Bachelor of Commerce

I work in a university so I think about this question a lot:

What is the point of tertiary education?

Once upon a time people would go to universities for higher education, in pursuit of a deeper understanding of the subject in question.

These days it seems that people just want degrees to get a job. And I think it's a real shame. The level of student enrolments in Accounting courses across Australia is mind-bogglingly high, but where Arts and Science programmes teach students to appreciate depth of knowledge, Commerce teaches them to appreciate big profits. Maybe that's a bit harsh, but essentially Commerce courses teach occupational skills.

Incidentally, even research preferences on profitable projects rather than those with good social benefits.

It's true that all things need to evolve, including universities. But it's a sombre reflection of our society when our leading educational institutions are nothing more than training facilities for white-collar workers.

I hope that at some point in the future, quality education will once again become the primary focus of universities. In the meantime, I guess I will just have to tolerate the idea that somehow a Bachelor of Commerce is comparable to a Bachelor of Arts or Science.

Ideally multicultural

Multiculturalism. Embracing different cultures, a melting-pot of peoples from varied backgrounds living together in harmony, sharing traditions and identities. It's great, isn't it?

Well I'm not so sure.

In my perfect world, we would all be respectful of our fellow humans, irrespective of whatever social groupings they may belong to; irrespective of their ethnicity, nationality, sexuality, spirituality. The underlying belief would be social liberalism and upon that foundation we are free to be whoever we wish to be. Multiculturalism is inherent and ubiquitous in this ideal society, and because it is so commonplace, it would not exist as the political concept it currently is.

The very fact that our government feels the need to promote multiculturalism highlights a weakness in the fabric of our society. It seems to me that this word was invented because we are afraid that, should without it, we would find ourselves assimilating with popular culture. That we would degenerate into monoculturalism, the monoculturalism which breeds intolerance and grows into discrimination.

And let's be honest, there's a basis to this belief. The story from New Zealand that I posted last week highlights the reluctance of society to accept new cultures or practices.

Even I baulked at the thought of cooking and eating dog, and here I am sitting at my computer pretending that I'm open-minded!

Truth is, our perceptions are shaped by the dominant culture with which we spend our childhood and formative years. It is then that we learn what is "socially acceptable" or otherwise, and often we carry these restrictive etiquettes with us as we grow older.

I believe that as a society, we will never break free of these moulds if we continue to educate our children to follow the same social norms. Surely the better alternative should be to teach them to embrace and respect alternative cultures? Perhaps then they would be able to teach that to their children, and multiculturalism as a policy would no longer be necessary.