Gail ,
Well stated! I think some of my best life lessons during college were about effective problem solving beyond the academic lessons I gained.
Traci Lee
The media has brought to the forefront many positive and negative issues which educational institutions face on a daily basis. It has also made the consumer more aware of less than reputable schools. It's important for students to be aware of the quality of education they are receiving and whether it will meet their needs prior to investing their resources. Sometimes more information isn't always a good thing, but for students it has helped to make them informed consumers and target inappropriate behavior.
Discussing the 'chain of command' for airing problems before problems arise will help students consider steps to take when there is a problem. Also, it is critical that all faculty support following the 'chain of command' so there is no involvement of faculty who should not be involved. It is sometimes easy for faculty to provide a sympathetic ear and listen to complaints about a colleague, rather than sending the student to that colleague to discuss a problem. Helping students take the appropriate steps to address a problem will help them learn to do this in the real world, an important part of their education.
terri,
I hear what you are saying - I also think that any "bad apple" school can influence the public perception of the sector as a whole.
Traci Lee
Traci, I am relatively new to the Campus Director position, but have been involved in post-secondary education for 20 years. Media tends to report the neagative, which I believe would increase regulations. If this helps to weed out the schools that are taking advantage of students and the federal student aid program, then I believe it to be a good influence.
Jeanne,
This is a great example of media and regulations working to help educational institutions that I had not thought about. Occupational quality and credibility are certainly outcomes related to education and licensing, when necessary. Thanks for sharing this positive angle!
Traci Lee
The media has been positive with regard to its ability to influence the regulatory environment. An example of the positive influence is the reporting of massage therapy businesses that are operating 24 hours a day, under very questionable circumstances. By bringing these establishments to the publics attention, the media has helped to bring awareness to the general public. In turn, that awareness has helped to enforce a desire to regulate therapeutic massage, keeping the public safe when receiving a massage.
Hi Lisa,
As the Program Director, I also let the students know on the first day of classes the chain of command. Our college deans are very good at asking the student who "appears" in their office if they have spoken to the instructor? What was the result? did the student follow up with the program director? what was the result? and so on. If the student has not followed the chain of command, my dean is good at asking them to schedule an appointment with the program director for a resolution. We also have what we call "frequent flyers" who tend to keep asking several people until they get the answer they seek. I equate this with playing different levels of a game and discovering the path to make it to the end of the level. Fortunately for the staff we have what is called "student tracking" which allows us to put in notes about the student's visit, what the student was requesting, and what the results of the meeting were. This tends to slow them down a bit when everyone knows what is going on. Sometimes I have flashbacks to raising my children....:)
I totally agree the student's success is our ultimate goal. This does not mean that I give them each an "A", this means giving the student the tools to succeed. Still in the end it is the student's responsibility to succeed. One of my favorite quotes is: The only place where SUCCESS comes before WORK is the dictionary.
For us, largely negatively as we are a for-profit private, business and vocational school. Our accreditors make a point of speaking about the perceived differences in non-profit and profit before we demonstrate any of the elements that most of us agree are terrible practices. We feel the bias very early in visits and conversation with our state and programmatic orgs and departments. We understand the concerns but we'd like to have a chance to demonstrate our compliance. Media tends to put large ideas into sound bites. I applaud the process and benefit of oversight.
Jill,
I have changed the way I perceive media reporting on other industries as well as ours after seeing the "sound bites" and "snippets" that end up making the news without painting the full picture. Thanks for sharing!
Traci Lee
The media has created a panic about higher education scams and student loan debt by sharing small pieces of the story with the general public. This has led to the assumption that every school is out to swindle the students thus enforcing the "need" for more regulations.
I applaud your school's efforts in contributing to the community. Simple activities like the ones you have mentioned will improve the perception of what we all have to offer.
Stephanie ,
Great point about how television shows also influence the public perception of the occupations related to some career colleges. It's not just the "news media" but the many types of media you indicate that we are dealing with in today's day and age.
Traci Lee
I think the media has helped to bring to light the many healthy benefits of massage that the public can use to complete a path to wellness. The media has also brought confused the public about our profession with shows like 'The Client' and episodes of ‘Friends’. Students and the public may be confused just what a massage therapist job is comprised of when they see how we can be portrayed in the media. Media in education is reaching a point that older instructor may find irritating and difficult to compete with. We use media to our advance when we are able to interact with students at their level when it comes to media. I consider media Facebook, twitter, iPads, movies, and TV shows. My staff attempts to reach our students at every level possible to make their education relevant and interactive. It is not easy to keep up with and blend the technology with the hands-on practice of the art of massage!! Our students will live in a world that may require they have basic knowledge and understanding of the media influence on the public and know how to use this influence to the best of their ability!
Lisa,
That's great to hear! I think it's wonderful to have a school director involved and interacting so much directly with students. I have seen a few schools where the "higher ups" tend to be more "behind the scene" and I like to see Directors involved to see and hear the needs of students!
Traci Lee
As a School Director, I "meet and greet" all new students on the first day of class. One issue I address is the chain of command to follow should the student have a concern while attending school. Also, the instructors at our school are very good about reiterating the chain of command to our students. As a whole, our school lets our students know that we are all there to assist them if problems arise because their success is our ultimate goal. This approach has worked well for us.
Amanda,
Do you have any links to these articles that may assist others in understanding the issue underlying the targeting of meal plans?
Traci Lee
The media has significant effects on the education industry. Most recently, targeting meal plans offered by institutions and are generally included as part of the financial aid package along with other living expenses.
Ralph,
Great point about the quality of faculty and their important role in serving our students!
Traci Lee
The media has a huge effect on career colleges, and it's mostly negative. We do have career colleges that are not following federal/state and accrediting regulations and bylaws. So this gives our whole industry a negative view of what we have to offer our potential students.
I am school director of a career college and I'm extremely proud of our instructors and how professional and caring they are about there students. They really make a difference in our students life on a daily basis, in a very positive way.
It would be great if the media would do some positive stories about how we really put people in the workplace.
