Are Students Engaged In Their College Classes?

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I like this quote about college education. 

It’s from Jacob Bronowski, a British mathematician of Polish-Jewish origin who was best remembered as the presenter and writer of the BBC film documentary series, The Ascent of Man.

Here it is:

“It is important that students bring a certain ragamuffin, barefoot, irreverence to their studies; they are not here to worship what is known, but to question it.”

Apologies to profs who must deal with smart-ass comments and teachers who have to put up with incessant questions from the same kid every day.  Still, there’s an element of truth and wisdom in this.  Shouldn’t we want our kids to pay attention, to question,  to discuss and to ultimately create new knowledge? 

One of the most frequently cited concerns of professors today is that students are not engaged in their studies.  They don’t have rip-roarin’ discussions in class (or at least, not the kind the profs remember fondly from their own college days) and in many cases, they are lacking the most basic understanding of references cited in class and therefore can’t contribute to the conversation in any kind of informed way. 

It’s a generalization, true.  I know there are plenty of great class discussions going on at any college.  But if there is a trend in such things, it’s toward an unwillingness to engage in discussion. 

Maybe they’re bored.  Maybe they’re Facebooking.  Maybe they’re silent but focused on their own analysis of the topic being discussed.  Maybe. 

It’s hard to measure engagement, but class discussion is a pretty big part of it. 

In many European universities, up to 70 percent of the course grade is based on class participation.  Not tests.  Not papers.  DISCUSSIONS.  In the US, we tend to place far less emphasis on class participation at the college level. 

Interesting.   

I’m guessing that the “ragamuffin, barefoot, irreverent” types are doing college differently. 

They’re free agents.  They’re independent thinkers.  And they don’t want to be in a classroom with those who aren’t fully engaged in what they’re learning. They’re creative, and they want to be with others who are willing to explore ideas creatively.

Maybe.

Thoughts?

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Tags: class discussion, class participation, college education, creativity, engagement, Facebook, free thinking, Jacob Bronowski, The Ascent of Man