Here in Texas, the single highest paid public employee is the football coach at UT. Second highest paid is the basketball coach.
That's actually pretty close to the deal my wife gets for teaching.
Higher education (at least in USA), reflects the general inefficiency (highway robbery) in all other aspects of society. Namely , the government and health care system. Can't forget real estate - credit/ banking. All playin' the same game ... make the "service" unaffordable and required to enrich useless and unproductive industries such as the insurance and banking industries. We can't eat or breath those commodities.As an example , Father bought-built house/land for $20K in 70' , now one must kiss butt and take out a $300K mortgage to a enjoy lifetime of servitude. Really sucks. He also paid $2K / year to graduate from hudson valley community college (NY) .. paid in cash.
OS
OS
That is not true , I bought the mower. It lasted 1- 1/2 years, warranty was 1 year , walmart and the foreign outsourced manufacturer has my $189 . Nothing I can do as a victim of "planned obsolescence and calculated failure". It delivers so well because it is made to fail soon after the warranty period and costs so little to produce with slave labor. FREAKIN' JUNK.
OS
Anybody remember those hand-cranked mechanical calculators? You had to wind backwards to divide and a little bell would ring on overflow, then you had to do one turn forward to get the mantissa. That was the first thing I met in my first lecture.
The first degree (Chemistry) I went on in the late '60s we had a lecturer used to come in and spend the first half hour writing on the board without saying a word, then he'd turn round and say, 'these are the corrections to last week's lecture'.
Tune in, turn on, drop out.
The next degree I went for was in the '80s. I had to rescue one of the lecturers from a near mutiny, he was such a dork.
Another day in DSP, a guy who shall remain nameless called Graham Wade Signal coding and processing - Google Books spent 2 hours explaining something to us. One of the other students was having a bit of difficulty grasping what he was on about, so I explained it to him in a couple of sentences. 'Is that it?' he said, 'IS THAT IT?'
There is no sleep more alluring than the blissful lassitude that creeps over the erstwhile student while some sinecure at the front drones on in justification of his stipend.
As for the rest of it, it's all just a question of...
w
Cor. And people think I'm a reactionary.
The first degree (Chemistry) I went on in the late '60s we had a lecturer used to come in and spend the first half hour writing on the board without saying a word, then he'd turn round and say, 'these are the corrections to last week's lecture'.
Tune in, turn on, drop out.
The next degree I went for was in the '80s. I had to rescue one of the lecturers from a near mutiny, he was such a dork.
Another day in DSP, a guy who shall remain nameless called Graham Wade Signal coding and processing - Google Books spent 2 hours explaining something to us. One of the other students was having a bit of difficulty grasping what he was on about, so I explained it to him in a couple of sentences. 'Is that it?' he said, 'IS THAT IT?'
There is no sleep more alluring than the blissful lassitude that creeps over the erstwhile student while some sinecure at the front drones on in justification of his stipend.
As for the rest of it, it's all just a question of...
Bob Dylan said:
w
Cor. And people think I'm a reactionary.
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It is the same that I said.
Yes, and it was a common task for software vendors: to teach how to use tools they produce, and to issue certificates. Then community colleges started doing such business. Now, universities lost their educational value, producing more than needed narrow-trained professionals with BS and MS diplomas. I.e. universities doing business failed their mission.
Come on... Who needs now most creative people with broad horizons if they have no chances to be employed?
And they no way train students to be creative. They train to choose recipes from selected set of already known answers, already obsoleted to the day they graduate. A totally different kind of skills.
I mean that universities issue BS and MS diploma to people with education of the level like used to have those who knew nothing but how to punch cards.
Do you see the difference between MS PP (Punch Cards) and MS CP (Copy-Paste)? I don't.
Here.. they will be employed , if absolutely exceptional.The WAR machine (aerospace - black book tech) , ... makes the world go round. (This is what the US still produces in quantity).
Financial services sector - find the best and brightest liars with non-existant moral character and good instinct for predatory capitalism.
Information tech - create the next little black box that you think you "really need". Try to get you to put all your "cards"(personal info) in the cloud for everybody to dissect. Convince you with lies (social engineer) to do what a good sheep should do.
Global corps. would use these brightest minds (like my Harvard bound daughter) to hasten the rapid planetary resource "redistribution".
Lots of employment opportunities for those with "broad horizons", if those horizons include no soul. This is the "new world order".
I see SO clearly.(from my mountain)I apologize , this could be quasi-political
OS
Originally Posted by nuckollsr http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/lounge/188500-university-has-no-clothes-post2593601.html#post2593601
Now, suppose that professor received ALL the tuition but had to rent the classroom.
SY: That's actually pretty close to the deal my wife gets for teaching.
And that's the way I teach now. The opening statement of my weekend seminar offers a 100% guarantee of satisfaction for my offering. Same thing on my website. "If you find that you've not received good value for your purchase, let me know for a 100% refund . . . and you can keep the product." Anyone leaving the seminar Sunday afternoon can register their dissatisfaction and get their credit card charge washed off. In 20 years I've had perhaps a handful of folks say that my "book was just not for them", They got refunds. None have returned any product. I think maybe two guys said they thought my seminar was worth about half what I charged . . they got a refund of half and were satisfied.
Bottom line is that consumer confidence and supplier competence grow together. There may be fits and starts but the long term trend is upward. In honorable free-market exchange of value, both individuals walk away knowing they got the better part of the deal . . . both exchanged something they value less for something they value more. If that exchange can be warranted right up front, the deal go smoother.
Now, suppose that professor received ALL the tuition but had to rent the classroom.
SY: That's actually pretty close to the deal my wife gets for teaching.
And that's the way I teach now. The opening statement of my weekend seminar offers a 100% guarantee of satisfaction for my offering. Same thing on my website. "If you find that you've not received good value for your purchase, let me know for a 100% refund . . . and you can keep the product." Anyone leaving the seminar Sunday afternoon can register their dissatisfaction and get their credit card charge washed off. In 20 years I've had perhaps a handful of folks say that my "book was just not for them", They got refunds. None have returned any product. I think maybe two guys said they thought my seminar was worth about half what I charged . . they got a refund of half and were satisfied.
Bottom line is that consumer confidence and supplier competence grow together. There may be fits and starts but the long term trend is upward. In honorable free-market exchange of value, both individuals walk away knowing they got the better part of the deal . . . both exchanged something they value less for something they value more. If that exchange can be warranted right up front, the deal go smoother.
Nothing I can do as a victim of "planned obsolescence and calculated failure". It delivers so well because it is made to fail soon after the warranty period and costs so little to produce with slave labor. FREAKIN' JUNK.
It's readily apparent that your perceptions of your purchase are less than any honorable supplier might wish for. But in the grand scheme of things, what percentage of WM customers have been taxed with the same experience? Granted, WM sells some pretty good name brands, and other stuff too. Harbor Freight is another example. I've seen some real trash there. I've also purchased tools that did not perform like or have the backing of say Craftsman or SK Wayne . . . but for the money and the manner in which I intended to use them, they were of good value. I buy stuff at garage sales too. In the grand scheme of things, total dollars that stayed in my pocket by tailoring a purchase to an expectation have been substantial . .. and probably more that offset the occasional 'consumer disaster' you have suffered.
I've had to return things to WM and HF and was always amazed at how compliant the service desk is with handling even working returns that are NOT in resalable condition. In my mind, this is a form of theft, not unlike shoplifting. For every gizmo that walks out the door (or gets refunded in spite of customer abuse of the product) the retailer has to sell about 5-10 more of those critters just to break even for having the product on the shelf. It's you and I who have to pay higher prices to keep the expense/income ratios in line!
I understand that it's no cheering news to the guy that 100,000 homes were NOT blown away today while he's looking at his tornado wrecked house. There will always be outliers in every data set. We can buy insurance, swear to never set foot in the store again, post negative reviews on the 'net, etc. etc. To be sure, any report of your unhappy experience to the www has the potential for costing WM more in lost sales than it would have cost to give you your money back. But that's exceedingly difficult to deduce the real cost/benefit of such a policy. So yes my friend, you got the short end of the stick . . . this time. But how many LONG ends have you scored over your your lifetime?
It's readily apparent that your perceptions of your purchase are less than any honorable supplier might wish for. But in the grand scheme of things, what percentage of WM customers have been taxed with the same experience? Granted, WM sells some pretty good name brands, and other stuff too. Harbor Freight is another example. I've seen some real trash there. I've also purchased tools that did not perform like or have the backing of say Craftsman or SK Wayne . . . but for the money and the manner in which I intended to use them, they were of good value. I buy stuff at garage sales too. In the grand scheme of things, total dollars that stayed in my pocket by tailoring a purchase to an expectation have been substantial . .. and probably more that offset the occasional 'consumer disaster' you have suffered.
I've had to return things to WM and HF and was always amazed at how compliant the service desk is with handling even working returns that are NOT in resalable condition. In my mind, this is a form of theft, not unlike shoplifting. For every gizmo that walks out the door (or gets refunded in spite of customer abuse of the product) the retailer has to sell about 5-10 more of those critters just to break even for having the product on the shelf. It's you and I who have to pay higher prices to keep the expense/income ratios in line!
I understand that it's no cheering news to the guy that 100,000 homes were NOT blown away today while he's looking at his tornado wrecked house. There will always be outliers in every data set. We can buy insurance, swear to never set foot in the store again, post negative reviews on the 'net, etc. etc. To be sure, any report of your unhappy experience to the www has the potential for costing WM more in lost sales than it would have cost to give you your money back. But that's exceedingly difficult to deduce the real cost/benefit of such a policy. So yes my friend, you got the short end of the stick . . . this time. But how many LONG ends have you scored over your your lifetime?
The retailer uses money obtained from sale of lottery tickets in order to buy more of lottery tickets. It is normal, and when say somebody returns garbage to Herbor Freight paying own money for shipment, Harbor Freight don't pay percentage for using customers' money. It is quite different from returning money for wrong education instead of right one. Tools can be purchased new, but it is harder to re-learn than to learn. You can't just un-learn wrong skills.
Lots of "misconceptions" here.
#1- Most WM customers don't even use the product enough to encounter warranty failure. To give an example , the pacific bicycle lineup is crap. Mom/pop take a ride around the block once a month , but if you use the product as in the days of old , it will NEVER last a year.The product line won't last a week in my camp.
#2 - "pretty good name brands" what a load !! All outsourced crap , the ONLY way to get durability and MTBF is to carefully shop the internet and read 500 customer feedbacks. Short of this , may luck or careful use be at your side.
To keep on topic , a student in college must "keep the eye on the ball" , as the world rapidly changes and adapt. Credits can be transferred , majors can be changed. Stupid counselor wanted my daughter to pursue hospitality management just because this is my area's economic strength. Airplanes and trains do exist
. Luckily , her grades were 100% (free tuition). Most don't know what they want or are ill prepared for what "will be" 4 years later. Take the loan for $20-100K , can't pay it back ... get called by collection 7 days/week. 1/2 fall into this category ... I worked the phones .. I know. 10 years from now ... imagine , it might come down to either how useful you are to others or what you can personally manufacture. Higher education and the false religion of being taught by others could be quite a disadvantage. OS
Heh-heh... 4 year later...
In computer field it changes much faster, because say Unix is very flexible OS, so different textbook writers and writers of questions for recruiters have different preferences, and "only valid" answers on the same questions change with speed of light. For example, your kid learns the "right answer" that "t" bit prevents deletion of file by end user, while another writer assumes that the system except Bourne shell has also a Perl interpreter that don't care bout this bit. Or, one writer teaches your kid that in order to change lost root password you have to stop GRUB in Linux, and instruct it to use statically linked shell instead of init. Another writer may assume that GRUB is password protected as well, so the answer would be wrong.
And so no, and so forth...
In computer field it changes much faster, because say Unix is very flexible OS, so different textbook writers and writers of questions for recruiters have different preferences, and "only valid" answers on the same questions change with speed of light. For example, your kid learns the "right answer" that "t" bit prevents deletion of file by end user, while another writer assumes that the system except Bourne shell has also a Perl interpreter that don't care bout this bit. Or, one writer teaches your kid that in order to change lost root password you have to stop GRUB in Linux, and instruct it to use statically linked shell instead of init. Another writer may assume that GRUB is password protected as well, so the answer would be wrong.
And so no, and so forth...
I agree ,Heh-heh... 4 year later...
In computer field it changes much faster, because say Unix is very flexible OS, so different textbook writers and writers of questions for recruiters have different preferences, and "only valid" answers on the same questions change with speed of light. For example, your kid learns the "right answer" that "t" bit prevents deletion of file by end user, while another writer assumes that the system except Bourne shell has also a Perl interpreter that don't care bout this bit. Or, one writer teaches your kid that in order to change lost root password you have to stop GRUB in Linux, and instruct it to use statically linked shell instead of init. Another writer may assume that GRUB is password protected as well, so the answer would be wrong.
And so no, and so forth...
Self taught , you would keep abreast (be updated) on a day to day basis. To educate on a method of learning would be far superior to just teaching specifics. Specifics can change daily .
OS
Yep, specifics like multiplication tables....
Unfortunately, everywhere in the world, taxpayer money are wated on a inflated "superior education system" that produces almost NOTHING in return... It's resembles more and more like a well-devised scam.
Now please explain how self-taught person can know which one of multiple valid answers is considered right now to be the only one valid? Remember, they go through recruiters who have the list of only valid answers, even when they go through them they are interviewed by a "multiple choice" graduate, who knows in addition some specific of the company where he works, that depends on subjective choices of people who built it and who modified supporting it.
More on the subject in the L.A. Times
Higher education: College is too easy for its own good - latimes.com
Higher education: College is too easy for its own good - latimes.com
here's the short version via quotes from the article
"Not surprisingly, given such a widespread lack of academic rigor, about a third of students failed to demonstrate significant gains in critical thinking, complex reasoning and writing ability (as measured by the Collegiate Learning Assessment) during their four years of college."
"To be sure, there were many exceptions to this dismal portrait of the state of undergraduate learning."
"Instead of focusing on undergraduates and what they are learning, schools have come to care more about such things as admission yields, graduation rates, faculty research productivity, pharmaceutical patents, deluxe dormitory rooms, elaborate student centers and state-of-the-art athletic facilities complete with luxury boxes"
"To be sure, there were many exceptions to this dismal portrait of the state of undergraduate learning."
"Instead of focusing on undergraduates and what they are learning, schools have come to care more about such things as admission yields, graduation rates, faculty research productivity, pharmaceutical patents, deluxe dormitory rooms, elaborate student centers and state-of-the-art athletic facilities complete with luxury boxes"
hmmm, all sounds t least a little familiar. I suppose it's not all as bad as it sounds, but in general it seems too much marketing, not enough focus on why universities exist.
I am constantly surprised while looking around how many people seem to graduate unable to think, and so unaware of how the world around them works. Everyone that has graduated with a 4 yr degree should have a basic literacy in science and technology. (and of course those in science and technology should have basic literacy and understanding in language and arts)
somehow this often seems not the case. it's too easy to rant...
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