33+ Derek Bok Quotes On Education, Socialism And Social Justice

Derek Bok is an American lawyer and educator who served as the president of Harvard University from 1971 to 1991. During his tenure, he was credited with modernizing the university's curriculum and expanding its financial aid program. He is also the author of several books, including The State of the Nation: Government and the Quest for a Better Society. Following is our collection on famous quotes by Derek Bok on education, leadership, socialism.

Top 10 Derek Bok Quotes

1. If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.
2. As countries embrace mass higher education, the cost of maintaining universities increases dramatically relative to an elite system.
3. The first country to adopt happiness as an official goal of public policy is the tiny little country of Bhutan in Asia near China and India.
4. I think one thing that does cause unhappiness is protracted anxiety and worry.
5. If you think the cost of education is high, think about ignorance.
6. I think any self-respecting educational institution ought to judge its policies by its best estimate of what their long-term consequences for their students and for the society will be.
7. There's a great deal of difference between thinking reflectively about moral issues and achieving higher standards of ethical behavior.
8. I suspect that no community will become humane and caring by restricting what its members can say.
9. Good teaching is creating really interesting generalizations out of war stories.
10. I won't say there aren't any Harvard graduates who have never asserted a superior attitude. But they have done so to our great embarrassment and in no way represent the Harvard I know.

Derek Bok Short Quotes

• Fewer than half of all university professors publish as much as one article per year.
• Universities are institutions run by amateurs to train professionals.
• There is far too much law for those who can afford it and far too little for those who cannot.
• The oldest of the arts and the youngest of the professions.
• Freshly minted Ph.Ds typically teach the way their favorite professors taught.
• Early admission programs tend to advantage the advantaged.
• Greater inequality in Europe has made people less happy.

Derek Bok Quotes About Education

There are no tests similar to SATs to tell us how much undergraduates know. State legislators, who appropriate billions of dollars each year to higher education, are naturally interested in finding out what they are getting for their money. — Derek Bok

The most obvious purpose of college education is to help students acquire information and knowledge by acquainting them with facts, theories, generalizations, principles, and the like. This purpose scarcely requires justification. — Derek Bok

Economists who have studied the relationship between education and economic growth confirm what common sense suggests: The number of college degrees is not nearly as important as how well students develop cognitive skills, such as critical thinking and problem-solving ability. — Derek Bok

Ever since economists revealed how much universities contribute to economic growth, politicians have paid close attention to higher education. — Derek Bok

Despite the hours spent debating different models of general education, the choices faculties make rarely lead to any significant difference in the cognitive development of undergraduates. — Derek Bok

Critics of American colleges typically attribute the failings of undergraduate education to a tendency on the part of professors to neglect their teaching to concentrate on research. In fact, the evidence does not support this thesis, except perhaps in major research universities. — Derek Bok

Derek Bok Famous Quotes And Sayings

An educated man must have a "curiosity in exploring the unfamiliar and unexpected, an open-mindedness in entertaining opposing points of view, tolerance for the ambiguity that surrounds so many important issues, and a willingness to make the best decisions he can in the face of uncertainty and doubt". — Derek Bok

I don't think the alternative to Yale is jail by any means. On the other hand, there is a mass of research that does show that there are real advantages to your subsequent career in going to selective institutions. — Derek Bok

Efforts to develop critical thinking falter in practice because too many professors still lecture to passive audiences instead of challenging students to apply what they have learned to new questions. — Derek Bok

Although professors regard improving critical thinking as the most important goal of college, tests reveal that seniors who began their studies with average critical thinking skills have progressed only from the 50th percentile of entering freshmen to about the 69th percentile. — Derek Bok

For some students, especially in the sciences, the knowledge gained in college may be directly relevant to graduate study. For almost all students, a liberal arts education works in subtle ways to create a web of knowledge that will illumine problems and enlighten judgment on innumerable occasions in later life. — Derek Bok

I think the minority students that we admit to Harvard are every bit as meritorious as the white students that we admit. — Derek Bok

I think it's sort of an outrage that companies should have to hire firms to teach the college graduates they employ how to write. — Derek Bok

If we are prepared to invest the necessary time and effort, affirmative action can contribute to Harvard's quality and not detract from it. — Derek Bok

Colleges and universities, for all the benefits they bring, accomplish far less for their students than they should. Many students graduate without being able to write well enough to satisfy their employers... reason clearly or perform competently in analyzing complex, non-technical problems. — Derek Bok

The college that takes students with modest entering abilities and improves their abilities substantially contributes more than the school that takes very bright students and helps them develop only modestly. — Derek Bok

Life Lessons by Derek Bok

1. Derek Bok teaches that success comes from hard work and dedication, not luck or privileges. He encourages people to take initiative and be persistent in achieving their goals.
2. Bok also emphasizes the importance of keeping an open mind and learning from diverse perspectives. He advocates for the importance of education and lifelong learning.
3. Lastly, Bok encourages people to be humble and to always strive to do the right thing, even when it's difficult. He believes that ethical behavior is essential for a successful career.