In a 2017 brochure titled The Future of Undergraduate Education, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences said, "Our investment in education has always meant an intergenerational compact.In this contract, each generation bears a certain responsibility for the success of the next generation.For more than 200 years, this sustained effort has led to the establishment of a network of colleges and universities that are among the most important contributors to America's intellectual and economic strength and the engine driving the American Dream.Similarly, in China, it has always been important to think, analyze, and discuss issues related to education.
"What undergraduate education teaches" seems to be a long-established or well-established question.In the historical process of the rapid development of higher education in China, the system of undergraduate education is constantly improving and the quality is constantly improving.Curriculum standards, syllabuses, evaluation standards, etc. in various fields and professions of undergraduate degree are clearly stipulated and implemented according to the rules.
However, in recent years, some undergraduate graduates have experienced a bumpy job search, employment, departure, and re-employment process, facing their lack of basic job skills, and have asked "what have I learned in the past few years in college?"This may be worth rethinking for educational researchers and education administrators.
In recent years, for undergraduate majors in natural sciences and engineering technology, both from the educational process and the ability of graduates to adapt to employment, the question of "what is taught in undergraduate education" can be answered well.However, for some non-natural sciences and engineering majors, especially those that follow the trend of the times, post-graduates may not be able to answer the question "what does undergraduate education teach?" from any point of view.
So, where's the way out?There is no doubt that any change and improvement requires a certain process.We can patiently peep into the "stone of another mountain" to broaden the horizons of thinking and solving problems.
However, undergraduate education is a complex systematic engineering, which involves many aspects, and even if the scope is narrowed down to "what to teach", there are still more to explore, and this paper deals with only one point.In addition, the premise of the discussion in this paper is that the training target of undergraduate students is future professional workers.This article is neither conclusive nor involves any other controversy on the subject.
In this paper, I take psychology major as an example, borrow the stone of other mountains, and combine personal insight to provide some information for interested people to discuss.
representative psychology
To explore "what undergraduate education teaches", psychology is a more appropriate example.The number of students interested in psychology, both at home and abroad, is not small.
British psychologist Hulme pointed out in 2014 that psychology is one of the most popular disciplines for undergraduates in the UK.There are currently more than 91,000 students studying psychology at UK universities, including nearly 73,000 undergraduate students.Of course, it also includes some students from China.
However, for undergraduate psychology graduates and undergraduates, their employment prospects are bleak.Hulme says more students are taking psychology courses to become professional psychologists than actually achieving that goal.In fact, only 15 to 20 percent of psychology graduates will continue to work in professional psychology.The remaining 80% to 85% of graduates choose other employment areas.There are reports in the United States that there are university psychology professional teachers, because their students are very frustrated with the difficulty of finding employment.Students who hold an undergraduate degree in psychology but are unable to find a suitable job often reflect on themselves and ask, "What did I study in college for years?"It's also implicating the topic we're going to talk about, 'what undergraduate education teaches.'"
From the above analysis, it can be seen that the major of psychology is representative as an example.
Exploration of Ideas
Below, we talk about the concept of "what undergraduate education teaches."
Psychology education provides students with useful skills, knowledge and attributes for everyday life; how to maximize the value of psychology education in the real world; what benefits employers can derive from psychology education; and how to adapt and apply psychology.
All of these questions point directly or indirectly to the question of "what is taught in undergraduate education?"
In this regard, the following factors deserve attention.First, with students' career development ability as the core, reasonable layout of general vocational ability and professional professional ability coverage.Second, pay attention to the education and training of psychological literacy and self-psychological health care ability.Third, the selection of psychological knowledge and skills must meet the needs of students in their future workplace, personal life and wider social context.Fourth, strategies, procedures and methods for effectively translating professional knowledge and skills into essential vocational competencies for students in the future workplace are incorporated into important educational content.
The American Psychological Association's 2011 Undergraduate Psychology Education Quality Principles focus on these educational concepts: "Following the principles of undergraduate psychology, it aims to build a world-class education system.A quality undergraduate education is designed to train citizens with psychological literacy to apply psychological science at work and at home."
It can be seen that foreign countries have a relatively systematic and clear understanding of the educational problems of psychology majors.
Division of Occupations and Skills
After a certain understanding of the concept of "what undergraduate education teaches", the next thing schools, teachers, and students need to pay attention to is vocations and skills.
The same is true of psychology professions.There have always been questions about whether psychology is a science, and scholars have even called for it to be removed from the scientific sequence.However, in the face of the 21st century's halls of science, we have to admit that psychology, although young, is a discipline that essentially spans the biological sciences to the social sciences, and its associated professions.
In the current social environment, psychologists are divided into clinical psychologists, cognitive perception psychologists, community psychologists, counseling psychologists, developmental psychologists, educational psychologists, engineering psychologists.From the names of these fields alone, we can see the breadth and variety of disciplines involved in the field of psychology, so it is important to clarify what skills are taught to students in undergraduate education.
It is clear that psychologists, as one of the occupational categories, should first have the general skills needed for career development, as well as the skills related to psychology.
The issue was discussed in the Quality Assurance Organisation for Higher Education (QAA)'s Benchmark Statement of Psychology published in 2016.They begin by listing common skills that psychology graduates should possess, such as effective communication; computer literacy; teamwork; problem solving and scientific reasoning; and effective use of personal learning and project management skills to become more independent and pragmatic learners.The nature of the discipline and the variety of learning opportunities it offers enable students to develop and practice a range of general-purpose skills.
In response, British psychologist Reddy (2013) also pointed out that "many existing jobs require more critical competencies than purely factual knowledge."In a digital age where information is freely available, the ability to criticize, evaluate, and analyze is more important than the ability to remember a particular knowledge set that may soon become obsolete and replaced by new research.”
In the discussion of vocational skills, in addition to general skills and professional skills, "employment skills" are often mentioned.
The RTI Institute is an independent, non-profit research institution in the United States.Its vision is to solve the world's most critical problems with science-based solutions in pursuit of a better future.In a 2016 Integrated Employment Skills document, they noted that the Employment Skills Framework consists of three components: effective relationships, workplace skills, and skills to apply knowledge.Interpersonal skills and interpersonal skills are covered in "Effective Relationships".Resource management, information utilization, communication skills, systems thinking and technology use are covered in "Skills in the Workplace".The Skills for Applied Knowledge covers both applied academic skills and the ability to think critically.