【内容简介】

　　零工经济席卷而来，冲击着大学教职的分配。在过去的几十年里，大学教授的工作已经被彻底改变了——而且是更糟糕的改变。美国的学院和大学旨在为学生服务，并通过终身教师的长期工作、研究和稳定来创造知识，但今天的高等教育已经逐渐被兼职人员所主导。现在，据一些调查显示，多达70%的美国教授在课程之间疲于奔命，福利微薄，几乎没什么保障，而且工资极低。

　　在《学历之死：美国博士消亡史》一书中，赫布?柴尔德里斯以自己和其他非长聘教师的亲身经历，讲述了高等教育究竟如何导向了这种令人遗憾的状态。

　　这是美国高等教育体系中的“青椒之困”——当年轻博士顺利毕业，走上讲台正试图大干一场时，猛然发现自己只不过是一个兼职的讲课机器——捧着早已被规划好的课程大纲教授通识课程，照本宣科下拿着居于最低水平线的时薪，按课缔结的一纸合约无法给出任何保障——非升即走是常态，而长聘教职则遥不可及。

　　从拥有最高学历、最被看好的学生，到非升即走所驱使的不稳定劳动力，在学术职业临时化的背景下，博士群体正在面临前所未有的普遍性困境：在高高抛起学术帽的同时，也一脚迈进了朝不保夕的巨大熔炉。

　　作者指出，高等教育内部和外部的许多力量共同推动了这种转变，向我们展示了竞争所造成的损害，不仅对兼职教师本身，而且对学生、长聘教师、行政部门以及国家都是如此。当我们把教育工作者当作绝望的临时工来对待时，怎么能说自己重视高等教育呢？

　　赫布?柴尔德里斯的作品克制慎重而又充满激情，文本源于事实，但一定语惊四座，揭示了相互冲突的价值观、被扼杀的资源和相互竞争的目标，从根本上改变了我们对大学应该是什么样的看法。对相信高等教育对于社会至关重要的人来说，这本书是强有力的召唤。

　　作者简介

　　[美]赫布•柴尔德里斯（Herb Childress）

　　威斯康星大学密尔沃基分校建筑与城市规划学院环境行为学博士。2013年以前，曾于波士顿建筑学院担任研究与评估主任；更早则是在杜克大学担任梅隆讲师与写作中心副主任。现为万花筒集团合伙人，这是一家基于民族志的咨询公司。著有《背叛的风景，欢乐的风景》《博士字典：关于博士和教师生活你所不知（但应该知道）的词汇表》等畅销书。

　　杨益，自由译者，毕业于华东师范大学国际关系与地区发展研究院，曾任诺思国际教育（UKEAS）北美留学部总监、美国海外学习基金会（Study Abroad Foundation）上海办公室咨询顾问等职。

【 Content Introduction 】

The gig economy is sweeping in and impacting the allocation of university faculty. Over the past few decades, the job of a college professor has been revolutionized - for the worse. American colleges and universities are designed to serve students and create knowledge through the long-term work, research, and stability of tenured faculty, but higher education today has come to be dominated by part-timers. Now, according to some surveys, as many as 70 percent of American professors are stretched between classes, with meager benefits, little security, and minimal pay.

In "The Death of the Degree: A History of the Demise of the American Doctorate," Heb B. Childress tells the story of how higher education has led to this sorry state of affairs, from her own experience and that of other non-permanent teachers.

This is the "pepper trap" of the American higher education system - when young PHDS graduate successfully, walk onto the stage and try to make a big deal, they suddenly find themselves just a part-time lecture machine - teaching general courses with a pre-planned curriculum, and earning the lowest hourly pay. A class-by-class contract offers no guarantee - promotion or departure is the norm, and tenure is out of reach.

From the students with the highest degree and the most promising, to the unstable labor force driven by either ascension or departure, in the context of the temporary academic career, the doctoral community is facing an unprecedented universal dilemma: while throwing up the academic hat, it is also stepping into a huge melting pot of insecurity.

The authors note that many forces, both inside and outside of higher education, have come together to drive this shift, showing us the damage that competition does, not only to adjunct faculty themselves, but also to students, tenured faculty, administration, and the state. How can we say we value higher education when we treat educators like desperate day laborers?

Herb? Childress's restrained and impassioned text is rooted in fact but startling, revealing conflicting values, stifled resources, and competing goals that fundamentally change our view of what college should be. For those who believe that higher education is essential to society, this book is a powerful call.

About the author

[US] Herb Childress

Ph.D., Environmental Behavior, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Prior to 2013, he was Director of Research and Evaluation at the Boston School of Architecture. Earlier, he was the Mellon Lecturer and Associate Director of the Writing Center at Duke University. He is currently a partner at Kaleidoscope Group, an ethnograph-based consulting firm. He is the author of bestselling books such as "Landscape of Betrayal, Landscape of Joy" and "Dictionary of PHDS: A Glossary of What You Don't Know (but Should Know) About the Life of PHDS and Teachers."

Yang Yi, a freelance translator, graduated from the School of International Relations and Regional Development of East China Normal University. He has served as the Director of the North American Study Department of UKEAS and as a consultant in the Shanghai office of the Study Abroad Foundation.