For all we talk about "learning" being the purpose of a college education, the true purpose for students is accreditation: to get a degree to get a job. Take away the degree and very few people will attend college.
This article (and the few P&T committees I've sat in on) makes it sound like faculty have created the same environment for themselves. "Just publish something" so you can have numbers on the board, so you can promote. Remove publishing requirements for tenure and I'm guessing the volume will drop off precipitously. Journals are accreditors for tenured positions the same way colleges are accreditors for the labor market. (Or so it seems to me!)
This article (and the few P&T committees I've sat in on) makes it sound like faculty have created the same environment for themselves. "Just publish something" so you can have numbers on the board, so you can promote. Remove publishing requirements for tenure and I'm guessing the volume will drop off precipitously. Journals are accreditors for tenured positions the same way colleges are accreditors for the labor market. (Or so it seems to me!)