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A college degree is usually thought of as a ticket to a great job and a secure future. Yet, the job market over the past few years has not been kind to graduates. Rapid changes in technology and uncertainty about the influence of AI on the economy have made it harder for companies to know what their new employees need to know to be successful. I have argued in the past that this uncertainty actually makes college degrees more useful than ever, but higher education is doing a poor job of helping students navigate this uncertainty. Sadly, universities arent going to fix this problem by hiring more career counselors. Instead, theyre going to have to do the hard work of restructuring their teaching mission for the 21st century. As it turns out, there is a straightforward (if labor-intensive) way for higher ed to make graduates (and continuing education students) more future-proof: focusing on teaching students durable skills, that will see them through the future; tying assessments to outcomes; and tracking competencies rather than courses. I believe so deeply that this change must be made, that I have left my role as a university professor and administrator after 27 years to work for Minerva Project, a company that built Minerva University, a private university, from the ground up using this approach and now brings it to schools around the world interested in reform. Here’s what this looks like: 1. Focus on durable skills Most college graduates credit their degree programs with helping them to become better learners, communicators, and thinkers regardless of their major. Indeed, liberal arts degree holders may struggle to get jobs initially, but they are quite successful in the long run. These degree programs provide value, because they ultimately teach durable skills. A skill is durable when it can be applied usefully in many different settings. Someone who learns to use a particular computer programming language has a potentially valuable skill. But, if the industry changes the standard for the language being used, or if AI can do a lot of the coding that companies need, then this skill loses value. Someone who learns the more durable skill of characterizing a problem and framing the path to a solution can continue to play a role even if much of the work to implement that solution can be automated. Universities are in the business of teaching these durable skills. Students learn key competencies like characterizing a problem, engaging in systems thinking, and communicating that problem and solution to others. Unfortunately, this teaching is done unsystematically in a way that can make it hard for some students to truly achieve competence in these deep skills and makes it difficult for graduates to articulate what they have learned. The solution is for institutions to align on a framework to characterize the core set of skills they deliver. This framework benefits employers, faculty, and students. Employers get a clear statement of what graduates have learned. Faculty get a common language for talking about these skills so that they can call them out explicitly to students in classes. Students then have a better understanding of the skills they are learning. That enables them to be strategic about selecting classes that will help them to solidify key abilities and provides them with a vocabulary for talking to employers about what they will bring to their work. In order for this approach to be successful, though, faculty need to provide students with authentic assessments and students need some kind of record to track their expertise. 2. Authentic assessment Just talking about the skills that are (somehow) being taught in higher education is not enough. Students need evidence of their progress toward gaining competence in these durable skills. Unfortunately, when students take an exam or do an assignment, the most visible result of that work is a grade. A professor (or teaching assistant) may write comments on the work, but the student tends to focus on whether they got an A. Authentic assessment happens when each assignment is related directly to outcomes that the course is designed to develop. Students should be aware of the relationship between these assignments and the outcomes. More importantly, assignments need to be evaluated by using a measure (a rubric) that relates the students work to the skill being practiced. In this way, the feedback students get on their work is focused on what the exam or assignment says about their current proficiency rather than on the number or letter at the top of the page. While this wont get rid of grades altogether, it does provide prospective employers with a way to emphasize the skills they believe signal success, which is a recipe for changing the focus of students from grades to competency. While it might seem obvious that authentic assessment is crucial to good education, most college faculty are not trained as educators, and so their assignments (and bases for grading) are often disconnected from the desired learning outcomes for students. Universities need to provide more support for faculty to improve the quality of their assignments and grading rubrics. Authentic assessments change the focus of a students work from achieving a grade to developing competence. That focus can motivate students to put in the effort to improve. As a result, students are not trying to game the system to get a good grade. Instead, they are looking for opportunities to expand their skills. This approach also provides a guard against academic misconduct. After all, what is the point of cheating on an assignment if the sole purpose of the work is to help you get better and understand your skills? 3. A competency tracker, not a transcript Part of what obscures the value of a degree for students and employers is that the primary record a student gets of their time in college is a transcript. Transcripts are just lists of courses (whose names dont provide much information about their content) and grades (that provide a blunt assessment of how students performed). Indeed, few people ever look at a graduates transcript, because the entries on it dont say much about what that person can do. The alternative is to build a record of student performance around the institutions framework for durable skills that accumulates the evidence from the many assignments students have done that teach and assess these skills. This tracker provides students with a current snapshot of what they do (and do not) do well. The record itself links back to past assignments. This tracker enables students to look back at past work to see the growing complexity of their thinking. Anyone who has looked back with some horror at a paper they wrote in their first year of college can recognize the improvements in their communication ability and complexity of thought. This record systematizes that experience. It also enables students to clearly articulatetheir skills to employers. In addition, over the course of a career, maintaining a competence tracker can signal to someone that it is time to get some more education to stay a step ahead of economic and technological changes. Higher education must make these changes . . . now in order to equip students for the future. It is up to all of us who care about colleges and universities to push them to do so.
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E-Commerce
February is here. The “New Year, New Me” energy has officially worn off, replaced by a much more realistic “New Year, Same Me, But Freezing” thanks to a very disrespectful wind chill a heating bill thats starting to look like a phone number. But we live in the future! We have technology! Here are six actually useful gadgets thatll keep you toasty without burning up a ton of cash. Rechargeable Hand Warmers (~$20) Disposable hand warmers are fine, but theyre wasteful and, frankly, kind of gross after a while. These rechargeable ones, on the other hand (pun intended), are basically big batteries that get hot. They charge via USB-C, include one cord that charges both at the same time, and offer three heat settings. They can be snapped together magnetically to form one mega-warmer or split apart to keep both pockets toasty. Coffee Mug Warmer (~$18) You made coffee. You got distracted by a Slack notification. Now you have sad, cold coffee. This coffee mug warmer isn’t new tech: in fact, its barely tech at all. Its a tiny hot plate for your desk that keeps your drink at a steady, drinkable temperature for hours. Is it fancy? No. Does it have an app? Thankfully, no. It just does one thingfight the laws of coolingand it does it well. No need to microwave your coffee like a savage. Bluetooth Beanie (~$16) You want to listen to a podcast while walking the dog, but your earbuds hurt your cold ears and your headphones won’t fit over your hat. The fix? A hat that sings to you. It solves the “earbuds vs. frostbite” dilemma nicely since the speakers are sewn right into the fabric, connecting to your phone via Bluetooth so you can listen to your favorite playlist while shoveling the driveway. The audio quality wont win any Grammys, but for 20 bucks, it keeps your noggin warm and your audio playing. It’s washable, too, provided you take the electronic bits out first. Smart Plug (~$9) The floor is freezing, and you have to get out of bed to turn on the space heater. Thats a problem. The solution is a smart plug that lets you control your “dumb” heater from your phone or smart speaker. “Alexa, turn on the Heater.” Thats it. You can also set a schedule so your drafty home office warms up 15 minutes before you sit down. Just make sure your heater has a mechanical switch (the clicky kind) so it really does turn on when the power cuts in. Heated Insoles (~$30) When youre standing outside, the ground is actively sucking the life force out of your feet. These insoles are literally tiny electric blankets for your shoes. Theres an app you can use to finesse the temperature, and full disclosure: each insole has its own battery pack that you wear around your ankle like a house-arrest monitor. But, hey: Its winter. Long pants season. And theyre “cut-to-fit,” meaning you just trim them with scissors to match your shoe size. Simple. Effective. Warm. Electric Plasma Lighter (~$10) Lighting a roaring fire for warmth and ambiance is annoying when the matches break or the lighter runs out of fluid. Enter the rechargeable lighter, which uses electricity to create a plasma arc. Its windproof, splash-proof, and makes a cool, crackle-y sci-fi noise. You plug it in to charge it, then press a button to create a tiny lightning bolt that sets things on fire. Its quite a conversation starter, and hopefully the last lighter youll ever need to buy.
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E-Commerce
You are going to want to turn up the volume on your television sets. Its time for the 68th Grammy Awards, which take place on Sunday, February 1. The movers, shakers, and singers of the Recording Academy are primed to put on one heck of a concert at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Lets take a look at the host, nominations, and upcoming changes before we dive into how to tune in and jam. Who is hosting the 2026 Grammy Awards? Trevor Noah is back for his sixth consecutive year as the master of ceremonies. This is going to be his last hurrah, though. In fact, he almost didnt do the honors this year. Executive producer Ben Winston told the Los Angeles Times that he had to creatively implore Noah to do one more show. I went back and beggedlike, literally sent him a video where I was on my knees, Winston recalled. The theatrics worked. Noah will be backed up by an impressive group of presenters, such as Carole King, Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, Doechii, Harry Styles, Jeff Goldblum, Karol G, Lainey Wilson, Marcello Hernández, Nikki Glaser, Q-Tip, Queen Latifah, and Teyana Taylor. We’re told there will also be a surprise or two. Who is nominated for a 2026 Grammy Award? While there are 95 different categories in the Grammy Awards, dont fret. Only about 10 of them will be televised. Leading the pack with the most nominations is Kendrick Lamar. Among his nine nods are album of the year for GNX and song of the year for “Luther,” a duet with SZA. Coming in second are Lady Gaga, Cirkut, and Jack Antonoff, with seven nominations each. Leon Thomas, Serban Ghenea, Sabrina Carpenter, and Bad Bunny all got six nods. Who is performing at the 2026 Grammy Awards? The Grammys are all about the live performances. Following last years precedent, all eight nominees for best new artist will sing their hearts out for the telecast. Thomas, Addison Rae, Alex Warren, Katseye, Lola Young, Olivia Dean, Sombr, and the Marías are scheduled to sing. These new kids on the block are not the only ones who’ll be having fun. Veteran performers such as Carpenter, Gaga, Clipse, and Pharrell Williams will also give it their all. And Beliebers can rejoice as Justin Bieber takes the Grammy stage after a four-year hiatus. Reba McEntire, Lauryn Hill, and Post Malone will help the audience remember those we lost this year during the In Memoriam segment. Tributes will be paid to Roberta Flack, Ozzy Osbourne, DAngelo, and more. What’s notable at the Grammys this year? In addition to this being Noahs last telecast, 2026 will be the final year that the Grammy Awards are broadcast on CBS. Beginning in 2027, ABC will have the honors. According to The Wall Street Journal, this 10-year deal cost the Walt Disney Co., ABC’s parent company, more than $500 million. And 2026 marks the first time that one of the top country music categories has been expanded. There are now two album categories: traditional country album and contemporary country album. So technically, 2025’s best country album (and best overall album) winner, Beyoncés Cowboy Carter, would now fall into the latter category if it had dropped a year later. It’s also interesting to note that Morgan Wallen opted not to submit his latest album, Im the Problem, for consideration. Wallen has not publicly addressed his decision-making process. An album cover category was added this year as well, giving visual artists some much-deserved recognition. The Recording Academy made efforts to expand its voting bloc leading up to the music industry’s big night. According to the Los Angeles Times, 3,800 new members joined the ranks in November. This diverse group included 58% people of color and 35% who identify as women. Many of these members were invited to join because they were part of the Latin Recording Academy. How can I watch or stream the Grammy Awards? To cheer on your favorite artist, all you have to do is tune into CBS at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT). If you have a traditional cable subscription or an over-the-air (OTA) antenna with reception, you are covered. Watching with an OTA antenna is free. If streaming is more your style, Paramount+ is the answer. You will need the Showtime add-on to watch in real time. Those with the Paramount+ Essential subscription can catch the action the next day. If Paramount+ is not in your streaming arsenal, utilize a live-TV streaming service such as Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, or Fubo. Be sure to double-check regional differences before committing to a new service, as CBS coverage will vary.
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E-Commerce
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