Degrees

At face value, I'm sure the idea of the former state superintendent of public schools to offer lower tuition to students majoring in areas of "under-filled professions" seems attractive to some. After all, to get more math majors, offer financial incentives. Upon closer examination, though, the whole thing stinks of, well, something offered by the education establishment--and there's a reason the guy rose to state superintendent of public schools.

First, is that the sole purpose of education, to fill jobs? Education, then, is to prepare people for specific jobs? Wow! What has become of the western tradition of liberal education?

Second, how long before there is a glut of those graduates, that is, before the "under-filled professions" are sated? Will those graduates then be flipping burgers as has been the case with math, science, engineering students of the past?

Third, who says majoring in areas of "under-filled professions" is a smart thing? Let's see, one of my college roommates majored in psychology and, with no graduate degree in business, eventually was a manager of properties for major insurance firms, millions of dollars of transactions passing his desk daily. Hmmm, a fine arts major a year ahead of me, who later played in the NFL, became an anaesthesiologist--no, he wasn't a chemistry or biology major.

Education, in the western tradition, is to teach people to think (not necessarily what to think, but how to think), as well as express, in writing and verbally, those thoughts. Students should be able to apply what they think, to problems, to citizenship, etc. If one is taught to do these things, one, physical/intellectual limitations excepted, any job should be open. In the western tradition, students would be exposed to math and science as well as history and English/writing. Further training, as in the case of my fine arts/anaesthesiologist college mate, can be had in graduate school.

The idea offered by the former super of public education is hare-brained. So, likely, the education-types will embrace it.