From my experience with my son’s generation (doing A levels now) I am fairly certain that most of them have little idea about universities (apart from the superficial, perhaps consumerist view of open days) and are just applying because it is what everyone is doing.  The education system (based on ‘personalised learning’) has taken most of their personal motivation or inspiration, as Pinar says removing all complicated conversation from the process and leaving them with an approach to learning based purely on achieving the learning outcomes specified in assessments.  Apart from that negative experience of education so far, they do not have conceptions of any relationship with Universities until they get here – most of their attitudes are a response to what confronts them when they get here.  Applying for University is just what everyone does – and doesn’t feel like a personal decision at all.

 

The primary school he used to go to has just introduced houses – and they have decided to call them after Universities - with the names Oxford, Imperial, Manchester, etc.

 

Also in response to Jason’s point – I wonder how many current student come across the current discourse about educational development.

 

David

 

 

I think I see this in similar terms.  Given current funding arrangements prospective students find themselves in a higher education marketplace where they are customers.  However it is not obvious what they are buying and the promise of a degree is a neat way of putting it.  The fulfilment of that promise depends on both the supplier and the customer undertaking certain commitments.  However, where IKEA wants to secure an ongoing relationship with us as customers we want students to join us as part of a community, to stop seeing themselves as customers in other words.

 

Membership - like that of a gym - seems quite a good analogy therefore.  Students have bought into something rather than bought from something.  Like a gym universities often promote themselves to potential customers by showcasing facilities and describing the roles of professional staff who can support and guide members in obtaining the most benefit from those facilities.  Because they can’t guarantee an outcome (e.g. losing weight) the gym sells an experience instead: an opportunity to join a community and participate in a process that has cultural and social meaning as well as personal and individual benefits.  They therefore place great store in the environment they create and the levying of fees can actually enhance the sense of exclusivity and value.

 

While aspects of this resonate for how universities position themselves, I fear that the introduction of fees undermines the notion that ‘membership’ within higher education is worthwhile for its own sake; largely because membership is time limited and has a defined outcome, which creates a more specific focus on the degree as a commodity.  I think we face more challenges than a gym therefore and probably need a different model again.  At this point I need to row out of my stream of consciousness and try and think what that might look like, which I almost certainly won’t be able to do…D 

 

 

 

Education is like shopping in IKEA. You don’t buy a wardrobe. You buy the promise of a wardrobe. If you don’t take it home, carefully unpack all of the pieces, use the right tools and follow all of the instructions given then all you have is a really heavy box in your hallway. Expensive and pointless.

 

Students buy the promise of learning. You can’t blame IKEA for anything if you don’t take it out of the box. That’s why there’s a difference between teaching and learning. I take my craft seriously. I’m not always convinced that my customers do.

 

Customers, yes. But let’s be clear about the product.

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