Personal perspectives on education, writing, technology, and the life of the mind.
This section gathers my ongoing reflections on the subjects that matter most to me: the craft of writing, the evolving role of technology in education, the challenges of teaching and learning at a distance, and the enduring value of the humanities in an increasingly quantified world.
These are not academic papers — they are observations, questions, and occasional arguments from someone who has spent decades in classrooms, online courses, and research. I welcome disagreement as much as agreement. The goal is conversation.
My research produced an astounding result: native speakers of English make these grammar errors far more frequently than non-native speakers. Fluency, it turns out, is not the same as correctness — and complacency is destroying the English language.
Large language models can summarize, paraphrase, and generate plausible-sounding prose. What they cannot do is care about an idea — and that distinction matters more than we acknowledge in our rush to integrate AI into every corner of academic life.
We teach paragraphs, essays, and arguments — but the sentence is where thinking actually happens. A writer who cannot construct a clear, precise sentence cannot construct a clear, precise argument, no matter how sophisticated the outline.
Twenty years after completing my dissertation on retention and attrition in online classes, the core finding still holds: students leave when they feel invisible, and they stay when they feel known. Technology has changed; human nature has not.
The novel asks something of us that almost nothing else does: sustained, undivided attention over days or weeks. In an era of infinite scroll and algorithmic distraction, that demand is not a flaw in the form — it is the point.
The utilitarian case for education — skills, credentials, employability — is not wrong, but it is incomplete. The subjects that seem least practical are often the ones that teach us how to think, which turns out to be the most practical skill of all.
Editing fixes sentences. Revision reconceives the whole. Most writers stop at editing and wonder why their work still feels thin. The answer is almost always that the argument needs to be rethought, not just the prose polished.
Read Dr. Bebawi's full essays on politics, society, and culture.
An exploration of the characteristics, struggles, and aspirations that define human existence — from technology and inequality to identity and resilience.
Read essay →A tribute to Palestinian-American poet and civil rights activist Alex Odeh (1944–1985), assassinated at CSUF — a political murder that was never prosecuted.
Read essay →A short story by Dr. Sabri G. Bebawi.
Read essay →An educated, healthy, and confident nation is harder to govern. Examining the deliberate erosion of education in America.
Read essay →A critical look at the culture of violence embedded in American society and its consequences for democracy.
Read essay →An American citizen reflects on fear, political polarization, and the erosion of democratic norms.
Read essay →At 68, grappling with a profound sense of dislocation — a deep longing for integrity, empathy, and moral clarity.
Read essay →Analyzing the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon and the historical and ideological challenges to lasting peace.
Read essay →Examining the limits of freedom in a multicultural society — from Sharia law debates to free speech.
Read essay →A historical and ideological analysis of the Israel-Palestine conflict, examining competing claims and the path to coexistence.
Read essay →A scholarly examination of Islam — its history, teachings, and place in the modern world.
Read essay →A philosophical narrative — a meditation on love, loss, memory, and the conversations we keep with those we have lost.
Read essay →Examining the roots, persistence, and consequences of white supremacy in American society and its threat to democracy.
Read essay →Challenging the dangerous myth that immigrants are criminals, with evidence and personal testimony in defense of immigrant communities.
Read essay →How American corporations systematically exploit their workers, and what this means for democracy and human dignity.
Read essay →The oldest Christian community on earth has endured centuries of persecution. The world has chosen silence. Why?
Read essay →Distinguishing between bigotry toward Muslims and legitimate criticism of ideology — and why the difference matters.
Read essay →Correcting common misreadings of Plato — on the Forms, the philosopher-king, the cave allegory, and the nature of justice.
Read essay →Exploring the life, wisdom, and legacy of King Solomon — his reign, his writings, and what his story means for us today.
Read essay →What these political systems actually mean — and why most people confuse or misuse them. A clear, scholarly guide for the politically illiterate age.
Read essay →Three ideologies most people invoke and almost no one understands — examined with historical grounding, intellectual honesty, and no tolerance for ignorance.
Read essay →If something here prompts a thought, a question, or a rebuttal — I would genuinely like to hear it. Use the contact form below or reach out directly.
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