Week 11: Morgan Bayda "An Open Letter to Educators"

Morgan Bayda


Morgan Bayda's post "An Open Letter to Educators" (follow this link to see her post) offers some interesting food for thought about the current education system, specifically at the University level. She references a video by Dan Brown (above) and ponders the state of higher education today. I feel like my experiences with education at the University level are somewhat different than many people's because I am an English major. I am used to having an insane amount of assigned readings, and usually I am able to get through them. With that being said, I can also definitely respect the plight of people like Brown and Bayda. There are many incongruous aspects of the education system and the lives of students.

The education system of today is based on a framework from a time when information was very difficult to come across without having tons of money. This led to the rise of collegiate institutions which had affluent students spending their parent's money to learn information. Nowadays, it is true that information is much more easy to access. People spanning the globe are used to getting their information through the internet and it only makes sense that they will feel much more comfortable in an academic program that embraces the information age. The education system should update itself to these changes, and I think that it SLOWLY is. I feel at this point like EDM 310 itself (and the class the Bayda described herself, ECMP 355) serve as proof that education is evolving, if only at a snails pace (because classes as innovative as these are truly few and far between). I do not feel that I personally need these changes in order to avoid dropping out of college, but I understand why many are frustrated. Our society does not behave or learn the same ways it did 100 years ago, and the education system often behaves like a 100 year old grand-parent scolding its progeny about how easy they have things. I think that this information revolution is happening no matter what, and Education should evaluate where it stands. I am optimistic though, because I think that some type of education system will be around as long as people are.