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This whole experience (studying externally) stimulated much ongoing questioning regarding the purpose and benefits of studying on-campus. Surely the primary benefit is being able to attend regular lectures. However, from my observations in Australian universities, especially during the period when I was studying education and human resource development, many lecturers that I observed appeared to read directly from notes and sometimes from books, which seemed to be a blatant waste of student time. The students could read it themselves faster than the lecturer could deliver it, why was this happening? Why is it still happening? Is this good education practice?

Surely lectures based upon reading notes (or textbooks) to the students should never happen, should they? If it has been written down or printed give it to them to read. Many of the lectures I observed seemed to be just extensions of the students' high school experiences, and often the learning style was purely lecturer-centered which conflicted with modern teaching methodology. It often seemed as though the lecturers were strategically inserting humor periodically into their lectures in an attempt to prevent their students from going to sleep.

A few years ago when I was working in a very well known Australian university I needed to improve my knowledge of anatomy for a professional massage course that I was undertaking. I asked some physiology students for recommendations about basic anatomy classes that would be useful. Their recommendation startled me because they said that I would be better off just buying the anotomy textbook and reading it because that is all the lecturers do, they work their way through the textbook. As a teacher I found this revelation apalling.

We need to ask, what is the objective of these lectures? Are they just fulfilling some education ritualistic need?

Perhaps another possible benefit from studying on-campus is that the students have free access to their lecturers to discuss their ideas and issues. However, from my observations and the comments of students on-campus, the lecturers appear to be very busy and students usually have to make an appointment to see them, similar to what I would as an external student.

I often discussed my ideas for a "Coffee Shop University" with my American collegue and friend Professor Joel Burdin, where the campus basically becomes a large coffee shop and students have the opportunity to discuss and exchange ideas and issues with lecturers and peers in an open environment. Sadly, Professor Burdin passed away a few months ago, before I decided to write about this issue and I have nothing in writing from him, however, he never raised any major flaws in the concept.

I am not proposing this concept as the solution to general higher education issues, however, it does seem to address many of the issues of students having access and the opportunity to openly discuss issues with their lectures, which I believe is a highly valuable and effective learning strategy in higher education.

I believe that lectures should only be conducted for the purpose of clarifying concepts and issues and as a stimulus for arousing student interest in and awareness of specific issues related to the topics. They should be based more upon questioning than oration.

Maybe a short refresher from Professor Julius Sumner Miller might be valuable at this stage. I loved the man as a child and still love him now, even though he passed away several years ago. How many lecturers can instill this kind of curiosity and interest in their fields? There are a number of video clips from the link above.

Over the past 10 years, because of the serious problems confronting our university graduates I have been slowly attempting to formulate a model whereby formal lectures on-campus are kept to an absolute minimum. The approach is very similar to what I experienced as an external student for many years.

The university campus basically becomes a learning resource and support system for its students, a hub of learning, where the students can have direct access to lecturers, discuss issues in groups with lecturers or amongst themselves. Have more time for research in the libraries and other resource centres, etc. These are the services that would certainly have benefited me most as an external student.

Why do I call this concept GrassRoots? Because to me it is getting back to education basics where the focus of the learning is upon the students, not the lecturers. Currently too much time appears to be spent with students passively sitting instead of actively and creatively learning.

Recently I attempted to highlight this notion of activating learners and learning at a university in Central Java, in this case through the use of appropriate technology, during an Education and Technology Seminar.

Relating to Indonesian education in general, Mochtar Buchori states "corrective measures should create an educational system providing affordable, high-quality education to all children from all socio-economic backgrounds. I must add this is a very difficult national task to carry out for all of us."

Mr. Buchori, it's not a country specific issue, It is a very difficult "task to carry out" in any country. It's a global issue, and a challenge to educators everywhere.

Besises the costs of tuition, books, etc., one of the major expenses for Indonesian students is incurred because they very commonly study at universities that are at great distances from their homes that requires them to rent accommodation.

One of the solutions, improving efficiency in education appears to be a solution that is generally not a popular topic amongst academics. What about if we could improve efficiency and reduce costs while improving outcomes? Would they be interested?

How can we minimize costs, are universities efficient teaching institutions?.

Continued........

Phillip Rekdale
Education Consultant
Jakarta, Indonesia

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