The Great Fantasy of Academia

TedTalk, Brian Harrington

The Reset Button. It’s a humbling experience that many of us have faced. We’ve all faced it as we transitioned from high school to further study. What we achieved in high-school; head girl or head boy, leader of a sports team or what have you, ceases to be of any importance as soon as we step on the campus of a University. We are reset and expected to prove ourselves all over again.

This happens again as we transition out of University and into the workforce. Two to eight years, we’ve forgotten the vast majority of what we’ve learned in University. In fact, the majority of us could not pass our first-year exams 10 years after we graduate.

What will actually persist beyond this? What does a University education provide in such a world?

Brian Harrington, a professor in Computer & Mathematical Sciences at UTSC, explores the point of being at University in this world and the importance of learning experiences outside the classroom and formal units.