As readers know, I am a critic of the universities and a radical one at that, seeing them as irreparably flawed and suitable only for closing down, to be replaced by alternative decentralised training and education schools. Now it seems, students, at least in the US, are voting with their feet, and turning to technical education over useless university degrees. I fully support this trend, and in fact years ago predicted that the wokeness, which was called political correctness back in the day, would lead to the implosion of the universities. As these institutions are the nest of communists and anti-nation propaganda, we should welcome their withering away. I would prefer a collapse and a more sudden demise though.
“It is no longer the case that getting a college or university degree expands an individual’s horizons, offering him or her better job prospects and the hope of a better life.
Ever since far-left “wokeism” took over American education, increasingly more young people are coming to the stark realization that getting a Bachelor’s degree is certifiably useless, in many cases, because most of what students are being taught these days at Western institutions is to hate white people and to embrace communism.
The issue was discussed at the recent Axios event “Skills over Status: The Shift Toward Skills-Based Hiring,” which was held on April 19 in Washington, D.C.
At this event, Chairwoman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce Dr. Virginia Foxx discussed an effort by Congress to refocus today’s young people on technical education rather than a four-year college or university “education.”
The event panel included Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland, Sec. of Education Miguel Cardona, and Senior Vice President and General Counsel of LinkedIn Blake Lawit, all of whom spoke about the shifting American economy.
“For far too long, we have perpetuated the idea that obtaining a baccalaureate degree is the pinnacle of success,” Foxx told Campus Reform. “More and more, people are waking up to the fact that America is transitioning to a skills-based economy and skills-based programs are the key to remaining competitive in the future.”
In an op-ed he wrote back in November, Higher Education Fellow Nicholas Giordano highlighted why increasingly more students are opting out of getting a four-year indoctrination, and instead choosing technical college.
“Over the last couple of years, companies have begun to place less emphasis on college degrees and more on technical and interpersonal skills,” Giordano wrote. “As four-year institutions continue to push a far-left agenda, students are not learning the practical skills needed in the workplace.”
“Since most community colleges are commuter schools, professors and students do not fall victim to the ideological bubble. They do not have time to sit around and have endless debates about radical theories leading to indoctrination.” Well, not as much at least.
As young people shift towards skill-based education, leftists are setting their sights on taking over technical education, too
This shift from four-year education to skills-based technical education is not going unnoticed by the left, though, which is now aiming to embed the same “woke” social justice indoctrination into technical colleges as well.
Already, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) nonsense is being infused into technical college coursework, even though it has absolutely nothing to do with learning how to do an actual skill-based job.
Even so, leftists everywhere, including those embedded within the Biden regime, have set their sights on taking over community college curriculums as well. Foxx, though, is slightly optimistic that good things can still come from technical education, just so long as it is left alone from leftist indoctrination.
“Democrats have shown us in the past that they’re willing to put politics aside to work with Republicans on substantive skills-based legislation,” she said. “It happened in 2014 with the bipartisan SKILLS Act, and I am confident that we will be able to find common ground again.”
“I agree with Secretary Cardona that getting community colleges and skills-based programs on an equal footing with baccalaureate degree programs is an important part of solving the skills gap in America.””