Ed Dean Smug Snidely: 'We cognicize new teachers to think the right things

Paymore U's school of education prepares "social-justice-minded widgets . . . at a high cost" to teach in America's schools, he tells education podcaster Ima Fuller-Schlitz on “(Dis)course or Dat Course.” It shows the state of the nation’s schools of education, writes Rick Hess, who says a very few words on the podcast. (Yes, it's satire.)

In his new book: Pay, Meme, Cognicize, Snidely explains that reading as many as 20 or 30 pages each week is rough on students' mental health. "I wanted to help students understand that, once they’ve written that tuition check — that’s the 'pay' — they can relax and do what they like. That’s the 'meme'.” He came up with "cognicize" to describe the skills needed in the Age of AI, such as "learning to relate, innovate, commiserate, and empower."

To ensure that future teachers think the right thoughts, Paymore's education professors "cognicize them in SEL, anti-racism, and social justice," says Snidely. "Our graduates can be plugged into any school, whatever the curricula or pedagogy." Of course, it's expensive, he admits, but "quality isn't cheap. Because equity."

Literacy experts at Paymore agree that the "science of reading" is "a right-wing attempt to impose heteronormative notions of patriarchal pedagogical praxis," Snidely says. "My esteemed colleagues are busy with the real work of deconstructing the Western canon, de-centering written text, and inter-connecting identity-informed meaning making."

If you're looking for a Christmas gift for a teacher, Snidely recommends the very real Handbook of Education Policy Research, 2nd Edition. "It’s a practical resource and a rollicking good read, with chapters like 'Reimagining International and Comparative Research in Higher Education: An Anticolonial Critical Review' and 'Policy Is Curriculum Is Politics: Curriculum Politics and the Rise of Authoritarian Populists in a New Media Ecosystem'."