Our obsession with elite colleges is making our kids feel worthless
http://qz.com/577827/our-obsession-with-elite-colleges-is-making-our-kids-feel-worthless/
This article is a short one that makes the case against "the false but tightly-held belief that students must attend a highly selective college to be worth anything in life, and that our worth as parents is also measured by that metric".
What do you think?
Even though it is a U.S.-based article, I thought that this would be an interesting way to kick off the blog in view of our discussions yesterday.
Again, I'm simply putting up a piece that I find interesting in case you don't know how to contribute to the blog. You don't have to address this piece or the issue it addresses. You can bring up any issue you like as long as your express your opinions in ways that are respectful of your colleagues.
BYW: Nice to meet you all yesterday.
Doug
I find it interesting how obsession with elite education leads to educational inflation. The Masters degree does not guarantee a good income anymore. Segregating colleges into elite and somewhat elite, and not elite at all is the continuation of social stratification and the classes structure present in all socities since ancient times. The difference is that there used to be people of trades, people of knowledge, etc. Today everyone potentially can get a grad degree (but still has to have a lot of potential in terms of background and finances). I guess elite education is the way to further stratify the already privilleged ones. People of trades are as important as, say, researchers; it is just the fact that preconceptions, privilleges, and peoples' 'ideal' professions are there to stay.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly, the concept of 'quality schools' and 'elite schools' has become synonymous over time. As parents if I have to make a choice I'd rather go for a 'quality school, in terms of moral values, such as students' self-esteem, possibilities for intellectual growth and contribution towards society and humanity rather than the opposites.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, the name tags of the "elite schools' do make a difference in most situations as
we all have 'blind spots' in our minds that lead to the 'unconscious biases' while making a selection of an institution.
Since I was still in elementary school, I was aware that my parents wanted me to enter an elite college as they had so much anticipation of me getting good grades in every examination. In their understanding, elite colleges are well-known, and the diplomas are easy for employers to recognize. Entering an elite college means that I could have more competitiveness than other competitors when I apply for jobs after graduation. In addition, students from rural areas in China think that they have to get in elite colleges to change their destiny and their parents' life as well. However, I did not feel the same when I studied in the States. For example, students live in Washington State, they choose to go to colleges in the state since it is close to their homes and the tuition is cheaper if they live and study in the same state. Although the college is not an elite one, the family and parents are still very proud of their children getting into colleges, no matter it is elite or not.
ReplyDelete