I Hate the Ivy League: Riffs and Rants on Elite Education

The age-old question generations have been challenged with, is how to fix the broken American education system. The current system is far outdated, rife with inequities and structural racism, and completely out of step with adequately preparing our kids for today's world. Whether you agree with Malcolm or not, he skillfully leads you down many paths most haven't considered or fully unpacked. And, the commentary is served with supportive data and qualified industry professionals that provide differing perspectives for each argument. Clearly a complex issue, this book only touches on a small part of the problem, but nonetheless, in an entertaining and thoughtful way. I personally could listen to this guy all day.

I enjoyed the writing but overall felt that Malcolm Gladwell missed the mark. But I’ll start with the positives.First, Malcolm is a great writer. He voices all of this himself, so you can sense his passion and commitment to the issues. He is a great communicator, I think you’ll come away with what he’s trying to say. Overall, it’s a pleasant experience and I am glad to have listened to it.My main issues are in terms of the content. My first criticism is that I do not believe he was as evidence-based as he could have been. He tells stories and examples of students, as well as educational institutions, a style which is compelling and relatable; however, he could’ve done more to look at more academic, rigorous evidence here. He hints at the fact that most educational outcomes are the result of non-school factors. For example, the most prestigious schools select the best students, so that the apparently good post-graduate outcomes these schools get are illusory, not caused by educational quality but rather by pre-selection. Malcolm acknowledges this as a possibility but never fully explores it.He remains convinced that schools, or educational quality in particular, makes a big difference in student’s life outcomes, but he doesn’t explore much what “educational quality” would entail. He seems to think it’s not on-campus luxury food or housing. But is it small class sizes? Higher teacher pay? A certain style of teaching? He never really gets to what happens in the classroom itself.Second, some of the solutions proposed would prove problematic. His “don’t ask don’t tell” idea behind asking where people got their degree seems problematic to me. What about autodidacts, should they be eligible to say they have some sort of degree? If so, employers will have to come up with another way of quickly evaluating candidates which is not a test, which Malcolm seems to oppose. If not, then what schools count in this system? Could anyone open any law school and have their graduates compete on a level playing field with those from Yale? It’s hard to say what would happen in these situations. It’s possible getting a job could become even less meritocratic and more based on who you know, under Malcolm’s proposal, a consequence I don’t think he intended.Overall I had a good time listening to it. But content-wise I think I would go elsewhere for ideas of education policy.

This audiobook is actually a collection of related Malcolm Gladwell podcasts, with the common theme of college education, and the many issues he has with the American system (like perpetuation of privilege). These are super interesting, and very important topics, My son also listened, leading to hours of animated conversation with my whole family. Gladwell is always entertaining and informative, as always, and this audiobook is no exception.

A long rant dripping with hate and resentment of anything affiliated with success and ambition! It’s like lesser institutions are paying him to trash competition. If u can’t compete with them trash them !

Selections from Gladwell's Revisionist History (podcast), some of which I've heard before. Mildly engaging. Enjoy his works in general, but this isn't my favorite.

I have long been a Gladwell fan but never imagined he might one day wax philosophical about -- and throw a lot of deserved shade at -- elite higher education in the United States. As a higher-education consultant and author, I appreciated his deep dives into the implications of 5-star meal plans at college campuses, the embarrassment of riches at billion-dollar-endowment schools, and the history lesson on racial equity and access in the U.S. I'd like to think I know a lot about higher education, and yet "I Hate the Ivy League" was full of important lessons and sometimes shocking epiphanies. And the eloquence with which the stories and arguments are shared makes for a really compelling listen. Anyone headed to college, sending a child to college, thinking about making a donation to a college, or working inside or on behalf of higher ed really ought to take the time for this audiobook.

I love listing to his voice, and delighted MG reads his own books. Topic wise, this is classic Gladwell, and OMG I too am so wary of the academic BS posed by big universities. Being a Non-USA person, I have never fully understood how the education system works there - this is a real eye opener.

Surprised to hear Malcolm also ridicule the concept behind recommendation letters as a precursor to get into anything education related in the US. I've always thought it was a joke. WTF does a recommendation exactly mean, that you can get someone to go to bat for you, so you must be good ? I've also always found the SAT thing to be absolute nonsense. Elite schools spend years preparing their students to take the exam, whereas normal schools do nothing at all. It makes me wish I was Canadian.On another note, was pretty surprised to find Hollywood insiders like Eisner who have their own highly exclusive 2 Triangle Ivy League talk about inequalities. Its comical that Malcolm who sees through all sorts of BS does not see through the biggest joke in Eisner's industry. That Hollywood is basically a Members Only (Ivy League equivalent) industry that excludes others from participation. Eisner should focus on the inequalities within his own industry 1st than whine about similar inequalities elsewhere. Ridiculous.