I Hope College Is In The Future

Over the vacation, I spent quite a bit of time reading the many blogs waiting for me in my reader. I came across many great ones that I hope to write about down the road. Here are my thoughts on two posts in particular.

I think I'm agreeing more with Darren Draper's post. We both basically disagree with Will Richardson's post about the future of his children and how college fits in, or doesn't. Both gentlemen have interesting thoughts regarding the future for today's students and the role college might play, much of which I agree with. But I believe, like Darren, that to be successful in the future, at least the future that I don't see drastically changing for a while, you most likely need a college degree.

There are certainly going to be jobs and positions that will exist in a few years that we have no idea about now. There are certainly going to be careers in ten years that don't exist now. However, today's students, and hopefully mine, will need to be able to make adjustments in their learning to adapt to any future situations they might find. Today's students need to have the skills to learn in any environment and work with a variety of people. Sure, these skills have been mentioned quite a bit in numerous posts about 21st Century Learning, but I doubt a large percentage of the teachers my students will have will help get them ready for this world during their K-12 schooling. I believe much of that readiness is going to be my responsibility. College, or some other post-secondary schooling, will also have to play a big role in this development.

In addition, college life is much more than just the "in class" education. It's about going on out your own, meeting a ton of new people, being more (or less) responsible than you've ever been. You've seen college kids on YouTube, right? Yet, you're not completely on your own. Whether it's your family or the university, there are people who can support you when needed. You do have at least four years to grow as a person, learn how to live, learn how to make mistakes and adapt. These experiences can also shape students into future leaders. College life is a great transition from high school to the "real world." I'm not sure it's a good idea to take these opportunities way.