Universities around the world are facing the problem of how to efficiently use their resource to serve a larger population of students that are more culturally and socially diversified. To solve the problem, universities should perfectly aware of their main tasks: providing students with easy access to knowledge and, at the same time, encouraging them to make active contributions to the advancement of human knowledge.
Universities should, first of all, be learning communities where knowledge not only disseminated but also advanced. As full-fledged members of this community, students should not be information recipients who learn the knowledge in a passive way. Instead, they should be challenged to achieve their potential and, indeed, to excel. Therefore, rather than focus merely on knowledge dissemination and transfer, universities should contrive to provide learning conditions that encourage students to remain curious, to value diversity in opinions and perspectives, and to think critically and communicate effectively. In this way, students can gain problem-solving experience and confidence. Furthermore, universities will never attain their goals if they tailor all their courses or programs to meet the needs of specific employers or occupational sectors. Today’s social environment is more dynamic and turbulent than ever before. Only those graduates who possess certain personality traits and can do well in diversified situations can distinguish themselves from other job applicants
In short, in order to fulfill the main tasks of universities, university education should contain ample opportunities for independent learning which can cultivate students who are more likely to adapt to the changing society. Students can also learn to exercise their autonomy more effectively, and they may clarify their own professional interests while learning in an independent way.
Universities
around the world are facing the problem of how to
efficiently
use
their resource to serve a larger population of
students
that are more
culturally
and
socially
diversified. To solve the problem,
universities
should
perfectly
aware of their main tasks: providing
students
with easy access to
knowledge
and, at the same time, encouraging them to
make
active contributions to the advancement of human knowledge.
Universities should,
first of all
, be
learning
communities where
knowledge
not
only
disseminated
but
also
advanced. As full-fledged members of this community,
students
should not be information recipients who learn the
knowledge
in a passive way
.
Instead
, they should
be challenged
to achieve their potential and,
indeed
, to excel.
Therefore
,
rather
than focus
merely
on
knowledge
dissemination and transfer,
universities
should contrive to provide
learning
conditions that encourage
students
to remain curious, to value diversity in opinions and perspectives, and to
think
critically
and communicate
effectively
. In this way,
students
can gain problem-solving experience and confidence.
Furthermore
,
universities
will never attain their goals if they tailor all their courses or programs to
meet
the needs of specific employers or occupational sectors.
Today
’s social environment is more dynamic and turbulent than ever
before
.
Only
those graduates who possess certain personality traits and can do well in diversified situations can distinguish themselves from other job
applicants
In short, in order to fulfill the main tasks of
universities
,
university
education should contain ample opportunities for independent
learning
which can cultivate
students
who are more likely to adapt to the changing society.
Students
can
also
learn to exercise their autonomy more
effectively
, and they may clarify their
own
professional interests while
learning
in an independent way
.