For students who attended one Conference on World Affairs panel, fall registration may include some interesting course choices.
Four panelists from very different backgrounds engaged students in a conversation about the nature of education, passion and happiness, and how the three qualities should not be mutually exclusive.
Michael Stoff, a member of the history department at the University of Texas at Austin, began the panel by reciting a startling statistic.
“In 1971, 400,000 students were polled in California on what they think is really important in their education,” Stoff said. “Thirty-seven percent said wealth and 73 percent said a meaningful philosophy of life. In 2009, the same number of students were polled, but the numbers are reversed.”
Stoff’s perspective on modern education is displayed in a program called Plan II, which he leads at UT Austin. The program was founded during economic hard times in 1935 to help students secure a job.
“Plan II allows students to take a myriad of courses to develop skills that will serve in any industry or profession,” Stoff said.
Stoff said that colleges across the country are dropping majors and programs that are deemed unbeneficial to the working world, such as classical studies and philosophy.
“Curricula should change to meet the advancement of society, and it does, schools are adding new programs, such as environmental science and Arabic,” Stoff said. “However, instead of cutting out philosophy programs, we should combine subjects to create multifaceted students for a workplace that is no longer linear.”
Janine Wedel, a professor in the School of Public Policy at George Mason University and novelist, began by saying that she would not be at this conference if it weren’t for her BA.
“People who do best in public policy are those with broad educational backgrounds, such as literature, history, social sciences, English and math,” Wedel said. “These are all crucial for your generation to solve the problems that my generation has created.”
Wedel explained that she found passion in life by chance when she went to Europe to study at a German university.
“I wouldn’t have been able to contribute to my world the way I am if it hadn’t been for my BA,” Wedel said.
Tom Shadyac, a director of comedies, such as Bruce Almighty and Ace Ventura, and a professor at Pepperdine University, said he disagreed with Stoff and Wedel.
“I appreciate what Michael and Janine have said, but I come from a different perspective,” Shadyac said.
Shadyac said that he thinks something is wrong with the structure of modern education.
“Every parent tells their kids to enjoy college, because it’s the best four years of your life,” Shadyac said. “So our lives go downhill after 22? That sucks.”
Shadyac said that he believes students should figure out what they love and who they are in college.
“You’re asked over and over again in college, what are you doing to do with your life?” Shadyac said. “That’s ridiculous. I don’t even know what I’m going to do for the rest of the day.”
Shadyac said that he thinks college is the right decision for some people, but that the system has strayed from the point of teaching and learning.
“Do we have no better system than to compare all of you with four letter grades?” Shadyac said. “I think that’s insufficient, each one of you is a miracle.”
Andy Ihnatko, a tech columnist for the Chicago-Sun Times and Macworld magazine, told students that college is their first job and they will be employed for four years as long as the checks are on time.
“Almost every degree is BS, because there is never going to be a linear path in life,” Ihnatko said. “It used to be like that, but now you will go through a lot of different venues to be able to do what you want to do.”
Ihnatko compared his outlook on college to being in a halfway house.
“Treat college like a halfway house,” said Ihnatko. “You’re not ready to be fully released to society, but you can be mildly beneficial.”
He gave the audience a list of life lessons he has thinks are essential to success.
“Do too many things in too little time with no excuses, train yourself to do dumb things that make no sense, learn to kick yourself in the ass before someone else does it and master empathy and compassion.”
He elaborates on empathy and compassion.
“People are a frenzied, random mess, but I see great promise in this,” said Ihnatko. “Instead of judging people and labeling them as asses, it’s important to learn from the different perspective they’re coming from.”
Ihnatko said with emphasis that the moment you deem someone irrational is the moment you stop learning.
“We are all the same, we have the same DNA, we grew up on the same planet, and we are all constantly learning from each other,” Ihnatko said. “Go into every door on campus and learn from everyone that can teach you something.”
After the panelists spoke, moderator Tim Stancliffe welcomed questions from the audience.
Dick Montague, a 71-year-old Longmont resident, stood up and addressed the students of the audience.
“These are all extraordinary ideas, but they mean nothing unless you grab them and run with them,” Montague said. “I worked in business until I was 65, and hated it, I finally pursued my interest of evolution, I only wish I had done it earlier.”
Some students said they were impressed with the panel.
Piper Lowrey, a 20-year-old sophomore Spanish major, said she enjoyed the panel.
“I am inspired to just think about what I really want in life and what I like,” Lowrey said. ”I definitely think they all gave valuable advice.”
Amanda March, a 20-year-old sophomore international affairs major, said she agreed with Lowrey.
“It’s made me rethink my path,” March said. “In that I no longer believe I need a straight path, I can meander a bit.”
Stoff, Shadyac and Ihnatko concluded the talk with some advice.
“Find something that makes work feel like the quality of play,” Stoff said.
Shadyac said that learning from positive and negative experiences is key.
“To study happiness, you must study unhappiness,” said Shadyac, “Learn from the things you don’t like or don’t agree with.”
Ihnatko said students should go back to their first aspirations and think about how those goals changed.
“If everyone did what they wanted to be when they were five, then we’d all be astronauts, ballerinas and presidents of the United States,” Ihnatko said. “Think about why you originally wanted to be that astronaut and why you don’t anymore.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Kendall Schoemann at Kendall.schoemann@colorado.edu.
