Credentialism runs its course

Has the value of the college/university education diminished in the last twenty years?


I began reading College (Un)Bound by Jefffrey J. Selingo which looks at the future of higher education and how it has changed in the last twenty years with those born in the 1980s and 1990s attending post-secondary institutions.  In one part of the book, he looks at whether students are benefiting from college in a meaningful manner and refers to the book Academically Adrift by Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa in which the authors looked at Collegiate Learning Assessment scores for recent graduates.  In their analysis, 45% of students after two years of study made no gains in writing, reasoning and critical thinking skills.  While after four years, a disappointing 36% made no progress.  Sadly, many students and parents blame the institutions for their failings.

I graduated with my undergraduate degree almost twenty years ago and my masters degree almost fifteen years ago.  Was it worth the time and cost?  If that is judged based on me working in the fields I studied, then no but if it is judged on me making use of the skills I learned then yes.  I started off with an undergraduate in biology and a my masters was in pharmaceutical sciences.  I am now a researcher and project manager for a shared value/sustainability consulting group.  How I got from there to here is a convoluted trip taking me from working as a lab technician, to a shipper/receiver, to managing a pharmacy teaching lab.  I never truly focused on grades, as the knowledge and skills I learned were much more interesting.  And I would rather have a good night's sleep rather than trying to squeeze out those extra few percentage points.  Not that I didn't take pride in doing well, but it really wasn't about the marks.

But I guess I'm also a little different from most people as I've taken some sort of academic or continuing education course every year since I graduated from high school except for 2002.  That's twenty years of additional formal learning that many people wouldn't even consider.

What am I getting at?  That school isn't about the grades.  It has been demonstrated that educators from grade school, high school and beyond participate in grade inflation such that the value of an "A" is diminished.  If everyone does well in school, how come so many graduates seem to know nothing when they enter the working world.  I've had to deal with PhD's trying to get packages from Vancouver to Belgium in less than twenty four hours - it was brought to me at 4:00 PM (PST) and had to get to Belgium for the next morning.  It stunned me the incapacity to realize that Belgium is 9 hours ahead of Vancouver which meant it was already 1:00 in the morning there when I received the package.  Flights to Brussels direct from Vancouver take at least 13 hours - thus, if you eliminate all processing and ground transport times, the package would at earliest be there at 2:00 in the afternoon in Brussels.  Alas, all FedEx packages go to Memphis first for sorting and then to Europe.  There was no way this was getting there the next day unless this researcher bought a ticket and got on the plane themselves.  This to me was a clear case of a lack of critical thinking or analysis skills and brought to mind me expression that incompetency on another individual's part does not constitute an emergency on my part.

So, yes, I believe that schools are failing our children and I struggle on a daily basis to help bring understanding to the world, one college graduate at a time.

Dear. Mr. Watterson

Interesting to see that there is a documentary out about the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip.

Googling it, one finds there are several reviews, but the one that caught my eye was the one in Christianity Today.  Now, I never knew about this website before today but it fascinates me that they do movie reviews.

I named my son after the little boy who has adventures with his tiger.  He even reads the comic strip himself now - hopefully he doesn't try to imitate the toboggan adventures.

Remembering Veterans

It would seem that once again, some retailers like Costco and Target take objection to those that wish to sell poppies during the period before Remembrance Day.

My mother-in-law's husband, a World War II veteran, passed away last week at the age of 94.  He volunteered to serve his country in a war against the Germans.

My son has a fairly good understanding of the sacrifices that soldiers make and the story of the big box retailers diminishes these acts.  The representatives and public relation talking heads will undoubtedly put a spin on the whole issue but it will not mean much to me.

I personally object to the reasons some wars are fought but support those that are willing to put their lives on the line in service of their country.  I can't convince you to avoid shopping at Costco but is that big box of socks really what people have died for?

The Battle for Sustainable Cities – Blog | SustainAbility

 The Battle for Sustainable Cities – Blog | SustainAbility

Over 50% of the world's population lives in cities.  Establishing a sustainable urban culture is important in ensuring that cities will continue to be able to serve as a place for people to live.

Huge elephant in the room

I typically disagree with the Margaret Wente's opinions in the Globe and Mail but her piece on Toronto mayor Rob Ford is bang on.

He won't quit and there is no mechanism to remove him.  He lacks the ability to run the city with all the controversy surrounding him but as long as he stays in office he can command the resources of his position to defend himself.  How does that serve the people of Toronto?

He's mocked on every late night show and is an embarrassment for Canada.

I hope he comes to his senses either resigns or steps back to get some help.  Only time will tell.

What will it take?

Shooting the s**t after hockey on Sunday with tales of working in cold climates such as -30 C in Edmonton or one guy saying it was near -70 C up in the Yukon once.  And then someone pipes up that with places being that cold this whole global warming thing is bunk.

In past I would have tried to reason with him but the fact is that people will believe what they want to believe.  Stating facts and evidence from the latest scientific reports won't do a thing because in general, people know so little about science that they go to the extremes of not trusting it.

State sized chunks of ice falling off Antarctica and longer ice free periods in the Arctic are enough for me to believe.  But for me, it is common sense.  If we burn thousands of gallons of fuel a day, that exhaust has to go somewhere.

Some of it is natural but humans play a role in climate change.  If you don't want to accept that then get out of my way because I'm here to do something about it.

 

Math Problems

In our homeschool math group we work through different math exercises to help better the math intelligence of those involved.  It is an interesting group consisting of an older group of two teenagers, a middle group of five ten year old boys and four younger children.

We present the same problems to each group and it is wonderful to see the different thought processes used to attack the problem.

This past week we were working on river crossing problems, beginning with the basic wolf, chicken and grain.

The young ones initial solution was to take the chicken across.  Then they came back for the grain and stated that the wolf would swim along side the boat thus getting everything across the river.  It was interesting this "out of the boat" thinking and a lesson for the parent leaders to clearly define the parameters of a question.

This week we move on to magic boxes, similar to sudoku but involving sums.

The Flying Troutmans

Finished reading the Flying Troutmans by Miriam Toews

An interesting road trip story about Hattie Troutman who takes her niece and nephew on a trip through the United States to find their father.  Min Troutman, the mother, suffers from mental illness and was placed for treatment at the beginning of the story.

It is a story about family and discovery of one's place in the world when things are seemingly bleak.  I found it interesting because I have become more aware of that part of the world which is often hidden away.

My sister in-law's brother in-law suffers from manic depression and every so often he wanders off the medications.  My brother has never been diagnosed but is probably on the spectrum with a touch of Asperger's.  This became a bit more evident upon reading Raising Cubby by John Elder Robinson.  This is a father's tale of raising a son that has Asperger's while Robinson himself has Asperger's.

And I am coming around to understanding that we can't keep people in the shadows and hope the problem will go away on its own or that someone else will deal with it.  This is an issue that is coming to the forefront in Vancouver with Mayor Gregor Robertson focusing on housing the mentally ill.  There was also a study indicating that it does not cost much more to house the mentally ill as compared to burden placed on the police, medical and social services community.  The closing of Riverview put a lot of people at risk and in my opinion some people need to be institutionalized for their own wellbeing.

The world is getting smaller and more people are living in cities now so we all need to figure out how to get along.

Gabor Mate's letter to the health minister

One of my issues with the current government of Canada led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper is its lacklustre attitude towards science.  Scientists have to go through a strange process to release their data and speak with reporters.  That has gotten to the point that even the media outside Canada has commented on this 'muzzling' of science.

However, today I wanted to make note of Gabor Mate's letter to the Federal Health Minister on the federal government's stance on prescription heroin in helping heroin addicts recover from their addiction/illness.

In this letter, Mate challenges the minister on her decision to block this treatment and questions the basis of this decision.  It is obviously one of emotion not logic as it goes against the scientific evidence.

Addiction is a horrible thing and the war on drugs has not succeeded.  Other methods to help those addicted to drugs, whatever drug, need to be tried.

Just remember this next time we go to the polls.  We are all on this planet together and if we are unwilling to help those around us then this planet will work harder to reject us.

Michael Bloomberg, the soon not to be Mayor of New York

When Michael Bloomberg became mayor of New York City in 2001, he was worth about $4 billion and as he leaves office at the end of the year he will be worth about $31 billion.

For the year of 2013, he will have spent about $400 million on pet causes, which is only 1.3% of his net worth.

It is commendable that he is willing to spend his money on education, smoking bans, and other health initiatives.  It is also a little scary to think that at the age of 71, that even if he gave away a billion a year, he would probably die before he ran out of money.

Nike, Walmart and Unilever

Once upon a time I was one of the naysayers and critics of Walmart.  But the C-suite of Walmart is working on changing the way they do things.  It is partly a wait and see but it is nice to see that such a massive cog in the world economy is making the effort.

I came across a blog entry on the Guardian that discusses how Walmart, along with Nike and Unilever are looking into changing the shipping industry.  Shipping of products makes up 17.5% of U.S. transportation carbon dioxide emissions and this number is expected to increase.  So it is nice to see that businesses are taking an interest in reducing these emissions.

Every little bit helps.

Workplace Wellness

In researching workplace wellness and the benefits to the bottom line, I cam across a blog on Health Work and Wellness which may have been of use to me a few months ago.

Hopefully the advice will be of use to others.

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By Amy Jen Su, Managing Partner & Co-Founder of Isis Associates, Executive Coach, Author and BWC 2013 Final Keynote Speaker and Workshop Facilitator

In a world filled with endless choice, opportunity, and instant communication, we manage plates too full, run on auto-pilot, and multi-task to keep our heads above water. In our effort to “get it done”, we have lost the joy of the process leaving many things, ironically, incomplete. Yet, research has shown that focus is an essential ingredient to leading a successful and fulfilled life. How then do we build and cultivate the quality of focus?

Make Decisions and Stick to Them
Breakdowns in focus often occur before we begin. We skip the very foundation necessary for true focus to exist – making a conscious decision and then sticking to it. This includes everything – from choosing our life’s work, determining the priorities for our teams, down to what we will accomplish in a given day. Focus begins with setting intentions, declaring our commitments, and then acting directly from these. While decisions are not locked in stone, there is value to making them, sticking to them, and then consciously adjusting them when need be. Conscious adjustment is different than consistent indecision and worry.  A client, Susan, struggled for many years with focus before settling into her current role as a principal in a marketing-services firm. “I’ve always been interested in many things that it has been hard to choose a career path – even now, I find myself distracted wondering if I should be following my life’s passion of working in non-profit.”

Eliminate/Manage Distractions

Maintaining focus is not only hard on the big decisions in life but also difficult in our daily lives as well. After two weeks of self-observation, Susan uncovered two key sources of “focus saboteurs”. First, unexpected requests from other people, which she usually responded to immediately, interrupted her flow of work. Second, she became conscious of how frequently she responded to email to procrastinate on high priority work that she either did not enjoy or required a significant chunk of “thinking time” to complete.

Cultivate the Quality of Focus
Short-term, structures and systems can support our focus but ultimately, we must cultivate the quality of our focus for highest impact. This involves shifting the hard-wiring in our bodies filled with anxiety, tension, and “pushing” to flow, attentiveness, and presence when engaged in an activity. Quality of focus ensures that when we are working on a document, we’re fully engaged in the process. When we’re with our families, then we are fully present with them versus thinking about work deliverables.

Cultivating this quality of focus requires slowing down, engaging in meditative practices designed to build awareness and attention, and quieting ourselves enough to really “hear” what we want. Susan learned that the big paradox in all of this was that by actually slowing herself down, she became more efficient – now eliminating many things on her list that were there because she lacked focus in the first place.

Reflection Questions:
1. In what area of your life would having greater focus benefit you?
2. Throughout your day, what distracts you from your highest priorities or intentions?
3. Throughout your day, what conditions were in place when you experienced great focus or flow?
4. What new systems, structures, or practices could further support your ability to focus?

A small calculation

So, a while back I was ranting about Magic the Gathering and how people are just making weenie decks because it is all about winning.

I did a rough calculation based on the fact that there are over 10,000 unique magic the gathering cards.

If you chose 36 cards with no land and no two cards alike, that would result in more combinations than there are atoms in the observable universe.

This simply adds to my frustration about the lack of creativity amongst some magic players.

Aluminum Can Recycling

According to the Container Recycling Institute, a trillion aluminum cans were thrown away from 1972 to 2003.  This is more than enough to easily go to mars and back if stacked one on top of another.  That's a lot of cans.

What is surprising is that the recycling rate for cans in the United States was only 57% in 2010, despite the fact that it takes much less energy to recycle cans than to make new ones, saving 9.5 tons in greenhouse gases per ton of cans.

One company, Alcoa, is working on increasing that rate to 75% by 2015.  Hopefully their initiatives will help reach this moderate goal.

Even achieving this rate of recycling will leave the Americans behind Europe, where recycling rates are as high as 96% - see this graph from the CRI.

So, please recycle and do your small part.

Valerie Bockstette

In researching shared value, I came across a How to Guide for Creating Shared Value.

One of the authors was Valerie Bockstette.  I googled the name and came across her Harvard MBA portrait project, which i guess is one's statement about what they want to do when they graduate and it went like this:

I plan to build trampolines. Remember jumping on one as a kid - the more you jumped, the more support you got - and like magic - you rose higher and higher, as though you could bounce forever? I grew up on such a trampoline. No, my family wasn't in the circus. I had teachers pushing me, parents supporting my endeavors, and friends encouraging me to follow my dreams. It was this network of expectations that acted as my trampoline, constantly demanding greater heights. Most children aren't so lucky. They grow up in a world devoid of high expectations, or any expectations at all. Those around them are too busy keeping order in the classroom, making rent, or joining gangs to notice them. To ask: "Do you want to go to college?" - "Have you read a good book lately?" - "Can you even read?" How do we prevent these kids from falling through the cracks? The traditional answer is to build safety nets, but I think that isn't enough. I will spend my life building trampolines for children who grow up without a network of high expectations. I want them to experience the magnetic thrill of being pushed, supported, and encouraged. The beauty of a trampoline is that it doesn't have to be big. And it only takes one bounce to get going.

Reminds me to give my child high expectations, or at least expose him to possibilities.  Fortunately he isn't in a situation where joining a gang is the only option.

Can we change our cities?

Came across a book by the architect Moshe Safdie and became aware that cities are changing once again.  The book was titled The City After the Automobile and presents an idea of his for a massive car share program that would help maximize the use cars while minimizing the amount of infrastructure needed to support cars, mainly in reducing parking lot size.

It is an intriguing idea but one that may evolve into something real.  But for now, promoting car sharing ventures will have to do.  Vancouver provides a relatively good model of this with three options available to consumer - Car2Go, Modo and Zip Cars.  However, Modo is the only one that provides cars outside of the City of Vancouver, with cars conveniently placed along the different skytrain routes.  I personally have a Modo membership and fully appreciate this placement of vehicles as I live close to a skytrain station and can access the type of vehicle I need - passesnger car, van, minivan, sports car or hybrid.

Zip and Car2Go are limited by being only found within the city proper and even at that, not throughout the city.  Hopefully it will expand to other municipalities within Metro Vancouver, especially Surrey, as it is the fastest growing city in the region and will eventually become more populous than Vancouver.  It however faces the challenge of probably being the least transit friendly city as there is a vast agricultural strip that makes designing routes around the city difficult.

But that's a story for another day.

Ann Finlayson

Another 100 Words, by Ann Finlayson

My vision? That we will be able to understand how to live within environmental limits and then have the confidence and abilities to do just that.

Fundamentally, then, it is about two things - learning and change.

We don't yet know how to live within environmental limits. We will have to learn, reflect, and test new ideas. There is no single solution or best practice yet. This means changing the way we think about education and learning. Then, because doing this often feels impossible, we need to find strength and support from each other to take this difficult task on. I know we can do it.

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Ann Finlayson worked for the Sustainable Development Commission and it looks like she is with the Sustainability and Environmental Education website now.

Off to the library again

This week's haul included:

Quinn Cummings.  The Year of Learning Dangerously.  This is not so much a manual on how to homeschool but a collected set of observations on Cummings' homeschool experiences.  It is more like adventures in homeschooling with a bit of historical information sandwiched between her hilarious stories.

Joseph Stiglitz was to come to Vancouver for a talk but it has been cancelled.  So, I found one of his books, The Price of Inequality to try to better understand the significance of his work.

Fantasy Football

In 2007 I was asked by the organizer of one of the hockey groups I play with to join his fantasy football league.  Now, I've watched the NFL and was a loose follower of the sport so figured what the heck, I'll give it a try.  Tonight we had the draft for the seventh season of that fantasy football league which is quite long for any activity of what is a fluctuating group of individuals.

I've done okay in general, and actually made (but lost) the championship game last season which was an accomplishment for me as I definitely don't follow things as closely as some of the other participants.  The other interesting thing is I still have two players from my original team, Tom Brady and Calvin Johnson who are both amazing players.  Other league participants are continually trying to trade for Johnson, but I continually decline because I can't part with a player who's nickname is Megatron.

So for the record, my starting lineup in a QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, TE, FLEX PPR league is:

QB Tom Brady
RB Trent Richardson
RB Frank Gore
WR Calvin Johnson
WR Anquan Boldin
TE Kyle Rudlph
FLEX Shane Vereen

I think I have a roster that will put me in the top half of the league on the year but as in any sport, it is the playoffs that count and I just to make it into the playoffs.

Strange Connections

So, I mentioned I was reading Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance which was referenced in another book I'm working through, The Ingenuity Gap by Thomas Homer Dixon.

In the chapter titled Complexities, Dixon describes how as a youth he was able to deal with the basic maintenance of a vehicle and understand the workings of all the components, but as time marched forward, cars became more complex, to the point that:

...even most professional mechanics are little more than diagnosticians now.  The modern car is trundled into the shop and hooked to computerized diagnostic systems, and faulty engine modules are replaced in their entirety.  If the faulty modules are repaired at all- rather than simply junked - they are rarely fixed in shop but instead shipped to specialized facilities with the specific expertise needed.  As the complexity and sophistication of our cards have increased, we can no longer repair them in our backyard or in our garage grease pits.  Instead, we increasingly rely on distance expertise and knowledge.  In short, the rising complexity of our machines has reduced our independence and self-sufficiency.  It's ironic that as technology does its job better and empowers us in various ways, it leaves us with less control, power, and freedom in other ways.

This seems to me to relate to the idea of unintended consequences and something we should be careful of because the less we know, the more vulnerable we are to being deceived by the so called experts.  The proportional amount of knowledge that a person needs to know to be functional in an urbanized and technologically advanced society is growing much faster than most individuals are able of assimilating. Without the motivation and resources to keep up with the most basic understanding of the world around us, most of us will become even more dependent on the things we don't understand.