"When I was a boy I had to walk ten miles to school every day, uphill both ways."It is amazing how every survey shows a consistent fall in the quality of learning and education and yet ... gosh, some decent research gets done and some good books written.
The truth is, there was never a Golden Age where High School students were all well educated. There may have been a time when most High School students going to University had a superior training in Latin and Liberal Arts (candidly I doubt even that -- see the splendid 1940 film "A Chump at Oxford") but if such a time existed it was a time when very very few students went to University and the average level of education was much lower than today.
The world isn't perfect, and education can always be improved, but I teach at the post secondary level and the students are well prepared, hard working and a lot more serious about their schooling than I was.
First-year university students are less prepared and have poorer research skills than students from three years ago, according to a new Ontario-wide survey of faculty and librarians.
Survey respondents reported students had lower writing and numeric skills, lower maturity, and a belief that good grades are an entitlement.
Respondents also said students relied too much on Internet tools, such as Wikipedia, as external research sources.
The survey asked: "Thinking about your own experience over the last three years, do you believe that first-year students are:"
Better prepared -- 2.27 per cent
About the same -- 26.85 per cent
Less prepared -- 55.21 per cent
No opinion -- 15.67 per cent
The survey, which received 2,000 responses from 22 Ontario universities, was conducted by the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations.
"It is very troubling that a majority of respondents are witnessing a decline in student preparedness," professor Brian E. Brown, OCUFA's president, said in a press release.
"Study after study shows that success in university is linked to the preparedness of students for the rigours of the university curriculum."
"It is very troubling that a majority of respondents are witnessing a decline in student preparedness," professor Brian E. Brown, OCUFA's president, said in a press release.
"Study after study shows that success in university is linked to the preparedness of students for the rigours of the university curriculum."
3 comments:
Stoodents today dont no nuthin!!!
Perhaps Morton could comment - don't you teach at Osgood? What is your own view - have you detected an appreciable decline?
From my own point of view, I think abolishing grade 13/OAC and reducing high school to 4 years was a bad move. 17 is awfully young to go to post-secondary school.
I appreciate where you are going here
After 35 year in university teaching...
It appears to me that most university faculty have no formal training in teaching or learning or assessment
Most university faculty cannot simply and explicitly describe what they are trying to teach.
Most have insufficient appreciation of psychometrics to be able to evaluate what they or their students have achieved.
EG. How many profs say they teach critical thinking?
How many can give a cogent definition of critical thinking?
How many know how to measure and evaluate whether their students have achieved (any level) of those skills
Best advice I have for universities comes from the ISO program
Say what you do,
Do what you say, and
Prove it
Until U's get embrace so teaching / leaning/ assessment / evaluation standards I urge them to quit blaming others.
Most students will respond favourably if profs would,
define learning outcomes
receive instruction appropriate to the outcomes and
assess and evaluate in a fair and transparent manner
( I love the story of the teacher whose course was designed to teach students to ride a bicycle.
The class room course had a final exam with one question. "Discuss the history of the spoke".)
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