/her subject -- one of the most entertaining and informative lectures I ever saw was one given by Bill Phillips of NIST at the Perimeter Institute on time measurement, cooling and the Bose-Einstein condensate. Nobel Laureate, unapologetic geek, energy and sense of wonder not often seen in the average six-year-old. Gimme a grad student with that kind of unbounded love for the subject over an expert any time.

I like to think that's what I brought to the classroom when I taught, but then I like to think a lot of good things about myself that ain't necessarily so.

I agree with you. As an example, I'm sure that I could become quite enthused with Lisp if PG was to spend a few hours with me. But, is this the best use of his time? The opportunity cost is quite high, much as it is for any truly world class academic. What fraction of the value would I receive if I watched a series of video lectures he produced on the subject? One could argue that all interactivity would be lost, but I'd counter that the large size of most university lecture classes precludes all but a few questions per class. Would I be better served watching PG's videos (or reading his book) and having a recitation of sorts with a lesser, but still competent Lisper?

One argument for taking courses from faculty active in research is that they can incorporate recent advances in their fields into the curriculum. Undergraduate calculus does not benefit much, though. It's not like anything taught wasn't known 200 years ago.

I picked on math for poets because classes in those genre often require much one-on-one tutoring, review classes, etc. The professors who ran such courses were often more project manager than teacher. Many teaching assistants were involved, and duties were shared. I could understand having some guest lectures from various faculty members, but burdening them with tutoring some pre-med major on integration techniques doesn't seem like a good use of time.

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