How to Think, Not What to Think

"On top of that, tech titans are convinced that AI will break higher education, while many observers lament its corrupting influence and ask whether the "mind-expanding purpose and qualities of a university," as one historian of education put it recently, are gone forever. The idea that higher education has outlived its usefulness to society, however, requires taking an astonishingly narrow view of the true purpose of the university. Higher education is not merely the transfer of knowledge."

"As a cognitive scientist, I have studied the negative consequences of excessive information. We are in a state of constant information overload, under assault by relentless alerts, updates, and notifications. Research show s that the cognitive burden of lots of information coming at us simultaneously can negatively affect our brains and, ultimately, our performance-especially when we are not experts in the topics we are bombarded with."

Higher education faces declining public trust and skepticism about its value, with concerns that AI and other forces may disrupt traditional models. The university's purpose extends beyond mere knowledge transfer to cultivating discernment, communication, empathy, and critical thinking amid an age of informational opulence. Constant alerts, updates, and notifications create cognitive overload that undermines performance, especially for non-experts. Residential four-year college environments foster interdisciplinary collaboration, sustained mentorship, and deep trust among faculty and students. That trust enables difficult but enlightening conversations and supports the cultivation of human qualities that reforms should preserve while teaching how to think.

Read at The Atlantic