an architectural haven for slow thinking and writing

Anastasia Berg:

“Once we identify the problem—the sheer magnitude of what is being lost—it becomes immediately clear what any solution worthy of the name must accomplish: the hours must be recovered. How to do this is a good question. I have heard tales of complicated incentive schemes involving baroque grade distributions, of in-class writing samples used as internal benchmarks for outside-class writing, of Dead Poets Society reenactments. I don’t know that these won’t work. But I know what I think about when I confront this question: a big room. A pleasant-enough room with tables and chairs, and maybe some cookies at 9 p.m., budget permitting. A room that it is very easy for an instructor to require a student to spend time in—as easy as checking a box. A room with lockers for your bag, that you can walk into with just a book or a question to spend a few hours with, without distractions, without any offers of ‘help.’ Sometimes when I tell colleagues about it they express concern that requiring students to spend time in my room would feel punitive and paternalistic. But most people just say it sounds like heaven.”