I ran down the hall with the amount of energy that only a child on Christmas morning could have, going toward a pile of ornately wrapped gifts under our towering fir. I picked up a rectangular object and feverishly ripped off the beautiful wrapping. Underneath, I found a bright orange book with “SCIENCE” across the top and a picture of what I now know to be an atom. I tilted the book forward and backward and watched the electrons swirl around the nucleus.
It was this moment that inaugurated my ongoing love affair with learning, particularly for the sciences.
But where, now, is that little girl who was so mesmerized and enraptured by atoms and medicine and the cosmos? Well, I am now a pre-med student who dreads making my class schedule every semester. I used to pounce on the opportunity to acquire new bits of knowledge and once dreamed of taking difficult science classes. What changed?
Millennials, more than any other generation, seek purpose and fulfillment in their career. But when Angel Pérez, vice president for enrollment and student success at Trinity College, asked his students why they were attending college, all of them answered, “To get a job.”
Not one of his students mentioned their desire to explore their passions, gain knowledge or to do something meaningful with their lives. Emily Smith, the author of “The Power of Meaning: Crafting a Life That Matters,” reported that 70 percent of employees are discontent with their jobs and lack interest in their work.
It is increasingly obvious that there is a disconnect between the desires of millennials and the reality of their education and subsequent employment. Universities were once a place of intellectual stimulation and wonderment, where students could explore their passions and relish in their love of learning. Now, students are forced to take courses that do not interest them to become what is considered to be well-rounded.
Potentiating the issue of surplus requirements, competitive learning environments strip any remaining traces of intellectual ardor from students. Pitting academics against one another to receive the highest grade — instead of fostering knowledgeable conversations that lead to collaboration — generates unnecessary stress and hostility.
Likewise, at the primary school level, curricula are based around standardized tests — not around cultivating a love of learning. In fact, the majority of standardized tests at the elementary level are administered to evaluate teachers and have little to do with students. And so education has followed suit with many other industries, focusing more on productivity than enrichment.
How can we reinvigorate the education system to produce a generation of lifelong inquisitive and captivated scholars? Following the lead of top universities and medical schools, the answer may reside in case-based teaching.
In this style of instruction, students learn analytical and creative thinking skills through a series of real-life scenarios that must be solved in a group setting. In this hands-on approach to scholarship, students develop their own solutions with peers, fostering collaboration and problem-solving techniques.
This approach to learning forces minds to be innovative and active, preventing the trap of just learning for the test. This puts the focus of education back on the acquisition of knowledge for application and innovation, rather than competition and testing.
Education reform is not a new topic in the United States, and there are many different opinions on the correct remedy. Whether the solution is case-based teaching or something completely different, we must choose a system that fosters a love of learning. After all, we owe it to all of the little kids whose idea of a perfect gift is a book.
Morgan Manganello is a junior majoring in integrative neuroscience.