Higher education is not about getting a job | Fred D'Agostino | TEDxUQ

Summary

El discurso explora las diversas razones para la educación superior, desafiando la idea predominante de que es solo para obtener un empleo. Se menciona la importancia de formar una personalidad educada que contribuya a una democracia sólida y una sociedad civilizada, según la perspectiva de Sir Robert Menzies y el Ministro de Educación, Christopher Pyne. La educación se presenta como un medio para promover el entendimiento, la participación activa en la sociedad y el respeto a la dignidad humana, con ejemplos históricos y personales que enfatizan su valor para la libertad y la igualdad.

Takeaways

• 🎓 La educación superior no solo es para conseguir un empleo, sino también para desarrollar una personalidad educada y una mente inquisitiva.
• 🌐 La expansión de la educación superior en Australia ha llevado a una discusión económica sobre su propósito, enfocándose en la provisión de una fuerza laboral educada y mejores ingresos de por vida.
• 🔍 El ministro de Educación, Christopher Pyne, resalta la idea de que la educación superior contribuye a una democracia sólida y a una sociedad civilizada.
• 📚 La educación de Sir Robert Menzies, fundador del Partido Liberal australiano, enfatizaba la formación de una mente inquisitiva y un carácter educado, lo que beneficia al individuo más allá de las habilidades técnicas.
• 🗳️ Las habilidades adquiridas a través de la educación son esenciales para participar en una sociedad democrática, incluyendo la comprensión de problemas, la expresión de ideas y la toma de decisiones informadas.
• 🤔 La educación superior permite a los individuos no solo ser espectadores, sino participantes activos en la toma de decisiones que afectan su vida y su sociedad.
• 🌟 La educación es un pilar fundamental para la democracia, fomentando valores como la libertad de pensamiento, expresión y participación en decisiones que afectan a todos.
• 📈 El informe de Truman sobre la educación superior en los Estados Unidos enfatizaba la importancia de una mente abierta y la investigación rigurosa para mantener una sociedad libre.
• 🏛️ La educación no solo es para mejorar la vida económica de un individuo, sino también para contribuir al bienestar humano y a la promoción de una sociedad más justa y equitativa.
• 📚 Malala Yousufzai, a pesar de su juventud, reconoce la importancia de la educación para la dignidad humana y para la igualdad de oportunidades, especialmente para las niñas y mujeres.
• 🌱 La educación es un derecho fundamental y una herramienta para combatir la ignorancia y promover una sociedad más informada y comprometida con los valores democráticos.

Q & A

¿Qué es lo que la gente comúnmente asocia con la educación superior según el discurso del orador?

Según el discurso, la gente comúnmente asocia la educación superior con conseguir un empleo, lo cual es una aproximación económica al propósito de la educación superior.

¿Cuál fue el mensaje que el Ministro de Educación, Christopher Pyne, utilizó en su discurso sobre la educación superior?

Christopher Pyne mencionó que la educación superior no solo es para desarrollar una fuerza laboral educada, sino también para contribuir a una democracia más sólida y una sociedad civilizada.

¿Qué papel consideraba Sir Robert Menzies que tenía la universidad en la formación de una personalidad educada?

Sir Robert Menzies creía que la universidad tenía un papel importante en desarrollar no solo habilidades técnicas, sino también una mente curiosa y la formación de una personalidad educada.

¿Qué tipo de habilidades son necesarias para participar en una sociedad democrática según el discurso?

Se necesitan habilidades como el conocimiento de los temas actuales, la capacidad de expresar y entender puntos de vista, la habilidad para tomar decisiones complejas y ejercer un buen juicio.

¿Cómo se relaciona la educación con la democracia según el informe de Harry Truman sobre la educación superior en América?

El informe de Truman consideraba que la educación superior debía promover una democracia robusta, enseñando a los ciudadanos a entender y dirigir fuerzas que fortalezcan o debiliten sus libertades.

¿Qué evento histórico menciona el orador que muestra la importancia de la educación para la dignidad humana?

El orador menciona el evento de los 'Little Rock Nine', donde estudiantes afroamericanos fueron impedidos de asistir a una escuela segregada y tuvieron que ser escoltados por el ejército para poder recibir educación.

¿Qué dijo John F. Kennedy en su discurso sobre la educación superior y su relación con la responsabilidad pública?

John F. Kennedy dijo que la educación superior no solo existe para darle una ventaja económica a los graduados, sino también para que ellos reconozcan sus responsabilidades hacia el interés público y se sientan obligados a contribuir a la sociedad.

¿Qué ejemplo contemporáneo utiliza el orador para ilustrar la importancia de la educación para la democracia y la civilización?

El orador utiliza el ejemplo de Malala Yousufzai, quien fue disparada y casi asesinada por luchar por los derechos de las niñas a la educación en el Valle de Swat, Pakistán.

¿Qué creía Malala Yousufzai sobre la educación y su relación con los problemas fundamentales de Pakistán?

Malala Yousufzai creía que la falta de educación era la raíz de todos los problemas de Pakistán, permitiendo que políticos y administradores incompetentes se mantuvieran en el poder y que la ignorancia se propagara.

¿Cómo se describe la visión de Malala Yousufzai sobre la escuela ideal para su padre?

La escuela ideal descrita por Malala Yousufzai incluiría escritorios, una biblioteca, computadoras, carteles brillantes en las paredes y, lo más importante, baños.

¿Qué es la discusión alternativa sobre los propósitos de la educación que menciona el orador?

La discusión alternativa mencionada por el orador sobre los propósitos de la educación se centra en la dignidad humana y la importancia de la educación para que las personas de diferentes orígenes étnicos y religiosos puedan aprender juntas, en lugar de enfocarse únicamente en el aumento del producto nacional bruto o los ingresos de por vida.

Outlines

00:00

🎓 La educación superior y la democracia

El primer párrafo discute la percepción común de que la educación superior es principalmente para obtener empleo y cómo esta idea se ha integrado en la cultura australiana en las últimas 25 años. Sin embargo, se introduce la idea de que la educación también tiene un papel en desarrollar una personalidad educada, lo que beneficia al individuo más allá de las habilidades técnicas, fomentando una mente inquisitiva. La referencia a la discusión del Ministro de Educación, Christopher Pyne, sobre la educación y su impacto en la sociedad y la democracia, destacando la importancia de una sociedad civilizada y una democracia sólida.

05:01

🌟 Educación y participación democrática

El segundo párrafo explora la idea de que la educación no solo es para obtener un empleo, sino también para participar activamente en la democracia. Se menciona la tradición política conservadora y socialdemócrata que apoya esta idea, y se comparte la experiencia personal del orador al crecer en los Estados Unidos y cómo la educación se ha visto como una herramienta para la participación efectiva en la toma de decisiones. Se cita el informe de Harry Truman sobre la educación superior en América, enfatizando la importancia de una mente abierta y la investigación rigurosa para una sociedad libre.

10:03

🏛 La lucha por la igualdad educativa

Este párrafo narra la historia de los 'Little Rock Nine', un grupo de estudiantes afroamericanos que lucharon por su derecho a asistir a una escuela secundaria integrada en Arkansas, con la necesidad de la intervención del ejército de los Estados Unidos. La historia ilustra la importancia de la educación para la dignidad humana y cómo la segregación racial impidió a los estudiantes el ejercicio de su dignidad al no poder aprender juntos como iguales.

15:03

🏛️ Responsabilidad y privilegio en la educación

El cuarto párrafo presenta las palabras de John F. Kennedy sobre la responsabilidad de los graduados de instituciones educativas con respecto a la sociedad. Kennedy enfatiza que la educación no solo brinda ventaja económica, sino que también confiere responsabilidades hacia el interés público. Se argumenta que los privilegios, como la educación en una institución elitista, deben ser utilizados para mejorar la condición de toda la sociedad, no solo para el beneficio personal.

20:05

🌱 La educación como medio para la democracia y la civilización

El último párrafo concluye el discurso enfatizando la importancia de la educación para la democracia y la civilización. Se menciona a Malala Yousufzai, quien a pesar de haber sido atacada por luchar por los derechos de la educación de las niñas, representa la voz de los desfavorecidos y subraya la importancia de la educación para la dignidad humana y la igualdad. El orador refleja sobre la idea antigua de que la educación es fundamental para la democracia y la civilización, una idea que es relevante en nuestros tiempos.

Keywords

💡Educación superior

La educación superior se refiere a los estudios universitarios o más avanzados que siguen a la educación secundaria. En el video, se discute cómo tradicionalmente se asocia con la obtención de empleo y una vida mejor, pero también se destaca su importancia en el desarrollo de la personalidad educada y la participación en la sociedad democrática.

💡Economía del conocimiento

La economía del conocimiento es un concepto que enfatiza la importancia de la información y el conocimiento en el crecimiento económico. En el video, se menciona que se necesita una fuerza laboral educada en una economía del conocimiento, subrayando la relevancia de la educación superior para el desarrollo económico y social.

💡Participación democrática

La participación democrática hace referencia a la forma en que los ciudadanos se involucran en el proceso político y toman decisiones colectivas. El video enfatiza cómo la educación superior puede capacitar a las personas para contribuir de manera efectiva a una democracia sólida y a una sociedad civilizada.

💡Personalidad educada

Una personalidad educada es aquella que ha sido cultivada a través de la educación y el aprendizaje continuo. En el video, se argumenta que la educación superior no solo proporciona habilidades técnicas, sino que también fomenta el desarrollo de una mente curiosa y la capacidad de cuestionamiento, lo que es beneficioso tanto para el individuo como para la sociedad en general.

💡Democracia robusta

Una democracia robusta es aquella que cuenta con un sistema político estable y una participación activa de sus ciudadanos. El video sugiere que la educación superior puede contribuir a la creación de una democracia más sólida al formar individuos con habilidades críticas y el deseo de participar en la toma de decisiones.

💡Sociedad civilizada

Una sociedad civilizada es aquella que se caracteriza por el respeto a los derechos humanos, la justicia social y el progreso cultural. El video plantea que la educación superior puede ayudar a desarrollar una sociedad civilizada al promover el entendimiento y la tolerancia entre diferentes grupos y fomentar la dignidad humana.

💡Dignidad humana

La dignidad humana es el concepto de que todos los seres humanos merecen respeto y consideración por su valor intrínseco. En el video, se utiliza el ejemplo de Malala Yousufzai, quien luchó por el derecho a la educación para las niñas en Pakistán, para ilustrar cómo la educación puede ser crucial para la afirmación de la dignidad humana.

💡Responsabilidad social

La responsabilidad social es la obligación de las personas o instituciones de actuar en beneficio de la sociedad y el bienestar común. El video menciona que los graduados de la educación superior deben reconocer su responsabilidad social, utilizando sus privilegios y habilidades para contribuir positivamente a la sociedad.

💡Desigualdad

La desigualdad se refiere a la diferencia desproporcionada en la distribución de recursos, oportunidades o privilegios entre diferentes grupos de la sociedad. El video discute cómo la educación superior puede ser tanto un vehículo para la desigualdad como una herramienta para combatirla, dependiendo de la accesibilidad y la calidad de la educación proporcionada.

💡Lucha por la igualdad

La lucha por la igualdad es el esfuerzo por eliminar las barreras que impiden a ciertos grupos de la sociedad de tener igual acceso a oportunidades y derechos. El video hace referencia a eventos históricos como la integración de Little Rock State High School, donde la educación fue usada como una forma de luchar contra la segregación racial y promover la igualdad.

Highlights

Higher education is often viewed through an economic lens, with the primary goal being to secure employment.

The discourse around higher education for employment has become ingrained in Australian culture over the past 25 years.

Minister for Education Christopher Pyne revives an old idea about the role of universities in developing an educated personality.

Sir Robert Menzies believed universities should foster an inquiring mind, benefiting individuals beyond technical skills.

Participation in higher education could lead to a more robust democracy and a civilized society.

Skills acquired through higher education are essential for active participation in a democratic society.

Higher education should equip individuals with the ability to make complex judgments and exercise good judgment.

The vision of higher education as a tool for democracy is not confined to any single political ideology.

President Harry Truman emphasized the importance of an open and inquiring mind for a free society.

The social role of education in a democracy is to enable citizens to understand and influence societal forces.

Education should cultivate democratic values, respect for human personality, and promote human well-being.

Malala Yousufzai highlights the importance of education for human dignity and its role in fostering equality.

Malala's father believed that education is a great gift and a key to solving Pakistan's problems.

The purpose of education is not solely to increase the gross national product or lifetime earnings.

Education should provide a space where people from different backgrounds can learn together and face each other as equals.

President John F. Kennedy believed that the privilege of education comes with the responsibility to serve society.

Kennedy emphasized the importance of graduates contributing to the public interest and the betterment of all.

The current gap between rich and poor in the United States is a potential threat to democracy.

The idea that education serves democracy and civilization is an old concept relevant to our times.

Transcripts

thanks ever so much for having me and

thanks for coming along today who said

that higher education was about getting

a job well actually we've had Chris did

a little warm-up act for me but I

visited 25 or 30 schools every year for

the last ten years to talk to their

guidance officers their principals and

their head teachers and that's what they

think and that's what they tell their

students higher education is about

that's what parents and children talk

about over the dinner table when

children are thinking about whether to

go to university and if so what they're

going to do when they get there and

what's going to happen after they leave

this is a discourse that's entered

Australian culture in the last 25 years

during the period of expansion of higher

education so higher education is about

getting a job and it's a very economic

approach to the whole purpose of higher

education it's got a macro element we

need an educated workforce in a

knowledge economy it's got a micro

element if you go to university you'll

get a better job and have higher

lifetime earnings than if you don't all

of those things are true of course but

there are other ideas about the purposes

of higher education and it's been very

interesting for me recently to find an

old idea for our new times in the mouth

of the Minister for Education the

Honorable Christopher Pyne who gave a

speech recently to universities

Australia and used it as an opportunity

to talk about an old idea about higher

education

that had been articulated in the 1950s

by the father of the Australian Liberal

Party Sir Robert Menzies and here's what

Christopher Pyne says about Menzies hee

Menzies understood that the university's

role in developing an educated

personality had benefits for the

individual who stood to gain not only

from the technical skills he or she

learned but also from the formation of

an enquiring mind and Pyne interprets

this idea as follows

so if many more Australians could

participate in higher education not only

would Australia have a highly skilled

workforce but we would have the makings

of a more robust democracy and a

civilized society well those are the two

ideas that are old and that might be new

again the ideas of a robust democracy

and a civilized society

that's why you go to university on this

story because then you'll be able to

contribute to the makings of a robust

democracy and a civilized society and

how does that work well there are skills

that you need in order to participate in

a democratic society you need to know

things so that when you talk to your

neighbors when you go to the local

branch meeting of the political party

that you're a member of when you think

about who to vote for you understand the

issues of the day you need to be able to

express those issues and you need to be

able to understand what other people are

telling you when they express their

views on those issues you need to be

able to make complex judgments in which

we balance a variety of competing

demands on the public purse on our

national resources you need to be able

to exercise good judgment and all of

those are things that you can get

through higher education so that you can

leave the halls of academia quipped with

the skills to be a participant in

democratic society not just a spectator

and that's the vision that a pine is

articulating now this from Pines mouth

and from Robert Menzies by implication

is an idea that he associates with a

small seed conservative political

tradition and it's there it's perfectly

appropriate to associate it in that way

but it's also somewhere else it's in the

social democratic political tradition as

well and I'm going to talk about some

things that happen in my own life

growing up in the United States that

show it in that arising out of that

tradition and it's kind of interesting

that some of our most profound ideas

actually have multiple sources

so it's not just a conservative idea

that if you're educated you can

participate more effectively and

decisions that affect you it's also a

social democratic idea so it doesn't

matter where you are on the political

spectrum whether or not you can accept

and embrace this inspiring idea that

education has a purpose in relation to

democracy and I want to begin with

something that happened around the time

I was born in the wake of the Second

World War and it was a report that the

then president Harry Truman I got a

picture of Harry there's Robert Menzies

here's Harry Truman it was a report that

Harry Truman commissioned about the

future of higher education in America

and here's what the conclusions of that

report were Truman in Australian terms

is much more like the the Labour Party

in Australian political terms here's

what it says the open and inquiring mind

and the habits of rigorous and

disciplined investigation are the marks

of free men and the sinews of a free

society I just love that phrase the

sinews of a free society the purpose of

higher education is precisely to promote

a robust democracy here's what they say

it's a commonplace of the democratic

faith that in education is indispensable

to the maintenance and growth of freedom

of thought faith enterprise and

Association thus the social role of

education in a democratic society is to

enable the citizens to understand a

praise and redirect forces Men and

events as these tend to strengthen or to

weaken their liberties

the first and most essential charge upon

higher education not to get you a job

okay

not even to provide you with an

internship you don't need one of those

Courtney me Chris it shall be the

character of democratic values ideals

and processes and cultivate democracies

abiding elements it's respect for human

personality its insistence on the

fullest freedom of belief and expression

for all its citizens its principles that

all should participate in decisions that

concern themselves it's faith in reason

and it's deep obligations to promote

human well-being what is a democracy if

it's not a society in which all

participate in decisions that affect

themselves and how can you participate

effectively by being knowledgeable by

have cultivated in an acute judgment and

a sense of balance among competing

interests and how can you acquire or

hone those skills you can do so through

your education one of the things that is

crucial to be a democratic citizen is to

be able to approach each other as equals

to be able to listen to be able to talk

to be able to hear what people are

saying to you and that provides not just

a right of participation but a basis for

dignity I'm facing you as a fellow

creature you're facing me as a fellow

creature in

57 and I watched this on television nine

teenage students they were a few years

older than me but you know in my same

age cohort really

were brought to Little Rock State High

School in the state of Arkansas by the

hundred and first Airborne Division of

the United States Army and the presence

of the hundred and first Airborne

Division was necessary because the

governor of Arkansas had previously

mobilized

the National Guard of the state of

Arkansas to prevent these students from

entering Little Rock High School I'm not

making any of this up it happened in my

lifetime I watched it on television and

it happened in the United States of

America Dwight Eisenhower had to

mobilize the Screaming Eagle Division of

the United States Army in order to make

it possible for these students to go to

high school

why because Little Rock High School was

segregated by race it was an apartheid

system if you were white you could go to

Little Rock High School if you were not

you went to another high school

how can people face each other with

dignity if they cannot sit in the same

classroom together

fact that the high school for

african-americans was markedly inferior

by every measure of resourcing and the

quality of the instruction that was on

offer is another element of course but

simply the separation of students by

race meant that their ability to face

each other as equals was denied from the

start

never given a chance to develop what did

the Little Rock Nine won did they want a

better job all the evidence that we have

from their subsequent testimony was that

that wasn't the reason that they wanted

to go to high school with other children

in their community what they wanted was

a chance to exercise their human dignity

by learning to talk with each other as

equals if we fast forward to 1963 I was

just about ready to go to university

myself I'd I was in my final year of

high school and I went on a rite of

passage trip with my oldest friend um

I'm going to see in a few weeks it's our

50th high school reunion in a few weeks

I haven't seen him since 1964 but in

1963 we went on a trip and we visited

universities that we thought we might

want to attend the following year it's a

kind of a road trip that a lot of

American University students used to do

I don't know whether they still do that

with the internet now but anyway he'd

get in a car and you'd pack a bag and

you'd be away for a week and we went to

Cornell which is where he eventually

went to uni and we went to Williams call

it Dartmouth and Williams College and

Amherst College and when we got to

Amherst it was very weird because we

drove into town and at every scorner

there were state police cars and state

police men standing outside the cars

looking very alert and kind of worried

and we had no idea what we had

encountered what we had walked into or

driven into but actually President John

Kennedy

was there that weekend and he was giving

the only address of his presidency on

Higher Education and he was giving it at

the opening uh no not the opening the

groundbreaking of a library that I

subsequently sat in and did doodles in

the margins while looking at you know

into the middle distance thinking about

girls from Smith College instead of

first year history and the library was

named after Robert Frost who had been

the poet in residence at Amherst College

for many years subsequently died and the

connection with Kennedy is the frost had

spoken at Kennedy's inaugural and so so

he came to Amherst College to give a

groundbreaking address at the at the at

the college and here's what he said this

is something that I actually heard in

real life I didn't watch this on

television he's probably got the

American Civil Rights Movement in mind

if not the actual events involving the

Little Rock Nine what good is a college

or university unless it is serving a

great national purpose this college does

not exist merely to give this school's

graduates an advantage and economic

advantage and the life struggle it does

do that but in return for that and

return for the great opportunity which

society gives the graduates it seems to

me incumbent upon this schools graduates

to recognize their responsibilities to

the public interest privileges here and

with privilege goes responsibility there

is inherited wealth in this country and

also inherited poverty and unless the

graduates of this college who are given

a running start in life unless they are

willing to put back into our society

those talents the broad sympathy the

understanding the compassion unless

they're willing to put those qualities

back into the service of the great

Republic then obviously the

presuppositions upon which our democracy

our democracy

our based are bound to be fallible

Kennedy thought that privilege the great

privilege of privilege is in a way to

extinguish privilege

chances that we were being given at an

elite college were chances that we had

to turn to the betterment of all and

that if we weren't able to do that one

of the fundamental basis for democracy

would be undermined that if we

constituted ourselves as as an elite

living in a bubble

indifferent to the poverty that we saw

around us that our democracy would be

undermined we may be witnessing that

happening now in the United States

Kennedy was speaking at a time when the

gap between rich and poor was two orders

of magnitude less than it is now he was

speaking at a time when there was still

very little difference between the rich

and the poor in monetary terms anyway

compared to the differences that exists

now my final example is really a

contemporary one and it's a malala

yousufzai and in case you don't

recognize her picture and she's a young

Pakistani woman and I guess she's still

still a girl really she's still only 16

years old and a couple of years ago she

was shot and nearly killed for standing

up partly through her social networking

and partly through her use of the BBC

World Service for standing up for the

rights of girls to be educated in the

Swat Valley in Pakistan and she was shot

for her troubles and she too recognized

the importance of education in relation

to human dignity and and again this is

an alternative discourse about what the

purposes of education are are the

purposes of Education to increase the

gross national product are the purposes

of education to increase your lifetime

earnings no the purposes of Education

lie elsewhere and here's what she had to

say and she's speaking of her father who

was also an educational reformer in in

Pakistan

he said his sister's my aunt's did not

go to school at all just like millions

of girls in my country education had

been a great gift for him he believed

that lack of education was at the root

of all Pakistan

problems ignorance allowed politicians

to fool people and bad administrators to

be re-elected he believes schooling

should be available for all rich and

poor boys and girls the school that my

father dreamed of would have desks and a

library computers bright posters on the

wall and most important washrooms Malala

yousufzai does not speak from power and

privilege as John Kennedy did at Amherst

in 1963 she speaks from the disempowered

to the disempowered and she speaks not

of jobs and not of the gross national

product but of the dignity that

washrooms and bright posters and

computers and a chance for girls and

boys for people from different ethnic

and religious backgrounds to sit

together to learn together the

importance of that for democracy and for

a civilized society so this is an old

idea an idea that has roots in the

conservative political tradition an idea

that has roots in the social democratic

political tradition this is an old idea

that education is for democracy that

education is for civilization

that is ripe for our new times thank

[Applause]