Why I am still a student of (/at) the university.

Last evening my 1pm to 5pm class boiled over an extra hour.
The reason- I was having a passionate debate with my subject coordinator over academic writing styles and word limits .

“….This is why the subject has a high fail rate- students paint a flower garden with their words. Why can’t you (students) write the way you speak? Why can’t students paint a vegetable patch and just stick with growing tomatoes? Its both useful and efficient. ” .

“Yeah..fair enough. I understand the pressures on your time Mr..so and so, which is why the word limit for the assessment makes sense to me. However, most subject coordinators apparently seem to appreciate ‘style’ in academic writing. Or atleast I think I would be fair to make that assumption because marking rubrics give students that impression. Besides, this could be just me, but I have been told my entire life that you don’t write the way you speak. This especially applies to my non-native English speaking friends. ”- That was my response.

And we went back and forth trying to understand each other, until zoom or the internet got tired of us and magically chucked first him then I, out of the meeting. I swear this happened.

Now,

whether either or both of us are right (or wrong) is besides the point. The point is this is what really good teaching and learning involves- passionate discussions, curiosity and empathy, reflection and introspection, opportunities for new learning, and new knowledge creation. and from experience, I know of no other place that does that better than the university.

I might fall down the YouTube, or Masterclass or Skillshare or ‘distant learning’ rabbit hole today, but I seem to be coming back for air in the good old university class. Granted, the former is certainly a privilege and a luxury (where one can learn from the greats themselves) but a student’s mind soon become tired of that transaction. It will crave transformation.

Learning is stale without transformation and that transformation is possible in the university classroom….
This is why I am still a Student of the university.