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Teachers unions across the country have emerged as power players in President Joe Biden's administration, wielding near-absolute authority over school reopenings and mask mandates. The pandemic exposed just how much control teachers unions have and how the best interests of students have played second fiddle to their own.
Even smart and seemingly attentive observers frequently turn a blind eye to trends that fail to fit the narrative of the moment. This is true in politics, economics and private life; it’s also the case within higher education. Margaret Heffernan, a business professor and television producer, and the psychologists Mahzarin R. Banaji and Anthony G. Greenwald have described the biases, blind spots and other cognitive traps that lead us to ignore developments that are right in front of our eyes. Our impaired vision, in their view, is not simply due to distraction or the confusion that comes ...
Mrs. Biden has a doctorate in education, you see. An EdD. As usual, the chattering class (mainstream media, blue checkmark progressives, et. al.) missed the point. Jill Biden’s critics allegedly are “misogynist” and “sexist,” the chatterers contend, because they’re denigrating a woman’s hard work. But the real issue isn’t that Dr. Biden got an EdD, it’s that she insists upon using “Dr.” before her name … and mandates others to do the same. Over a degree that often is regarded as farcical. For example, the soon-to-be-First Lady’s Twitter name is “Dr. Jill Biden” ...