Teaching Since Gas Was 59 Cents: A Charles Berger Story

In 1976, when Charles Berger began teaching, a dozen eggs cost about $0.60, a gallon of gasoline cost roughly $0.59, and the average home in the U.S. sold for around $45,000.

This fall, when Charles began teaching this semester, a dozen eggs cost about $3.50, a gallon of gasoline roughly $3.60, and the average home in the U.S. sold for around $420,000.

The 18-year-olds who enrolled in Berger’s class in 1976 are now nearly 70; most of the 18-year-olds who enrolled this semester are, well, still 18 or 19.

In 1976, on the first day of class, 100% of Charles’s students were not distracted by cellphones or social media. In 2025, on the first day of class, a substantial number of students wondered whether Charles might be willing to offer the rest of the semester on Zoom or Teams.

Related:

• Charles Berger Week