Teaching Must Be Foremost

Egad. “Publish or perish,” the rule that determines whether college faculty members receive tenure and promotions, is in jeopardy.

According to The New York Times, the publishing houses that print academic dissertations are cutting way back on the number of new books issued. This leaves would-be professors in a quandary: How can they get a job without a book on their resumes?

Some publishers compound the threat by giving preference to trendy topics such as gay and lesbian studies, shunning scholars who prefer Milton to Oprah.

As long as academia is wringing its hands over its raison d’etre, perhaps it could explore a concern common in the tuition-paying set: How about hiring and promoting on the basis of the ability to teach?

Sure, research boosts institutional egos and brings in grant dollars. Occasionally, it makes useful discoveries, although the refusal even to publish the books does raise an obvious question.

Here’s a fresh mystery for the deep thinkers to research: Why are we here? Could it have something to do with all those young people sitting in the 300-seat lecture halls?

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = John Webster/For the editorial board