Midweek Links
The Odyssey, Alpha Schools, Higher Ed Trends, Social Isolation
So many great topics to write about this morning, so little time. Today, I’ll throw out quickie summaries of the “hot topics o’ the day.” I’ll flesh out one of the topics into a proper essay for Friday.
The AI School
Y’all know that I love AI.
Yesterday, I created a program using AI that automates the million mundane tasks that are necessary to create a webinar series for my consulting business — get the guest speaker to send a bio, create Facebook-friendly flyers, set up the ticketing system on Eventbrite, remind the guest speaker to show up.
I’m doing ten webinars between Sept and June. By automating the secretarial aspect of the job, I saved myself hundreds of hours of time. Now, I just have to lock down the guest speakers (nearly done) and moderate the talks.
Alpha Schools combines two hot trends in education — the rise in new private schools and AI.
The biggest jump in economic growth is coming from two sectors — health care and private education. Pay attention to the new education chains that are popping up in well-heeled suburbs.
Alpha Schools are a chain of schools that substitute real teachers for AI systems. It’s sweeping the country. Here’s a profile of the Alpha Miami school.
Natalie Wexler does a deep dive into Alpha Schools, a network of private schools that uses AI to teach students. She says,
Alpha’s model may work best for math and science, where the content lends itself more to right and wrong answers than to the humanities. There are, of course, right and wrong answers about historical facts and the plot elements of novels. But there’s also a lot of nuance and questions that should be up for debate—not just with an AI tutor but with a teacher and classmates.
The Odyssey, Of Course
We went to the mall last week to see the Odyssey, and it was awesome. It lived up to the hype. Any nitpickery from writers is just clickbait. Go see it.
Some fun reads:
Matt Damon is Your Guy, Culture Study
An Uncomplicated Man, Emily Wilson, London Review of Books
Get the Emily Wilson translation of the Odyssey. More about Emily Wilson.
The Anti-Social Generation
Prof G interviewed Derek Thompson about the anti-social generation.
A leading researcher behind school shootings now thinks that the perpetrators weren’t motivated by being bullied. Instead, the individuals were suicidal and publicity seekers. Interesting article by Jill Barshay.
Astor now believes many perpetrators are driven by a desire for notoriety. Shooters study previous massacres, learn from online communities and seek the publicity that follows a mass attack.
“Most of them are suicidal, and they decided to be homicidal so that they would be remembered,” Astor said.
Trends in Higher Education
I’m not a traditional college consultant. I help families with neurodivergent children navigate the college process. For my families, it’s not about cooking up an essay that creates a unique persona to gain favor with admissions directors. Rather, I help families find a college program (or alternative to college) where their students will thrive.
While I’m not a traditional consultant, I’m a member of their professional association, attend those conferences, and read their commentary. As someone who has written about higher education for years, I adore college gossip.
Fun reads:
Colleges Don’t Want Your Little Chaos Agent, College Admissions Unfiltered
From that same Substack, I learned this little tidbit: Research shows that Georgetown has received more than $971 million from Qatar over the last 20 years.