Letter to the Editor: A professor responds

WOW, thanks to a Letter to the Editor published last week, I feel compelled to reflect on my 33-year career as a university professor at William Paterson University in New Jersey. The letter stated, “Colleges and universities indoctrinate students with far-left political ideology instead of career-focused knowledge.” However, I cannot recall ever requiring my undergraduate or graduate students to accept any specific set of beliefs through fear or intimidation. “Brain washing” was never an accepted pedagogical method at my university. Instead, the emphasis was placed on developing students’ abilities to critically evaluate information from a variety of sources.

Student and peer evaluations, which were used for retention and promotion decisions, included specific items related to fostering independent thought. For example, statements such as, “the instructor encourages students to think for themselves” and “deals with the development of the thought process involved with the subject matter” were routinely assessed. Faculty development programs frequently addressed the implementation of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) in the classroom. This pedagogical method emphasizes critical thinking, problem solving, and self-directed learning.

So I suggest that opinions be formed based upon a careful examination of information provided by a variety of sources, identical to the pedagogical methods implemented at colleges and universities across the country.

Kathy Gill, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus
Warwick