India Has To Work On Short Term Courses For Skill Development, Betty Young, President Hocking University
Community Education approach is a new concept for India, whereas this concept has its wide presence in many of the West European nations and the US. In a one on one conversation with one of the torch bearers of this education system, BW Businessworld speaks with Prof. Betty Young, President of Hocking University USA. Here are the excerpts:
Hocking University has its own repute in the education arena. It is known for its community college system approach which is different in its own way. Apparently, it is one of the few Universities of the USA which has appointed a lady president. A well-known academic expert of the world in the community college system, Betty Young exclusively speaks with BW Businessworld.
How about the pattern of education in the USA? Share your views about enrolment growth.
USA has a culture of working and studying together from a long time. There is a connection to this system with that of the US economy. For instance, when the economy grows the education falls as people might find it more important to earn than study. It happens almost opposite when the economy falls, people do get time to study and add-on some new aspect so as to earn or do better. For me, ‘I only focus on how to create a balance between both the trends’. It gets a healthy student enrolment by the way.
What are your comments on the education of women leading ‘community development’?
I feel excited and I am excited about it. It's like working in every region. Sometimes you know them and sometimes you don’t know them. There are places where women are not empowered and it's all about empowering them.
How does it help creating job opportunities?
We have to create jobs, it is a complex aspect there may be five jobs by a group in a rural area or there may be ten jobs in some other area. Larger groups can even give thousand jobs and that’s where communities can be very helpful in doing it.
How difficult it is to manage college environment during paradigm shift?
I would love to speak about a somewhat similar topic. See, the technology is changing, in fact, the entire global economy is changing along with the changing environment. Above all, humanitarian aid is also changing its face. Women are also changing and they are changing society, put all of that together and things are changing. There is always a resistance in society to change, and it is because of fear to lose. All the people need to understand, it's like you should think about gaining rather concentrating on other aspects. There is a need of a person who can tell people about gains, those people are going to get by the change.
Do you have any suggestion for Indian education system?
I have been to India with American community college association some five or six years ago. I've been to many of the Universities and Colleges with community education system. I don't know how many of them are following it here anymore. Frankly speaking, I don't know how much growth is here in community college system. I believe it's about short-term courses in skill development where India has to work more seriously and of course it is also about training adults. It's a lifelong experience of learning new things, this is how we improve and this is my suggestion.
