In their book Academically Adrift, authors Arum and Roksa … name all the key actors involved in higher education – parents, students, professors, administrators, and government funding agencies – and explain why, given the behavior of all the other actors, no one wants to do anything about high cost and “limited learning” at most universities.
They argue that limited learning on college campuses is not a crisis because the institutional actors implicated in the system are receiving the organizational outcomes they seek,
- Parents – although somewhat disgruntled about increasing costs – want colleges to provide a safe environment where their children can mature, gain independence, and attain credentials that will help them be successful as adults.
- Students – in general seek to enjoy the benefits of a full collegiate experience that is focused as much on social life as on academic pursuits, while earning high marks in their courses with relatively little investment of effort.
- Professors – are eager to find time to concentrate on their scholarship and professional interests.
- Administrators – have been asked to focus largely on external institutional rankings and the financial bottom line.
- Government funding agencies – are primarily interested in the development of new scientific knowledge.
In other words, the system satisfies the needs of all the players … which explains why everybody seems satisfied with the status quo.
And, explains why there will be a loud cheer when the President issues an Executive order to dismiss all student loans.
Source EconoLib
Thanks to Tags for feeding the lead.
Tags: Academically Adrift, College, tuition
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