Education, the Future, and Missions
Education is in trouble. Scratch that. It's in deep kimchee. If you think it might be bad, it's far worse than you think. Really. In fact, if you think it's good...listen to the experts (on all sides of the political aisle):
https://blogs.darden.virginia.edu/brunerblog/2014/10/the-trouble-is-crisis-and-critics-in-american-higher-education/
https://www.businessinsider.com/higher-education-is-changing-and-it-is-in-trouble-2015-3?op=1
https://www.bestcolleges.com/news/analysis/7-challenges-threatening-future-of-higher-education/
https://www.deseret.com/2022/9/8/23319117/nebraska-republican-ben-sasse-vision-for-higher-education
A 2015 article by a literature professor began with the headline, “I'm a liberal professor, and my liberal students terrify me.”[1] The article was about how, in the name of compassion, students were not allowing for professors to challenge their worldview assumptions or opinions. To do so was considered “offensive.” The self-professed liberal professor writes, "I once saw an adjunct not get his contract renewed after students complained that he exposed them to “offensive” texts written by Edward Said and Mark Twain. His response, that the texts were meant to be a little upsetting, only fueled the students’ ire and sealed his fate. That was enough to get me to comb through my syllabi and cut out anything I could see upsetting a coddled undergrad, texts ranging from Upton Sinclair to Maureen Tkacik — and I wasn’t the only one who made adjustments, either.[2]
And if you think evangelical higher ed is different, consider this quote: “We need to really redo Christian education. Completely.” – Tim Keller[3]
The kimchee runneth deep.
This year (2022), a whole slew of articles emerged on the future of higher education in particular (though I'm harping on higher ed here, the whole educational system is in trouble. Just today (Oct. 11) I received the following article from the WEA): https://intelligence.weforum.org/topics/a1Gb0000000pTDYEA2/publications/4c2acba43cee4720adebcdad72cc1f6f?utm_source=sfmc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2784219_Si-WeeklyNewsletterV5-Production-10-01-2022&utm_term=&emailType=Strategic%20Intelligence%20Weekly&ske=MDAxNjgwMDAwMENIemRxQUFE
The good news is that there are many trends that may provide us with a unique opportunity to reinvent. The key is to know when to "zag" with everyone and when to "zig" when they "zag." For example, many are talking about a future wherein the student creates their education. But this is nonsensical because the student hardly knows what is worth learning and/or where to look. But the basic point, which is the prolific nature of educational courses and free access to them, is well-taken. At issue is curation, not access.
The future may allow for smaller classes in global contexts with mentorship and real-world experience. That's a mouthful, but it's important. Like, really important. For missions, it means that higher education and the mission field may have greater opportunity for interaction or even (gasp) convergence at points. Currently, missions for students is a little like going an an altruistic summer camp experience. Cru, the Navs, and others have shown us we underestimate what students mobilized for missions can do. Now imagine world of interconnectivity - where the experience of college isn't about hedonism + grades, but guidance + impact. In a future where the toughest questions require greater dialogue and foundation building, wherein spiritual maturity is linked with character and not historical familiarity, evangelical higher ed can go smaller, global, interlinked, and impactful. And partnerships with missions efforts can increase exponentially.
It's a brave, new future. May we have the courage help shape it.
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[3] Quote as reported by David Brooks in The New York Times, “The Dissenters Trying to Save Evangelicalism from Itself” (Feb. 4, 2022)
[1] https://www.vox.com/2015/6/3/8706323/college-professor-afraid
[2] Ibid.
