Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Academically Adrift: Throw Me a Lifeline, Willya?!?

Higher Ed in the U.S. is increasingly under scrutiny and attack. And the latest fuel on the fire is a book called Academically Adrift, by Richard Arum, professor of sociology and education at New York University, and Josipa Roksa, assistant professor of sociology at the University of Virginia.

Arum and Roksa’s study suggests that college students aren’t much better at critical thinking by the time they graduate with a four-year degree, than they were as college fresh-persons.

I admit I haven’t read the book. I’ve only read excerpts and second-hand articles about the book, many of which cite the study’s most shocking statistics. The book appears to put most of the blame on academe for having low expectations of students and for not being “rigorous” enough.

As a college instructor of mostly first- and second-year undergrads, I’m wondering if Arum and Roksa factored in the following:

1. The New Business Model – Most public higher ed institutions are under the budget knife. And students in seats = $$$. This means that for many instructors, department chairs, administrators, etc., the pressure’s on to ensure student recruiting and retention. And the unspoken maxim is that a “happy” student (aka a “customer/consumer,” one who isn’t asked to do too much, one for whom instructors bend over backwards and do loads of hand-holding, one whose grades are, perhaps, a wee bit inflated) is more likely to stick around.

2. The Time Crunch – Instructors (and administrators) in this era of budget cutting and “accountability” are increasingly being asked to do more and more with less and less. For example, in addition to my normal fairly heavy teaching load (four classes this semester requiring lesson plans, in-class teaching time, grading), I now manage a student organization (my service requirement), manage three on-line “tools” associated with my classes (tools that need constant updating), manage my e-gradebooks (more updates), document everything I do in an online faculty evaluation “tool” (more updates), and complete a monthly online “time sheet.”  Don’t get me wrong—I love the actual teaching part of my job. But teaching + the additional demands = no ttime to improve my teaching skills, to do the research that would make my classes more interesting/fulfilling (or more rigorous), or to do my own writing/research. And, at most institutions, class caps creep up year after year (more grading, more documenting, more measuring).

3. The Student Contribution – This is the big one for me…where does student accountability and responsibility fit into this picture? Arum and Roksa’s study appears to be based on student surveys and transcripts. If students aren’t finding classes “rigorous,” perhaps it’s because they aren’t taking the rigorous classes. Perhaps they’re not making much of an effort. Perhaps they aren’t going to class. Perhaps they’re texting in class instead of paying attention. Perhaps the rigorous teachers are discouraged by a growing emphasis on student evaluations, which tend to bash rigorous classes as “too complicated” or “too demanding”, while bashing rigorous teachers as “uncaring” or “too hard” (comments I’ve seen on my own student evals). It’s as if students and budget-conscious Boards of Regents share this misconception: that an instructor’s job is to flip the lid on a student’s head and—quickly and measurably—dump in a bunch of knowledge. But learning, and even critical thinking in college, is a collaborative process between students and teachers—both have to participate.

My feeling is that higher ed will continue to decline (and I do agree with Arum and Roksa that we’re in real trouble) as long as we keep shifting away from a belief in intrinsic value of liberal arts learning and ever more toward a business model of job-market preparedness—the student-as-consumer and instructor-as-service-provider model. It's all about SEATS & SATISFACTION surveys. And if the burgeoning number of online “college” degree programs is any indication, I’m pretty sure drive-up window diplomas are next.

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