Joshua de Roos, vice-chairman of the National Student Union, tries in a submitted piece to explain why students come to university so little. In doing so, he rightly draws attention to a major problem in current academic education: too many students are hardly inclined to come to university anymore.
But in his analysis, De Roos is a bit one-sided: in short, he portrays the universities as institutions where only mass lectures are given and where no discussion is possible. It is logical that students do not come to the university and prefer to follow lectures from home, says De Roos.
Reason enough
In doing so, he makes a caricature of academic education. First of all, academic education does not only consist of massive lectures: most programs also have working groups and seminars in which the discussion and reflection that De Roos is looking for are central. Reason enough to come to university.
And what about those damned lectures? You have to come to university for that too. Firstly, because we know that following a lecture via a screen works less well than following a lecture in a lecture hall: it is more difficult to adopt an active learning attitude behind a screen than in a lecture bench. Second, and possibly more importantly, these lectures are often more interactive than most students think: many of my colleagues ask questions during their lectures, engage in discussion about the material being discussed. And yes, that is also possible in a room with more than a hundred students.
And in addition to the discussion during the lecture, discussion is also possible at the edges of the lecture: walk to the lecturer during the break to exchange ideas. Or talk to the student next to you in class about that article that is on the agenda for that day. That is the academic community that De Roos (and I) long for and it is there, but then you have to close your laptop and come to the university.
Netflix lectures
Due to corona, students have become accustomed to the convenience of ‘netflix lectures’. Several students have already told me that they also know that it is better to come to university. ‘But yes’, they then sigh, ‘it is so tempting to stay at home when there is a digital alternative’, especially if you live a bit further away or if the lecture starts at half past eight in the morning.
But if you are seriously interested in your studies, it is also your responsibility to be active and to make use of the opportunities that universities offer to a large extent. Seeing students as passively reclining consumers who wait for something nice to be offered is a bit too easy for me. So Joshua, let’s call on all students together to come back to university: there is more discussion possible than you think, but then you have to actively participate.
Bas Hillebrand is professor at Radboud University Nijmegen.