My article: Yankelovish, D. (2005, November 25). Ferment and Change: Higher Education in 2015. Chronicle of Higher Education, 52(14), B6-B9. Retrieved April 30, 2008, from Academic Search Premier database.
Question from the article, "What will higher education look like 10 years from now, if it is highly responsive to the demands of society? "What external forces will reshape colleges and universities by 2015, if allowed to do so? What forms might the changes assume?
The following are a list of trends to think about listed from the article to take into consideration:
Trend #1: Changing life cycles as our nation's population ages.
Trend #2: America's growing vulnerability in science and technology.
Trend #3: The need to understand other cultures and languages.
Trend #4: Increasing challenges to higher education's commitment to social mobility.
Trend #5: Public support for other ways of knowing.
This is the way I see college and higher education. All of the above things should be taken into consideration. From what I've seen in the work force, true, specialization skills are necessary; however, I feel that it shouldn't take four years. In my opinion, a person should finish in 2-1/2 years 3 at the most, and the major emphasis should be placed on how to adapt to the real world. Taking into consideration the following things that takes place in the work environment:
- People Skills - treating people with respect
- Communication Skills - how well do you relate to people? Do you value the opinion of others, or are you egocentric, is it, or has it to be your way or no way?
- Are the people in upper management, do they have the skills they need to deal with multi-cultural needs and necessities, in order to be an effective and efficient leader of an organization, meeting the needs, the vision and mission that is expected of them as an organization.
- In the work force, I've noticed that there are a lot of people who have book learning, but they have problems in dealing with people. The maturity level is not there. Take me for example, I had a lot of un-resolved issues in my own mind. I was imprisoned, hand cuffed in my mind, because on things I had no control over. Not being able to move forward, because I kept looking back. My past hurts had control over me, instead of me having control over it or them.
- The main and most important thing in life, is the total wellness of an individual. But first, I feel we need to do a self-awareness check, to try and see why we act or respond to people like we do. Deal with self - FIRST. Sometimes it only takes interaction on the families part - the church part - the communities' part - friends - take time to listen and not judge. Sometimes we are so busy, doing what we think is important, instead of trying to make a differences in someone else's life. We don't have time to listen to our children, and even we as parents have things that we haven't dealt with and resolved in our minds.
The way I see it - education is fine - but the total wellness of an individual is far better than education. Life has a way of maturing you, and experience is the best teacher.
We spend lots of dollars to the medical field, but if each-one, would reach-one, then our production in the education system would work better.
I totally agree with the statement in the article, "it is difficult for young people to make sound career-life choices without testing them in the "real world", of practical experience. My thought on this also is, we do not have delinquent children, we have delinquent parents. We should plant seeds, or launch our children. We should aim our children, just as you shoot an arrow, you're aiming at a target - you may not hit it dead center, but at least you're aiming at something.
This is what I tell my grandbaby, "TJ, you're going to be a doctor". The next time I saw him he told me, grandma, I'm going to be a doctor and a lawyer.
He asked me, grandma, "can people stile your dreams"? My reply was, NO. No one can still your DREAMS because GOD can help you be all that you won't to be.
My final take on this: We need to revamp the education system - focus on the total man! Mind, soul and body!
