I found an article recently on The Globe and Mail’s website that completely slammed Canadian universities, and the way that most universities manage themselves. The main point that it made was that universities place almost no importance on the teaching ability of professors, which can dramatically affect the quality of education that students receive.
For the full article, follow this link:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/if-universities-were-in-business-theyd-be-out-of-business/article1740246/?cmpid=rss1
I thought this article was very relevant to both myself and the people who might read this blog, so I thought I’d share my opinions on some of the points in the article. Although I’m in my first year and I have only experienced four different courses, I have seen the professor who puts little effort into his lectures, as well as the one who is engaging from start to finish and provides valuable insight into the material (like the ones in COMM 101).
A few weeks ago I told my father that I might as well not attend the lecture of a certain course, because my time would be better spend reading the textbook. He told me that that was what university was all about; you teach yourself. I accepted that this was just the way it is, but after reading this article I am starting to question whether or not to accept this. Why can’t all my classes be as stimulating as COMM 101? To me that is the ideal course. Even though it has 150 students, we all participate in a variety of ways, and each class gives us valuable lessons not just in certain areas, but in how they all fit together. If more and more courses were formatted like this one, learning would be much more engaging, interactive and enjoyable.
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