AKA Review - 08.22.2025

From The Chronicle of Higher Education
How the Economic Case for International Students Lost Steam

By Karin Fischer

Why is the $44 billion economic impact of America’s foreign students falling on deaf ears beyond college campuses? For the many Americans already skeptical of higher ed, immigration politics trump the benefits of overseas tuition, which are largely invisible outside the small number of places where international students enroll. Arguments will be stronger if they come from advocates outside of higher ed, emphasize foreign students’ key role in U.S. innovation, and target state and municipal leaders, who see the benefits directly. Read this article

From Bipartisan Policy Center

How Rising Deficits Impact Americans’ Higher Education Costs and Wealth Building

By Upamanyu Lahiri

Lost in Trump’s hue and cry with the Fed over interest rates are their effects on the one in four adults under 40 with student debt. This clear analysis walks through the impacts of soaring 10-year Treasury yields that have sharply increased borrowing costs. Facing higher monthly repayments in the near-term, many borrowers delay such long-term wealth-building as retirement savings and homeownership. If not addressed, America’s worsening fiscal trajectory will keep Treasury yields elevated and continue to hit student borrowers hard. Read this article

From The Atlantic

What the Right Learned From the Left About Policing Colleges

By Conor Friedersdorf

The aggressive enforcement of Title IX civil-rights law on college campuses in the Obama years has come back to haunt progressives as Trump repurposes their playbook, using Title VI to intimidate higher ed institutions. This has led to a double bind for colleges. Failing to respond to sexual assault claims or “hostile-environment” speech creates legal liability. But so does cracking down on constitutionally protected speech and due-process rights. It is Congress’ role to resolve this bind, clarifying what Titles IX and VI actually require of colleges. Read this article

From Chicago Booth Review

Should Chatbots Teach Our Children?

By Sal Khan, Bethany McLean, and Luigi Zingales

Sal Khan, founder of online Khan Academy, bricks & mortar Khan Lab School, and A.I.-tutor Khanmigo, discusses the pedagogical benefits and deficits of each medium and the right way to integrate A.I. into education. To address the flaws of our capitalist system of education, he argues for mastery learning & lifelong learning, alternate credentials, and collaboration with traditional schools. His central caution on A.I.: “Know why you’re doing something. It shouldn’t be about A.I. It should be about, ‘What problem are you trying to solve?’” Read this article

From The New York Times
A.I. Is Shedding Enlightenment Values

By David A. Bell

Proponents claim A.I. will lead to an intellectual revolution as profound as the Enlightenment. Despite striking parallels, however, A.I. undermines core Enlightenment principles. Interactive instruction is central to A.I., much as the Enlightenment saw books as sites to engage readers in virtual dialogues. But in interacting with books, readers put their own convictions at risk. With A.I., on the other hand, we drive the inquiry, often seeking to reinforce what we already believe. “Great question,” A.I. responds, never “That’s the wrong question; justify it.” Read this article