托福阅读真题+题目+答案：The Economics of Academic Tenure

托福阅读真题+题目+答案：The Economics of Academic Tenure

In some countries, many universities use an employment system for teachers known as tenure. After a lengthy trial period, a faculty member whose performance meets with the approval of the senior members of the department and the administration of the institution may be awarded tenure. A tenured faculty member enjoys considerable job security for the rest of his or her working life and can only be fired for reasons of “moral turpitude” (bad or evil behavior) or “gross incompetence” or if the financial stability of the institution requires the elimination of an entire department or program.

1.Paragraph 1 answers which of the following questions about tenure?

A How long must a teacher work before being considered for tenure?

B What performance standards do senior faculty and administrators use to decide whether to award tenure?

C In what situations may a tenured teacher lose his or her job?

D How frequently are tenured teachers fired?

The high degree of job security enjoyed by tenured faculty members has been the source of complaints about the tenure system. One issue that has been raised by many, including legislators evaluating the finances and managerial practices of state universities in the United States: is that tenure shelters faculty from accountability for poor performance. Another argument is that tenure makes the university inefficient in responding to changing instructional demands. It is difficult to substitute computer engineering faculty for civil engineering faculty if most of the latter have tenure. In 1988, the Education Reform Act significantly “softened” the tenure system in the United Kingdom: making it easier to fire individual faculty members for financial reasons. More recently, some universities in the United States have taken steps to give university administrators more control over tenured professors. And, in general, American institutions of higher learning have tended to increase the use of part-time and nontenured instructors over time. In 1992, just 48 percent of all instructors had tenure or were in a position that was expected to lead to tenure.

2.It can be inferred from paragraphs 1 and 2 that some critics of the tenure system believe that tenure can

A reduce faculty members' motivation to do their jobs well

B cause faculty members to prefer employment in state universities over employment in other universities

C remove moral turpitude as a criterion for evaluating a faculty member's performance

D encourage faculty members to switch from one department or program to another within a university

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