A New Kind of Dilemma

Again, the radio proved to be a source of thought-provoking information, this morning. One caller lamented the difficulty in obtaining PR status for his wife (who's a foreigner), even though they've been back in Malaysia for close to 11 years. He claims the immigration people even went so far as to chastise him for marrying one. So much so, that they're thinking of moving back to the UK soon. Honestly, I don't blame them. With our government finally waking up to the brain drain we're facing, I sometimes fear it's too little, too late. We need all the professionals we can get, and I'm not just talking about scientists. Accountants, engineers, doctors, educators..we need them all. It's bad enough that local universities are mass producing graduates who have no idea what to do or where they're going, with intake policies being dictated by administrators who have no idea what's being needed in the world, and instead focus on making grand-sounding announcements to make their tenure as Vice Chancellor/Rector etc look as good as possible.

As a member of academia, (albeit new) I'm slowly beginning to understand the problem. Local universities are continually struggling to match the industry's needs, while already lagging by several years. This in turn forces faculties/departments to continuously revamp their syllabus, with the effect that students end up being confused more often than not. Speaking for my profession, I must admit that Oracle's Director of e-Business has valid, accurate points, as those of you who attended the recent Infosoc would know. Educators in universities tend to get caught up in their so-called research, and therefore lose touch with those in the corporate/outside world. We become complacent and sheltered in our quiet little rooms/labs, interested only in our publications/journal articles/grants..while forgetting that the task of actually educating these young minds is as heavy on our shoulders, if not more so. But then again, as one of my professors recently pointed out, universities also have to wrestle with their own identities, especially in the 21st century.

I was especially intrigued by a point he raised during a recent seminar: are we content to become factories, producing hordes of worker ants for the industry, or do we want to become a centre of learning? Where is the line between us just training these kids, and actually imbuing them with knowledge? As a member of the new generation of educators, I agree with Mr Loh's opinions. We need to build dynamic partnerships with leading members of industry, not only so that we can make sure our curriculum is current, but also to allow our theoretical research to grow into something fruitful, marketable and in the end, profitable. And in return for supplying them with our graduates, the industry should then keep us updated with new information as the job market evolves, and also try to understand that while we are trying to meet the workforce demands of a growing country, we are also trying to instill some sort of love for knowledge, for learning..skills that ultimately tie in with their lives, be it at work or play.

Which is why I am here. If the senior educators won't come out and mingle, then I will. I consider it a privilege to be among this group of bloggers, some of whom are very high up in the corporate/IT sector. I hope that maybe I can start new alliances, new friendships and with them, be able to change (if only in some small way) the face of education-industry relations. Care to join me, anyone?