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Higher
education in North America was nearly two
hundred years old before educators began trying
to give explicit statement to its underlying
philosophy. Such philosophical statements can be
broadly categorized as either epistemological or
political. The epistemological emphasize the
pursuit of knowledge for its own sake; the
political emphasize service to society.
It is questionable whether the pursuit of any
defensible philosophy of higher education could
be demonstrated then - or especially now with
the rise of the multiversity. At present,
Colleges and Universities in North America are
organized around principles which govern a
decaying industrial world. These include
specialized courses of study and the
unfathomable notion that everyone must proceed
through a course at exactly the same rate.
A frequently heard saying is that the only thing
we can be certain of is change. Change is the
one certain factor that characterizes the period
in which we live. But by itself this bit of
information is essentially provocative. What we
want to know are the principal changes likely to
occur during our lifetime so that we may plan
more intelligently and make the most of
whatever opportunities are presented to us.
In my opinion, one of the shortcomings of both
education and government is lack of sound
long-range planning. Education needs long-range
plans. One proposal that could be implemented
now calls for leading Universities and Colleges
to create centers for planning for the future.
This arrangement could provide distancing from
present crises as well as opportunities for
conducting systematic research and making policy
recommendations. However, to avoid conflicts and
to distribute resources effectively, objectives
must be stated and priorities established.
Many social and educational problems have
mushroomed out of proportion because of lack of
proper planning. To avoid impairing our
institutional life, these problems must be
immediately addressed. Several years ago, a
distinguished Professor Charles Mustcatine
wrote: "Either the University of the future will
take hold of the connections between knowledge
and human values, or it will sink quietly and
indistinguishably into the non-committal moral
stupor of the rest of the knowledge industry."
We need knowledge to deal with these problems
efficiently; we need skilled personnel to
conduct and supervise the planning functions.
Planning must be a way of life. The task of
effective management is to give unity and
direction to the institution, interpreting its
mission in operational terms and ensuring that
nothing hampers fulfillment of the mission.
In the final analysis, we cannot afford cosmetic
reforms. We must promote those reforms which
ensure that our graduates will possess job
skills and general education competencies. The
cafeteria-style education which become popular
in the sixties has resulted in mental
malnutrition and cerebral anorexia. In an era of
artificial intelligence, expert systems,
superchips, and fifth generation computers, we
cannot permit default in our approaches to
learning for competence.
The task of leading a nation along a road
largely obscured in the mist of the unknown is
not an easy task. Maps are sketchy and largely
based on inference; the terrain ahead is tricky
and always subject to unaccountable shifting.
What society needs today are leaders with a
certain attitude toward the challenges that will
have to be met along the way, not dogma about
the course that society must follow.
Syed Waris
Shere was born in Patna and attended University
of London and Technische Hochschule, Aachen,
Germany. His work on critical issues of
International Affairs has been published
globally. He is the author of eight books
including his most latest publication "THE
STRUGGLE FOR PEACE". His main interests are
Emerging International Order, Security and the
Prospects for East - West relations and Dilemmas
in Policy - Making for Education. Professor
Shere was also nominated for the "ORDER OF
CANADA"
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