Whither higher education?
Professor Tan Sri Dato' Dzulkifli Abdul Razak
Learning Curve: Perspective
New Sunday Times - 16-06-2013
I WAS struck by French and English being spoken interchangeably throughout a recent graduation ceremony.
The two blended harmoniously, be they the speeches of the chancellor, vice chancellor or even the students' representative. Those who do not speak the two languages cannot be blamed for thinking that they are one.
That it happened in an august academic setting, at the pinnacle of it all -- the graduation -- where the crème de la crème were recognised and scholarly achievements acknowledged by their peers was rather mind-boggling.
It was especially so when there were perhaps language "purists" among the attendees!
But Canada may be different in its acceptance of bilingualism, though not without problems. This issue, however, may be more of a political and ideological sideshow rather than an academic one.
Indeed, even the recipient of the Honorary Doctorate, a prominent public figure and a former prime minister, spoke in the two languages spontaneously.
He talked about adjusting to a "paradigm change" in the world of education. He ended his speech by saying: "Your graduation itself is a paradigm shift!"
The question, is, which way to shift?
What is certain is that the current situation is plagued with issues, not least unemployment or, more realistically, underemployment!
This is fuelled by the global recession and economic meltdown.
There seems to be a glut of "overeducated" people since, according to some, it is no longer about your education but what you do with it based on the workplace mantra.
In other words, education is increasingly about getting a job (not even a career) as stated in an industry wish list. Or to use market jargon, graduates must be skilled with "new tools".
Gone are the days when the purpose of education is "for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and the world better than you found it" as expounded by civil right activist Marian Edelmen.
While this sentiment is echoed in lofty graduation speeches spiced with carefully selected words such as "compassion", "sharing and giving back" and "common good" to reflect what education is all about, the paradigm seems to have moved from "education-for-learning" to "education-for-earning".
In this sense, you may be "overeducated" with knowledge that the workplace may not even want.
This touches the core disciplines, such as Philosophy, Ethics and the Humanities, and civic consciousness in general, on which the world of knowledge is built upon.
If we accept the shift is from learning to earning, then the role of universities is either on the verge of becoming obsolete or knowledge has to be redefined to include more trainable skill sets that meet employers' demand -- tailor-made for jobs as prescribed by the corporate sector that drives the marketplace.
Unfortunately, today's tertiary institutions are already deep into this as they too embrace the corporate culture and the language at their own expense.
Interestingly, The Economist (Sept 2, 2010) in the article Will America's Universities Go The Way Of Its Car Companies? made a comparison between a higher education body and an automotive firm.
While on the surface it seems that universities are still holding ground, many reports released to date are not as sure.
One damning report by academics Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus summed it up in the lucid Higher Education?: How Colleges Are Wasting Our Money And Failing Our Kids And What We Can Do About It.
Purportedly, the US$420 billion (RM1.26 trillion)-per-year education business in the US has lost sight of its primary mission, namely to educate!
In short, without a paradigm shift, universities too may go the way of General Motors of yesteryear.
Added to this is the pressure of demographic change from the millennial generation -- those born between 1981 and 2000 -- as they graduate and take the place of baby boomers.
Given the millennial generation's expectations and sensitivity to work-life balance, the future of education is poised for an even greater challenge.
It is a matter of time before higher education succumbs to a paradigm change yet again! Hopefully it is for the better.
- The writer is the vice-chancellor of the Albukhary International University