The Burden on Ivory Tower in Community Colleges - Essay Example

?The Burden of Ivory Tower in Community Colleges Introduction The term "ivory tower" may be the best for today's higher education, as implied by an article called "In the Basement of the Ivory Tower." As how Merriam-Webster points it out, the term would mean "an impractical, often escapist attitude marked by aloof lack of concern with or interest in practical matters or urgent problems." This definition, if relating it to education, would primarily focus on the pre-requisite subjects which are not needed in a student's overall mastery of his major. Mandatory subjects to earn a diploma may not suit the student's interest and their main goal of studying in college. Quality education, as observed in community colleges, is a crisis which needs to be addressed through concentrating on subjects that really matter depending on the student's major and strengthening basic education. The Education Dilemma in Community Colleges The struggle between quantity and quality is not new to community colleges. Professor X points out different problems concerning education in community colleges and the admissibility of the students for college education. In his experience as an English teacher, he realized that “[their] presence together (Professor X and his students) in these evening classes is evidence that we [they] have screwed up” (2). This could be seen as a desperate remark of a teacher who thinks that he can do nothing to help the students because they lack all basic knowledge; however, this is the truth. On the other hand, it is also given that students pursuing higher education in community colleges have different purposes of participating and basically have lifestyles most adults have (e.g. attend to children’s needs, consider career growth). Because of this, the average performance of community college students may not be comparable to those who are studying in universities (Long and Kurlaender 2). Most of them are returnees of school after many years of being plain workers. With the ambition of attaining degrees, students of higher education take courses “not because they want to but because they must,” just as in the case of Professor X’s class. The diversity of learning needs and generation gap of students made things difficult for Professor X. As a teacher of English, it is a headache for him to learn that most of his students in college could not even write coherent sentences like any high school student. Indeed, it is a great challenge for him to teach. His encounter with Ms. L highlighted the main points of the article. Ms. L represented the people who wants to go to a community college primarily for career growth. She could be one of those 36% of community college students who are able to get an associate or bachelor’s degree (Marklein), or maybe not. In Professor X’s experience, the problem roots from the pre-requisite subjects that students “must” take for them to complete a degree and the management of community colleges as a whole. It is said the community colleges are having “an identity crisis” (Evelyn, qtd. in Inoue and Bell 128). The management and the admission process are leniently addressed in community colleges. Inoue and Bell contend that community colleges are “trying to be all things to all people all the time” (129) which does not sound favorable for mastery of learning. Many of the students are not well-informed about how to use the computer and internet, which are necessary tools for college paper making. Nevada’s state community colleges, however, are beginning to notice this problem by developing quality rather than quantity of their students (Richmond). This can be done by adding the budget for education. This can be feasible, however, it should be noted also that the students of those schools primarily want a brush-up for certain subjects which they failed to take to complete their degree or full time workers in the morning and students in the evening. With these kinds of students, increasing the budget would not be enough; same goes with the teachers who handle mandatory subjects to these types of students. In Professor X’s case, he feels that they are in a place where they are not supposed to be, and that everything is a “must” for everybody despite their busy work schedules in the morning. In this case, reducing the subjects which are not necessary for the student’s course would suffice the need. In Housatonic Community College, the policy is not to include developmental course work which were taken in Secondary Education. In this way, students in Housatonic would only have major subjects to attend. Since some of the subjects would be deleted from the community college curriculum, it is necessary to strengthen basic education so that students would graduate with all skills developed. Motivation is not only a thing for students, but also with the professors. Considering the busy lifestyles of most community college students especially in night classes, forcing them to learn a subject that would not contribute to their target degree is just an additional burden. While this is so, failing remarks should not be tolerated regardless if it is a major subject or not. Conclusion The problem in community education must be looked upon by both administrators and professors, since they are deciding what and how to teach. Professor X’s statement-- “our presence together in these evening classes is evidence that we all have screwed up”-- is true given that they are lost between what they should do and what they want to do in terms of developing their educational experience. Professor X’s students find his subject irrelevant and boring while he, as a teacher, finds no importance in teaching it to students who do not really need them. The current situation of community colleges holds a crisis that can be resolved by considering the real purpose of students. One of the comments Professor X made about his students is that majority of them are not ready for college. This hints the call for strengthening basic education for all students before they embark on college life. If they cannot make simple tasks necessary for completing a college course, then attempting to earn a college degree would be a waste of time. Works Cited Inoue, Yukikko, and Suzanne Bell. Teaching with Educational Technology in the 21st Century: The Case of the Asia Pacific Region. PA: IGI Global, 2006. Print. Richmond, Emily. "State Community Colleges Trying to Avoid Sacrificing Quality for Quantity." Las Vegas Sun. Las Vegas Sun, 01 Dec. 2009. Web. 01 Jul. 2011. . Long, Bridget Terry, and Michal Kurlaender. "Do Community Colleges Provide a Viable Pathway to a Baccalaureate Degree?" Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis 31.1 (2009): 30-53.Print. Marklein, Mary Beth. "U.S. Community Colleges at a Turning Point." USA Today. USA Today, 08 Jan. 2008. Web. 01 Jul 2011. . Professor X. "In the Basement of the Ivory Tower." The Atlantic. The Atlantic Magazine, Jun. 2008. Web. 01 Jul. 2011. . Read More