So argues Professor Herbert London in this Minding the Campus essay. Starting from the earliest years, teachers (later professors) often pass along students who haven’t learned much just because it’s the easy and supposedly compassionate thing to do. Thus we wind up with kids in college who are barely literate and can’t do simple math.
Why? It’s because there is no penalty for acting that way. The money keeps flowing in and the teachers and professors keep their jobs despite the educational fraud.