美国学生在中文学习中的常见问题及解决方法.docx

The True Purpose of College and Higher EducationDung NguyenWhen academics created various educational systems long ago in ancient Greece and China, they did not design these centers of learning for the masses. Rather, they were made for the elite: the well-endowed, prosperous citizen. These places were conceived with the ideas of wisdom and enlightenment in mind. Unfortunately, (or fortunately, depending on ones opinion) this is no longer the case in many educational facilities. In the United States, university and college systems have become much more accessible to the populace. Though there is little doubt that this is a good turn of events, it has also brought about a change in the focus of many institutions. Universities seek to attract accomplished researchers from around the world, putting less and less emphasis on dynamic curriculum and credential teachers. Instead of making education a diverse and interactive environment where one challenges known assumptions, and probes mysterious realms of thought, it has become one where the same topics are taught repetitively every year, making students cynical and unconcerned about real learning. Rather, students care much more about getting an A and graduating with their degree on time. The romantic notion of learning for the sake of increasing ones understanding is no longer practiced. This is mainly due to the mass production methods now being applied to higher learning.There are a number of factors affecting the way university systems are operated. These include raising tuition costs and continually increasing expectations upon students. These two factors, along with the greatly increased number of people attending universities, have caused depreciation in the value of an education and, more importantly, degradation in the emphasis most institutions place on creative, dynamic learning processes. Raising tuition has had the adverse effect of forcing students to rush through their college years, without taking full ad