I know that a college education looks good a resume and is required for many jobs. But, strictly on an intellectual level, do you think the internet has/will ever decimate the need for a higher education?
What I mean is, do you think that with as many information-oriented websites as there are today (ie howstuffworks.com, wikipedia.org, crimelibrary.com, wonderquest.com, even Yahoo answers) could someone become self-educated enough to not need a college education?
2006-07-15 18:25:54 · 12 answers · asked by Matt 3 in Education & Reference ➔ Other - Education
Or is there just some things you can't learn from the internet?
2006-07-15 18:28:57 · update #1
I think it will lower the need for libraries, cut back the postal service, and greatly increase the need for automatic spell-checkers. However, a college degree will still be a college degree.
The primary advantage of a college degree is not the information you learn, it's the diploma you walk away with. If you're trying to get a job with certain requirements, or impress a date with your refinement, or get into med school, you need the diploma more than the actual skills.
If you think about it, it's already possible to match a college education in certain fields, just by reading and discussing the right books. However, if you think you're getting your foot in the door with a library card and a reading list, you're sadly mistaken. It might not matter so much in an entrepreneurial environment, but in those settings, a traditional college education hasn't been as important anyhow.
2006-07-15 18:34:50 · answer #1 · answered by foofoo19472 3 · 6⤊ 0⤋
Many people are already self educated enough ( and have been for a long time ) without college educations -- I don't think the internet will change the importance placed on a college education.
They're typically called 'technicians'
Technicians have just as much knowledge as for example engineers and could probably design just as well (or better) than an engineer, but without the degree...not as much social status or $$$
AND -- college degrees most of the time aren't even about the material you learn in college -- but more the process and social skills you learn while you're there -- how many college graduates do you know that actually use their degrees?
It's also pretty tough to learn face-to-face social skills over the internet (which are extremely important in most industries -- and at the top of ALL industries)
2006-07-15 18:31:12 · answer #2 · answered by ///M5 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There have always been enough resources to become as educated as a college student without attending college.
Employers will always seek college educated employees because these students have already been pre-screened by the college and they have shown the intellectual and psychological ability to achieve an education.
An employer pays a premium to hire from an elite school because the school has accepted only top-notch well-rounded students.
2006-07-15 18:39:00 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
well thats really 2 questions. will the internet lower the need? definatly not. 70% of higher education is "learning how to learn" if that makes any sence. If two people are equally smart, the person who is college educated can learn and understand new things faster than one that is not.
could somone become self-educated and not need a college education. of course, but you wont get a better paying job for being an unqualifyed know-it-all.
2006-07-15 18:32:41 · answer #4 · answered by Andrew M 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A college degree means you passed roughly 45 various classes. It doesn't make your I.Q. higher but it can teach you methods for working through problems and how to research, how to study, how to prepare, and also social skills. Depending on your experiences you could learn all the same things, but you would have to really work hard at being well rounded. There is something to be said for being an educated person.
2006-07-15 18:36:45 · answer #5 · answered by the_knower_of_all_knowledge 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A college education cannot be substituted, you need it to make it official. But a college education will not teach everything there is to know. The Internet is an extraordinary supplement that can certainly make you a much more well-rounded individual.
2006-07-15 18:32:42 · answer #6 · answered by nononsense 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't think 18-24 year olds are going to have the initiative to educate themselves to the extent that a 4 year college curriculum could, plus how would they know what to study? colleges have been perfecting their curriculum and teaching methods for centuries to produce more intelligent people with better earning potential. It seems the trend is people staying in school longer because the advances in technology require more people with advanced math and technology skills.
2006-07-15 18:30:58 · answer #7 · answered by martin h 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
no . we live in a world that respects credentials. Even though many college graduates are idiots. Intelligence level is secondary to credentials. (we live in a world of appearances.) I am right. If anybody contradicts me , they are wrong. I'm not being sarcastic.
2006-07-15 18:31:30 · answer #8 · answered by lefty 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is no substitute for live class room discussion when getting an education.
2006-07-15 18:30:09 · answer #9 · answered by Report Abuse 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No because people won't do their homework without being graded.
Yes if someone is motivated they can educate themselves. But they could hav edone that at the library too!
2006-07-15 18:28:30 · answer #10 · answered by duuh 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋