Writer, observer, educator, anthropologist, sourdough baker, gardener, linguistic anthropologist. Obsessive about the planet, politics, justice, health. Fascinated by humans. Photo by jan_huber on unsplashhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mxytbt2tbc22Here's a new Substack post about what I learned from my mid-semester meetings with students: https://susandblum.substack.com/p/im-actually-learning-weve-lost-the?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true16 Oct 2026 14:52 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mxytbt2tbc22https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mwrodbxagc23We played musical chairs in my class today! (Read my latest Substack post.) https://susandblum.substack.com/p/musical-chairs?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true01 Oct 2026 01:09 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mwrodbxagc23https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mumsiyzcjk25Here’s my field report from the first day of class (last week): aiming for slow education and inefficiency. https://susandblum.substack.com/p/first-day-of-less-schoolish-classes?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true03 Sep 2026 15:50 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mumsiyzcjk25https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mtk6akxfis2pHere’s a Substack piece with some thoughts about the upcoming academic year... https://susandblum.substack.com/p/inching-toward-fall-2026-with-so?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true20 Aug 2026 21:17 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mtk6akxfis2phttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3msdhibbrrc2fListen to my latest podcast with The Grading Podcast superhosts and superstars Sharona Krinsky and Robert Bosley. It's about #Schoolishness and #ungrading and #alternativeassessment and more! #AI might make an appearance. https://thegradingpod.com/episodes/160-schoolishness-ai-and-the-future-of-education-a-conversation-with-dr-susan-d-blum/05 Aug 2026 11:49 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3msdhibbrrc2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3ms6mb6yskk26My latest Substack: "Sometimes It Really IS Brain Surgery: What I Did on my Summer Vacation" https://open.substack.com/pub/susandblum/p/sometimes-it-really-is-brain-surgery?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=hhw03 Aug 2026 13:31 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3ms6mb6yskk26https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mrkuhur3y22aRead my latest Substack post, inspired by Amelia Thomas’s book What Sheep Think About the Weather, and applying principles of autonomy to both animal and human learning. https://susandblum.substack.com/p/motivation-through-play-not-through?r=hhw26 Jul 2026 17:05 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mrkuhur3y22ahttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mol7wt3unc2lWatch the opening of the Obama Center! https://www.obama.org/visit/grand-opening/livestream/18 Jun 2026 16:14 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mol7wt3unc2lhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mmruamxxnc2zMy latest Substack, about what college is for. Battle of the Paradigms: What is College for in a Cynical Age? https://open.substack.com/pub/susandblum/p/battle-of-the-paradigms-what-is-college?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true26 May 2026 20:43 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mmruamxxnc2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mmdf2jjbqs2zMy latest Substack post, in response to the attempt by Harvard to limit the number of A grades #HigherEd #Assessment #Grades https://open.substack.com/pub/susandblum/p/oh-harvard-limiting-as-is-not-it?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_me21 May 2026 02:34 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mmdf2jjbqs2zhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3ml4prqagos24I participated in an hour-long conversation titled “What is College for Today?”with Nicole Lynn Lewis and Paul LeBlanc, moderated by Anya Kamenetz, and hosted by Frederique Rigoulot, on the Cambridge Forum platform. You can listen to us here! https://cambridgeforum.org/what-is-college-for-today/ #HigherEd05 May 2026 17:32 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3ml4prqagos24https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mkzocsrsm22rI had a great time talking with two Catholic theologians, Alessandro Rovati and Jason Heron, about ungrading and schoolishness and morality. I absolutely see education as a moral project. You can listen to us (and watch us) here! https://open.substack.com/pub/catholicmoraltheology/p/from-coercion-to-fascination-moving?utm_source=direct&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web04 May 2026 12:28 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkzocsrsm22rhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mjhpftduys2wI wrote a piece on Substack about the closing of Hampshire College. Such a sad end of an era. https://open.substack.com/pub/susandblum/p/on-hearing-of-hampshire-colleges?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true14 Apr 2026 15:34 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mjhpftduys2whttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mffjsyxbfk2j"A Priest, a Scientist, and a Humanist Walk into a Classroom"--or to least we had a conversation about learning! (I'm the humanist) With Ji Son, Louis DelFra, and others at the U of Notre Dame, Inst for Educational Initiatives, Center for Educational Research and Action. https://youtu.be/ec0LbZq4ChA?si=hHK2sk-oZdv02_T421 Feb 2026 21:08 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mffjsyxbfk2jhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3meotl7qgck2bIs pedagogy a moral project? Check out my latest Substack post! https://susandblum.substack.com/p/is-pedagogy-a-moral-project?r=hhw12 Feb 2026 20:32 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3meotl7qgck2bhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mc5thmqt2c26Here's my latest Substack post, titled "The Polycrisis: How to Face Teaching in 2026." https://open.substack.com/pub/susandblum/p/the-polycrisis?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true #education #pedagogy #polycrisis11 Jan 2026 15:24 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mc5thmqt2c26https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3mbyoh2yqcc26I'm so honored that you are engaging with my book! @cornellupress.bsky.social [contains quote post or other embedded content]09 Jan 2026 14:11 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3mbyoh2yqcc26https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3m6xnzah26c27Democracy, Debates, December: On a good day....(My latest Substack post) Democracy requires disagreement, disagreement requires debate, and debate requires practice: the role of education. https://susandblum.substack.com/p/democracy-debates-december?r=hhw02 Dec 2025 00:15 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3m6xnzah26c27https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3m6hdpp2fos26I had a wonderful conversation with @Trevor Aleo about my latest book, #Schoolishness: Alienated Education and the Quest for Authentic, Joyful Learning, and you can listen to us on his podcast, Conceptually Speaking. https://open.substack.com/pub/trevoraleo/p/dr-susan-blum-talks-schoolishness?r=hhw&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false25 Nov 2025 12:28 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3m6hdpp2fos26https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3m4nwbf5cx22wI just came across a new review of my book Schoolishness: Alienated Education and the Quest for Authentic, Joyful Learning. The reviewer, Jake Mattox, appreciated the wide reading in multiple areas that accompanied my manifesto/tirade/prayer. https://radicalteacher.library.pitt.edu/ojs/radicalteacher/article/view/1436/94302 Nov 2025 16:26 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3m4nwbf5cx22whttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3m3mym4glqs2h@hcrichardson.bsky.social writes, "What is left when a system loses the give and take of politics is force." October 19, 2025 https://open.substack.com/pub/heathercoxrichardson/p/october-19-2025?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email20 Oct 2025 14:10 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3mym4glqs2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3m2qyojvww225AntiFa = Anti-Fascist. If you’re opposing this, you’re ProFa, = Pro-Fascist, or possibly Anti-Anti-Fascist. I know where I stand. https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/fascism-109 Oct 2025 10:56 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3m2qyojvww225https://bsky.app/profile/susandblum.bsky.social/post/3m2om45y2m2221/2 The absurd conclusion of all this GenAI stuff is faculty creating courses entirely w AI; students completing assignments w agentive AI; faculty grading w AI. No humans need be changed in this process. No learning will be required. Easy peasy. #GenerativeAI08 Oct 2025 12:06 +0000at://did:plc:6vxj3nnlzfws7o7qrpld5vgk/app.bsky.feed.post/3m2om45y2m222