Itisoldnewsthatstudentsgoto college primarilytogetajob.Thedataareclear thatthisistheoverwhelmingreasonwhyapplicantsandtheirparentsarewilling topayescalatingundergraduatetuition,evenatsmallliberalartscolleges.Both studentsandtheirparentswanthighereducationtoserveasanindividual enabler—toenableagraduatetogetajob,toearnmoney,and,asaresult,to haveahappylife.
Theoverwhelmingmajorityofundergraduatesselectamajorbecausethey believethatitwillprovidethequickestandsafestroutetohigh-paidemployment, whichhasmadebusinessthenumberonemajorinthecountry.General educationcoursesareseenashurdlestogetoveronthewaytopreparingforthat career.
Increasingly,collegesanduniversitiesarerespondingwithcurricular arrangementsdesignedtomeetthesemarketpressures.Fractionatingforcesin
highereducationarepressingthemtocatertocareerneedswithallthe individualizedattentionofaboutiqueandallthemassdeliverycapabilityofan ATMmachine.
Highereducationisobviouslynotaloneinpromotingrampantindividualism;it mirrorscontemporaryAmericanculture.Theconsequencesofthatconsumer culturehavebeendecriedbymanyaspromotingagrowingsensethatAmericans arenotresponsibleoraccountabletoeachother,andadeclineincivility,in mutualrespect,andintolerance.Inshort,itleadstothepreeminenceofselfinterestandindividualpreferenceoverconcernforthecommongood.Itisall aboutmeandmine,notaboutusandours.
Highereducation toooftenthesedaysisalsojustaboutme.Itconcentrateson preparingworkerssuitedtoAmericancommerceandgivingstudentsknowledge andskillstocompeteeconomically,sothattheycanleadcomfortable,affluent lives.Individualstudentsareconsumerswhoinvesttimeandmoneytoreceive futureindividualeconomicbenefits.Studentswholookattheinstitutional behaviorsoftheircollegesanduniversitiesregularlyseemodelsofthisbalancesheetbehavior.Thecompetitive,commercialpressurestoviewstudentsas customersandtorespondtotheirvocationaldemandshaveledinstitutionsto promotetheirfunctionsasenablersofindividualadvancementratherthan convenersforthecommongood.Perhapsmosttroubling,studentstoorarelysee theircollegesanduniversitiesactingasresponsiblecitizensoftheircommunities.
Didhighereducationoncebetterserveaconveningfunction,helpingoursociety understandandstrengthencommonbonds?Diditformerlyhaveananimating senseofmissiontoenhancethecommongood?Nostalgiaforthegoodolddaysis alwaysdangerous;thosedayswereneverquiteasgoodaswemayremember. ButIdothinktherehasbeenacorrosionofasenseamonginstitutionsofhigher educationthattheyhaveacommonmissiontoimprovesocietyasawhole.
Thecausesofthiscorrosionofpublicpurposearenothardtoidentify.Manyare constraintsthataffectvirtuallyeveryinstitutioninsociety,notjustcollegesand universities.Therearecentrifugalpressuresonorganizationsofeverytype.The pressuresonhighereducationmayseemmoreobviousnow,butonlybecause
theyhavebeenrelativelysubmergeduntilrecently.Thesameforcesthathave madecollegesanduniversitiesmoreresponsivetomarketpressureshave broughtwiththemthevalueassumptions,thelanguage,theadministrative policiesofthebusinessworld,includingmarketingandmarketresearch, corporatemanagementstrategies,andaggressivepublicrelations.Thesearenot theonlyfractionatingforcesatworkinhighereducation.
Thedominanttemplateofpre-WorldWarIIhighereducationnowholdstruefor justasmallminorityofAmericanundergraduateeducation.Anearmajorityof undergraduatestodaydonotcometocollegeoruniversitydirectlyfromhigh school.Theyareolderthantheirpredecessors,theyworkpart-timeandareparttimestudents,manyaremarried,andmanyareparents.Mostdonotview themselvesasmembersofa"communityoflearners,"butratherasconsumers whoseektogetwhattheywantasrapidly,aseasilyandascheaplyaspossible. Thismaymeanattendingtwoorthreedifferentinstitutionsinthecourseofan undergraduatecareer,overasix-oreight-yearperiod.
Atthesametime,nearly40percentofundergraduatecredithoursaretaughtby adjunctfacultywhousuallyfinditdifficulttodeveloprelationshipswiththeir studentsortoinfluencethemoutsidetheclassroom.Evenfull-timefaculty members,particularlythoseatprestigiousresearchuniversities,oftenview themselvesasentrepreneurialindividualcontractors,withlittleobligationtoan institution,letaloneaneducationalcalling.Biddingwarsarecommonforthe talentsofprominentfaculty,whoviewtheirtenureasinthemarketplace.
Allthesepressures,andmore,aretoughobstaclesinthesearchforhigher education spublicpurposes—purposesbeyondvocationalpreparation.Higher educationhascometooperateonwhathasbeentermedadefaultprogramof instrumentalindividualism.
Thoughthetaskofestablishingandcommittingtocommonpurposesishard,itis arguablythemostimportantchallengefacingcollegesanduniversitiestoday.This paperfocusesoncivicresponsibilityasacommonpurposeoffundamental priorityfor Americandemocracy.Itisnottheonlycommonpurpose.Butitis amongthemostimportant.
Civicresponsibilityinvolvestwointerrelatedstrandsforinstitutionsofhigher education.Thefirstisobviouslyclosesttotheprimaryeducationalmissionofa collegeoruniversity,thoughneithercansuccessfullyoccurwithouttheother. Thispaperconsiderseachstrandinturn.
Theneedforcivic learning
Thepercentageofcollegefreshmanwhoreportfrequentlydiscussingpolitics droppedandsimilardecreaseswereseeninpercentagesofcollegefreshmanwho believeitisimportanttokeepuptodatewithpoliticalaffairsorwhohaveworked onapoliticalcampaign.
Whatmightmakeonethinkthatenhancingcivicresponsibility,particularly politicalengagement,isanessentialcommonpurposeofhighereducation?Past historyandcurrentmissionstatementsaretworeasons.
Afarmorecompellingreasonforviewingcivicresponsibilityasanecessarygoal forhighereducationisthedangertoourdemocracyiftheincreasingpublic disdainforcivicengagementcontinues.Thatdisdainisaseriousproblemamong allgroups,butitisparticularlytroublinginthosewhowillbefutureleadersinour society.Byanoverwhelmingmargin,thoseleaderswillbecollegeanduniversity graduates.
Whatcaninstitutionsofhighereducationdotohelpamelioratethisproblem?A firststepistoidentifythedimensionsoftheproblemandtodiscusshowto encourageacollectivecommitmenttoviewciviclearningasacommonpurpose ofhighereducation.
Thatstepwouldbepremisedonthebeliefthatinstitutionsofhighereducation havebothopportunitiesandobligationstocultivateintheirgraduatesan appreciationfortheresponsibilitiesandrewardsofcivicengagement,aswellas tofosterthecapacitiesnecessaryforthoughtfulparticipationinpublicdiscourse andeffectiveinvolvementinsocialenterprises.Forcollegesanduniversitiesto enhancethecivicresponsibilityoftheirstudentsmeansmuchmorethantelling themtobegoodcitizens.
Politicalengagementisaparticularsubsetofcivicresponsibilitythatisrequired forsustainingAmericandemocracy.Collegesanduniversitiesshouldnotbe expectedtopromoteasingletypeofcivicorpoliticalengagement,butthe argumenthereisthattheyshouldhelppreparetheirgraduatesforbecoming engagedcitizenswhoprovidethetime,attention,understandingandactionto collectivecivicgoals.Thosecitizensrecognizethemselvesasmembersofalarger socialfabric,andthereforeconsidersocialproblemstobeatleastpartlytheir own.
Ourworktodateconvincesusthathighereducationhasthepotentialtobea powerfulinfluenceinreinvigoratingthedemocraticspiritinAmerica.Our inquiriesalsohaveshownusthatsome Americancollegesanduniversities do takeveryseriouslyreferencesintheirmissionstatementstotheciviceducationof theirstudents.Forafewoftheseinstitutions,thiscommitmentshapesmanyor mostaspectsoftheundergraduateeducationalexperienceandconstitutesan intentionalandholisticapproachtocivicaswellasacademiceducation.Forother institutions,strongprogramsdesignedwithcivicdevelopmentinmindexist withinanoverallcampusenvironmentthatdoesnothaveacomprehensive emphasisonthesegoals.
Ourworkpersuadesusthatpromotingciviclearninginvolvesmutually interdependentsetsofknowledge,virtuesandskills.Wefocusonthosesetsof knowledge,virtuesandskillsthatwebelievearecentraltocivicdevelopmentand integraltoasoundundergraduateeducation.Wedonotmean,however,that thesesetsarenecessaryorsufficientforallsituationsorcircumstances.Wealso donotmeanthatonecanbecomeacivicallyresponsiblepersononlybyattending college.Rather,weareconvincedthatacollegeeducationcanandshould enhancetheseattributesandcapacities.
Collegesanduniversitiesasgoodcitizens
Theseconddimensionofcivicresponsibilityasagoalforhighereducationisthe roleofacollegeoruniversityasanengagedcitizenofitscommunity.This dimensioniscloselyrelatedtotheeducationofcivicallyresponsiblecitizens becausestudentscannotbeexpectedtotakeseriouslythechallengeofpersonal
involvementiftheydonotseetheirowncampusworkingtoimproveits community."Town-gown"relationsmeandifferentthingsindifferent communitiesacrossthecountry,butseriouscommitmentsbycampusesto communityinvolvementarerare.
Somecampuses,bydesign,havelittlecommunitycontact—theyaresimply sanctuariessurroundedby"NoParking"signs.Campusesshouldhaveinteractions withtheircommunities,buttheinteractionsshouldbeshapedsolelybythe academicneedsofacollegeoruniversityor,atmost,bythejudgmentsofthose onthecampusaboutwhattheycandotohelpthesurroundingsociety.Thereis nowsubstantialevidence,however,thatifcampuseswanttosucceedasgood citizens,theymustdiscardthesimplisticideathattodosomeanslearninghowto disseminateexpertisetotheneedycommunityinconvenientdoses.Engaging communitiesincampuses,aswellascampusesintheircommunities,provides opportunitiesforenhancingtraditionalscholarshipandcontributingtobothsets ofstakeholdersinmeaningfulways.
Whatdoesarealpartnershipbetweenacampusanditssurroundingcommunity looklike?Fortunately,numerous exemplars nowexist.Despiteabroadrangeof powerfulillustrations,however,theleadersofmanycollegesanduniversitiesare adeptatsuggestingreasonswhythoseexamplesdonotfittheircampuses.One commonrationaleisthattheleaderviewsthenationoreventheglobeasthe institution sprimarycommunity.
Civicengagementcanbefruitfulinrelationtocommunitiesmuchlargerthanthe immediatesurroundingsofacampus—state,regional,nationalorworldwide. Butinvolvementinthoselargersettingsshouldnotbeviewedasasubstitutefor civicparticipationinimprovingtheenvironsofacampus.Anothercommonclaim isthatanyeffortstoassistthesurroundingcommunitywouldtakeresourcesfrom theacademicenterprise.Overandover,however,campusinvestmentsinthe civiclifeofthesurroundingcommunityhavebeenshownalsotobesound investmentsintheacademicstrengthofthecampus.Inshort,theseandother argumentscanbepersuasivelyanswered,buttoooftenthedialogueneededeven toraisethemisneverbegun.
Itshouldbenosurprisethatinmostcircumstancesthetwostrandsofcivic responsibilitypreparingstudentsforactivecitizenshipandinstitutionalcivic engagementgotogether.Ingeneral,thefirstismuchmoredifficulttodevelop thanthesecondbecausethefirstrequirestheactiveinvolvementofasignificant shareofthefacultyandstaff,aswellasstudents,whilethesecondismore directlydependentontheadministration.Butbothstrandsareimportant,and promotingoneisusuallyakeystepinenhancingtheother.
CollegesandUniversitieshaveenjoyedseveralnearmonopoliesthathave protectedtheiralmostexclusiveshareofthemarketofcertainstudentswhoseek highereducation.Withtheadventoftechnology,however,manycollegesand universitiesmayfindthattheirmonopoliesnolongerfunctionaseffectivelyin bringingprospectivestudentstotheirdoorsteps.Whetherornotallinstitutions ofhighereducationsupportthechangesthattechnologyoffers,theyneedto prepareforitschallengesiftheyplantoremaincompetitiveinattractingstudents duringthe21stcentury.
Monopoly#1:Offera degree =offertheinstructiontogetit
Highereducationhasgenerallyassumedthattheinstitutionthatawardsa certificateordegreehasanearmonopolyinprovidingtheinstructionthatwill leadtothedegree.Wehaveassumed,inshort,thatreceivingadegreeis inextricablylinkedtoearningcredit,andthatcreditforthemostpartisearned throughcourses.
Eventhoughthismonopolyhasbeenmodifiedbyprovidingtransfercredit,that creditalsoisbasedoninstructionprovidedincoursesatacampus-based institution.
Buttechnology,alongwithnewemphasesonvalidatinglearningderivedfrom technicallymediatedinstruction,hasspurredustogivemoreattentionto assessmentingeneral.
Intraditionalclassroomswewerecontenttoconsidergrades,seattimeand contacthoursasthevalidmeasuresofprogresstowardadegree.Sincetheseare difficultifnotimpossibletoapplytodistanceeducation,thereisgrowingdemand
toimprovetechniquesthatvalidatewhathasbeenlearned-inotherwords, assessmentoflearningoutcomes.
Iflearningcanbesuccessfullyvalidatedbyassessmenttechniques,then controllingtheprocessesofinstructionlosesitsprimaryqualityassurancerole. Thisinturnleadstothepossiblede-couplingofinstructionandassessment.
SomewouldarguethatthishaslongbeenthecaseatOxfordandCambridge.But neitherOxfordnorCambridgewouldallowapersontowritethefinaliftheyhad notbeenenrolledinthecollegeandparticipatedinmany,ifnotall,ofits educationalactivities.
ManyAmericancollegesoffersomecreditbyexamination:throughchallenge exams,the CollegeLevelExaminationProgram (CLEP),portfolioassessmentfor learninggainedthroughexperience,orsimilarprograms.Buttheseusuallytake placeinaninstitutionthatisprovidingsomeoftheinstructionandawardingthe degree.De-couplingassessmentandinstructionwithinaninstitutionalsettinghas fardifferentconsequencesthande-couplingoutsidetheinstitution.
Ifdegreesbasedonassessmentoflearning-ratherthanoncreditsearned throughclassroom-basedinstruction-becomemoreavailableandpopular,the marketforinstructioncouldchangedramatically.
Monopoly#2:Location=convenience
Formanycollegesanduniversities,offeringstudentsaconvenientcampus locationhasalwaysbeenassumedtobeacrucialfactorinmaintainingor increasingstudentenrollments.Inmanystates,thisisparticularlytrueofsmall independentinstitutionsandcommunitycolleges,mostofwhichrelyheavilyon localorregionalstudentenrollments.
AstheaverageageofcollegestudentscontinuestoriseintheUnitedStates,it couldbearguedthatconvenienceisbecomingevenmoreimportant.
Manyoftheseolderstudentsprefertoremainwheretheyarecurrentlylocated, whetherbecauseofjobs,familiesorotherresponsibilities.
Throughtheeducationalopportunitiesofferedthroughdistancelearning, however,studentscanenrollinacourseofstudy,completetheircourseworkand receiveadegreerightathome.Sincedistancelearningrequiresaccessto computersratherthantraditionalclassroomsorcampuses,itthreatenstoerode thelocationmonopolythatmanycollegesanduniversitiescurrentlyenjoy.
Itcouldbeargued,ofcourse,thatcorrespondencecourseshavealways threatenedthelocationmonopoly.Thesecourses,whilepopularforsome students,havenotseriouslyreducedthenumbersofstudentsatlocalcolleges. Distancelearning,sotheargumentgoes,offersnoadditionalthreattolocal collegeenrollments.
Thisreasoning,however,failstoaccountfortheinteractivepossibilitiesofnew technologiesascomparedtothe"snailmail"slownessofcorrespondence courses.Whereascorrespondencecoursesplacealloftheburdenofmotivation onthestudent,recenttechnologicaladvancesofferstudentswider,quickerand moreinteractiveaccesstotheirteachers,tootherstudentsandtocampus services,howeverremovedtheyarephysically.Learningthroughcomputersalso canbealotmorefun.
Likecorrespondenceclasses,distancelearningwillmostlikelyattractcertain kindsofstudents(suchasthosewhocanworkontheirown).Buttheyoffera worldofdifferentpossibilitiesformoreengagedlearning.Ifthisformof instructiongrowsmorepopular,thoseinstitutionsthatrelyprimarilyonlocalor regionalenrollmentswillneedtounderstandtheimplicationsofdistancelearning fortheirownstudentbody.
Monopoly#3:Offeraprogram=offerthe collegecourses
Inthepast,whenacollegeaddedaprogramofstudy,thecollegeassumedthatit wouldhirethefacultymemberswhowouldprovidealloftheinstructionforthat program.
Nowitisbecomingmorefeasibleto"outsource"courses;throughtechnology, collegesanduniversitiescanprovideclassesoncampuswithoutlocalinstructors.
Thesecoursescanbeofferedentirelythroughacomputerlab,inconjunctionwith lecturesprovidedthroughalarge-screenformatinatraditionalclassroom,orin conjunctionwithavideooflecturesthatthestudentcanviewathome.Asa resultofthesepossibilities,offeringaprogramofstudytomeetthechanging needsofstudentsmightnolongerrequiresuchasubstantialinvestment;the collegemightcoveronlyaportionoftherequiredcourseswithitsownfaculty andimporttheremainderoftheclassesthroughtechnologicalmeans.
Thisshiftwould,ofcourse,createaverydifferent"feel"fortheinstitution.Much moresothantoday,eachcollegewouldneedtodetermineitsstrengthsand weaknesses.
Forinstance,towhatextent-andinwhatfields-shouldacollegebecomea produceroranimporterof instruction?Ifacollegecouldnotfinanciallysupport anentireprogramoflocallyproducedclasses,itcouldimportkeycoursesand offerotherslocally,sothatstudentscouldstillbenefitfromthatprogramof study.
Eachcollegealsowouldhavetheopportunitytomarketitsstrengths,exporting itsbestclasseselsewhere.Insuchaninstitution,theroleofthefacultyinquality controlofimportedinstructioncouldbecomeascrucialasmaintainingthequality ofclassesproducedlocally.
Theerosionofthefirsttwomonopolieslistedabove-inwhichtheinstitution providingthedegreealsoprovidestheinstruction,andinwhichtheconvenience ofinstructionisbasedonthelocationofacampus-couldshiftthecompetitive edgeawayfromcampus-basedinstitutions.
Thisisparticularlytrueforthosecollegesanduniversitieswhosestudentsare mostlikelytotakeadvantageoftheopportunitiesprovidedbyassessment-based degreesordistancelearning.
Buttheerosionofthethirdmonopoly-inwhichacollegeofferingaprogramalso providesalmostallinstructionforthatprogram-couldenhancethecompetitive edgeofthosecampus-basedinstitutionsthatunderstandhowtomaintainan appropriatebalancebetweenimportedandhome-growninstruction.
Therehasbeenmuchdiscussionaboutaprojectedincreaseindemandforhigher educationduringthenextdecade.Atthesametimethatthedemandisexpected toincrease,however,themarketischanging.Thosecollegesanduniversitiesthat failtounderstandthemarket seffectsonstudentdemand-thatis,those institutionsthatdonotstayintouchwiththepreferencesoftheirstudentsin relationtothenewopportunitiesthatthemarketoffers-dosoattheirownperil.
Theneedfordialogue
Oneneednotaccepttheargumentsforviewingcivicresponsibilityasakeypublic purposeofhighereducationtoconcludethatitislongpasttimetopromote publicdialogueontheissue.Thatdialoguemustnotbelimitedtothoseinhigher education.Alanguageisneededtodescribewhatismeantbythepublicpurposes ofhighereducation.Asetofstrategiesalsoisrequiredtoencourageserious, extendeddebateaboutthosepurposesandhowbesttofurtherthem.
MeganWilson isateacher,lifestrategist,successfulentrepreneur,inspirational keynotespeakerandfounderof https://Ebookscheaper com.Meganchampions aradicalrethinkofourschoolsystems;shecallsoneducatorstoteachboth intuitionandlogictocultivatecreativityandcreateboldthinkers.
Source: https://ebookscheaper com/collective-commitment-to-view-civiclearning-as-a-common-purpose-of-higher-education/