Reimagining Higher Education, pt. 1

education: 1. The act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally of preparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life. Dictionary.com

When we think of Higher Ed, we typically we think of things like…

• College or University
• Technical school
• Community college
• Bachelors, Masters, & PhD
• School reputation
• Cost & Scholarships
• Degrees & Research

Why do we specifically associate higher education with these institutions? Considering the definition above, why not look at it primarily as the act of growing in knowledge, reasoning, and maturity?

Accessibility

In grade school, we learn that education is a series of grades: 1st–12th, 0–100 points, A-B-C-D-F, pass, and fail. You are in fourth grade. Fourth grade happens at a school building where all your classmates are. You need a car to get there. It happens when a person assigns you questions to answer. You then have a task to complete. All these activities, while well intended, aren’t sufficient to formulate a healthy idea of what education is really for; therefore, the entire notion of the accessibility of education is off balance.

Students grow up thinking they need to be at certain place, with certain people, doing certain activities for education to happen. Instead of taking ownership as the leader in their education, its accessibility is determined more by walls than open doors.

I’m not saying the mechanics of Higher Ed is equally accessible to everyone, but rather that most people internalize the mechanics too highly above the purpose of it.

The Next Gatekeeper

I rarely questioned what school is or what it’s for. I just knew I’m supposed to do it and generally don’t want to. It’s your lot in life you suppose, and so you may as well play along in the growing up game.

Graduating to the next grade is the main goal. Again, you’re not sure why, but hey you did it, so you must be succeeding in life. At some point you start hearing rumors about college. Going to college is an assumption, and you learn this is how you’ll finally be able to get people to stop asking you, “What are you going to be when you grow up?” You agree this a good next step. That is mostly my experience growing up and nearing graduation of high school. “Higher education” was always the next thing in the list.

Nearing college is the first time education is presented as a choice. Even with the perceived limitations, it’s the first time you associate schooling with personal choice and the slightest bit of ownership. The percieved accessilibity of Higher Ed is further formulated by ideas of distance, cost, parental or community support, awareness, and motivation.

If a student googles their way to mycollegeoptions.org, they’d get a list like this:

In order to begin your search for colleges that suit you, you need answers to some basic questions. Ask yourself the following:

1. Do I want a 2-year or 4-year college?

2. Do I want a public or private institution?

3. What size college would be best for me?

- very large (15,000 or more students)

- moderately sized (fewer than 15,000 students but more than 2,000)

- small (enrollment less than 2,000)

4. Do I want to attend college in a city, in a suburban community or in a rural setting?

5. Would a single-gender college suit my needs?

6. Am I interested in a college that has a religious affiliation?

7. What do I think I would like to study in college?’

All these questions suppose fairly mechanical characteristics determine the best environment for your learning: timespan, total students, location, gender, religion, and known interest. Do these questions get us closer to understanding what kind of learning will help us most grow in knowledge, reasoning, and maturity? Is it even realistic to think we can predict what experiences will grow us best?

Roadtripping

A couple days ago I took a road trip to Nashville with my coworker:

Me: So, did you use what you were learning in college courses for your internships?

Coworker: Actually, it’s funny I started off in Computer Science, and I was at an internship with Georgia Power. I got to do computer coding things there, and it turns out that I realized this isn’t what I wanted to do. I ended up switching to Mechanical Engineering. Despite my GA Power department wanting to work with me, I decided I’d rather switch to a department I could apply these new skills. I ended up switching to a marketing department of all things, and not using a bit of mechanical engineering. But, I can honestly say the things I learned in communications and sales there have proved invaluable in my career. I never would have picked those things up in my major alone.

It’s funny how often we learn the most when least expected. People generally look back on successes and think it was due to their ability to see into the future and blaze a strategic path. But what if it’s more like a road trip? You pick a path and aren’t completely sure when you’ll use all those pictures you took along the way. You reach a destination, but that great conversation you didn’t expect becomes the seed of a future venture.

Next up

I’d like to continue interviewing peers on their perceptions of education accessibility; both while in grade school and now. I also have started on a solution idea that I’m currently calling Open Projects. I’ll write more on that soon, but for now visit openprojects.blog.