An essay in Saturday’s Wall Street Journal makes an argument that U.S. students need to spend more time in the classroom. We learn that kids in China attend school 41 days a year more than their American brethren. The author, Chester E. Finn Jr., goes on to roll out stat after stat – the typical …more
I rarely address fiction in this blog. While many of the same concepts apply to storytelling in business, there’s still a gulf between the two disciplines. But Sarah Lafferty pointed me to a book of Kurt Vonnegut short stories published after his death. The introduction includes what Vonnegut calls “Creative Writing 101,” which offers sound …more
I’m tired of reading how American students lag behind their international counterparts on the academic front. Johnny can’t write. Johnny can’t add. Johnny can’t spell. Even The Wall Street Journal has piled on with an article which highlights that only 23 percent of the 2009 high school graduates taking the ACT admissions test have the skills to succeed …more
Take a look at the following opening paragraph in a recent Economist article: “The porters at Trinity College, Cambridge, were puzzled by the faded, handwritten letter. They did not recognise the addressee’s name, and opened the envelope. Inside was a note which appeared to suggest a meeting; perhaps even a date. But that meeting probably …more
