Re-imagining college - what is four years good for? Ben Sasse at TEDxOmaha

When announced as president of the 130-year-old Midland University in 2009, Ben Sasse was 37, making him one of the youngest chief executives in American higher education. At the time, Midland was on the verge of closing. Today, Ben's hometown college has been Nebraska's fastest-growing school four years in a row.
Sasse attended Harvard and Oxford, earning a Ph.D. at Yale, where his dissertation won both the Field Prize and the George Washington Egleston Award.
He began his business career with the Boston Consulting Group, and subsequently joined McKinsey and Company, advising leaders in times of crisis. He has helped turn around companies in industries ranging from airlines to manufacturers, and has challenged failed strategies in organizations from the FBI to the government of Iraq.
Sasse served in multiple posts for President George W. Bush. Most recently, he was Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the federal government's largest agency.
Ben Sasse's talk focuses on the gap in what we know about education and how we prepare students.
In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)

[@anasali-jf7dz]

the fact he gave this speech with out mentioning OBama name is very impresive . in 2013!

[@colinsoder]

Not many speakers can memorize their 20 minute speech. Very impressive. And great things to think about regarding higher education.

[@danielle3918]

I have been listening to Sentor Sass's book, the Vanishing American Adult, and I think he is brilliant.

[@harveylin3548]

I am center left and I like this man, been reading his book as well. His positions were no different than the "old liberals" of the past years.

[@ericnelson9100]

@@harveylin3548 You're center left, but u voted for Trump 2x, no?

[@harveylin3548]

@@ericnelson9100 I didn't vote for Trump at all, but I didn't vote for Biden or the left either. I live in a swing state and only vote right on local level, national level not sure. The repubs are surely not truly conservative at this point, my senator is a RINO from a mile away yet he is in the Democratic party.

[@DennisAndMaryLou]

Unfortunately, our primary and secondary education is stuck in the 19th century, teaching stale ideas and skills to the masses, as if we were all the same. As consumers we are able to follow our own individual interests. We can buy what we want, learn what we need. But schools don't treat us as consumers, rather as cattle eating from the same trough. Until educators learn to think like marketers they will never respect the needs of the individual, allowing each child to pursue their interests at their own pace. Teaching skills before they are required to solve a problem, is like trying to fill a glass with a hole in the bottom. It is difficult to retain knowledge that has no use or purpose. How many times have we heard that complaint. Educators know that human beings learn best when knowledge and skills are required to solve a problem, not to learn without context. The crisis in higher education begins in kindergarten. No wonder the 18 year old isn't prepared for grade 13, he and she have been stuffed with useless information for 12 years, then expected to learn more of the same. In my business I hired many young college graduates. Were they prepared for the work they were hired to perform? No. They were seldom prepared, but we hired them based on their interests and fit for the position. Once they were given problems to solve, and the freedom to develop the skills they needed to solve those problems, they excelled. The leaders in our educational institutions can't complain about young people being unprepared for so-called "higher" education, and then expect to feed them more of the same in the style of learning they rejected for the previous 12 years. When kids are encouraged to pursue their interests, they will learn what they need to become productive. They will educate themselves. Educators need a new way to evaluate learning. Standardized testing and multiple choice questions isn't the answer. It makes for easy statistics but what does it accomplish for the student? You asked, "Who is advocating for the 17 year old?" In the real world, the answer is simple, ask the consumer what they need and they will advocate for themselves. As long as educators keep the cattle in pens and feed them the same mash they will act like cattle. They will be unrewarded for their unique qualities and learning styles. Let students advocate for themselves and see what happens. Disintermediation is forcing us to think independently. We don't need more factory workers standing in lines and shrink wrapping packages. We need more entrepreneurial thinking from people who think differently and offer new solutions to new problems. When we stop treating kids like cattle they will start acting like the curious beings we want them to be. The reason traditional education is on the firing line is simple. It values its own needs above the needs of its customers.

[@tamara8088]

Ben Sasse is impressive

[@kroaroorocro]

That was so good. I am inspired as a parent & as a plain old person.

[@WheresPoochie]

I don't entirely side with his political views but his concerns about post-secondary learning (or the lack thereof) are almost entirely in line with my own. Having spent far too many years of my life miserably coasting through equally dispensable classes and material while having money invested into superfluous school-resources, only to have them offer very little return (i.e. poorly annotated and edited text-books, hidden or overlooked non-necessities that are bundled with my fee payments, etc.), I've found that education - IMO - needs to evolve. This could include an effort in working towards a scheme in which a student's course-load is more personalized and concentrated; in which lenience and accommodation are more restrained(*); and in which the required credits for a degree are derived less from supplementary electives and more from internships and other avenues more closely related to one's projected or likely career-path. While these issues are just the tip of the iceberg, it's refreshing to hear a college-president address such matters with pointedness and clarity. If any good comes from the election of a Republican administration between the years 2017 and 2028, it might be in this guy earning the position of Secretary of Education. (*) = I say that comment as a special-needs student who, while being grateful for my school's given help, always feels bad whenever an exam's bell-curve undermines the hard-work of my class' top-tier while overpraising the input of my own middle-to-lower tier.

[@GaDawg0513]

College sure has changed since my time ('94-'98). I remember working 3 jobs & being a full time student. Reading 400 pages a night (for one class) and most of my exams were in class multiple essays that sometimes took 4-5 hours and that was in addition to your research papers.

[@Halokon]

Uphill both ways I bet too! It’s not a competition, and why would you want that for other people, even if it was true?

[@andypotanin]

He would give a president campaign a good run. With hair like that it's a sin not to try.

[@anasali-jf7dz]

He wont win. He is too left for the right and too right for the left.

[@niccolomachiavell]

10:05 I got a 30 on my ACT. Am I ready for college? I was at the top of my highschool class but college is so difficult for me. I can't imagine what it's like for students who didn't take AP courses and college level courses in high school.

[@JuniorRodigan]

all those unemployed and unprepared ones have a job now ... September 2018

[@jonathonsmith6297]

So sad that KZbin purposefully throttles this message.

[@OverLordthe1st]

You make college free or cheaper you make college like high school. High school in America is a joke, I didn't do a single peace of homework my senior year.

[@viper071]

Pretty sure you wanted the word “piece” though assignment would be even better.

[@ericnelson9100]

What??????

[@TheWhistleReport]

If you think you can have a "post industrial society" without manufacturing then you're fooling yourself! Manufacturing is a principle component of national economy! Combine information age skills with hard design skills and inspire creativity!

[@boner638]

The manufacturing and construction will be done by a combination of computer programs and robots. Unless you think were going to die in a nuclear holocaust in the next 5 or 10 years, that is where things are headed.

[@nickmonts]

Brandon Franklin manufacturing is not going to employ most people again. it is time to move on

[@johnadams715]

Nicholas Monts - Not without a fight!

[@MiranUT]

Why would you fight a losing battle? Move on.

[@nickmonts]

Our emphasis on manufacturing has led to a $27.2 Billion industry on self storage. Just having too much crap. Lets' find a better way

[@jamesroberts5905]

Wow! What an intellectual.

[@chadelles2586]

***** I will have to look at his issues and what he supports. Anyone who Paul Ryan endorses, we should be wary about. So we need to see where his values are and what he stands for. What will he vote on? Do you support same-sex marriage or something equivalent? Is he for or against the pipeline? What are his economic values? ect, Don't vote for someone just because of a Ted Talk, that is dumb.

[@jamesroberts5905]

Chad Sheeks sassefornebraska.com

[@chadelles2586]

If that is what he supports count me out. Just another plastic bought and paid for Neocon. No thanks we tried that...it fails miserably. Also being a religious nut job is not what this state needs.

[@virginiabrown633]

4 yrs college puts each one deeply in debt!!!!!

[@Brix212]

only in the US

[@rashaud99]

Yes, if you choose the wrong school. Many colleges in America are very affordable. Also, taking the Community College route first cuts TENS of THOUSANDS of dollars out of the process.

[@ericnelson9100]

@@rashaud99 It still doesn't absolve one of debt. Pray tell, what schools are "affordable?" And Liberty and Oral Roberts don't count!

[@rashaud99]

@ericnelson9100 Community college is a very cost-effective option. Many community colleges in America are less than $10,000 a year to attend. Many of them are cheaper than that. You have to change your consumer behaviors and do the research. Just Google affordable public universities. The list is long. Going to community college and then transferring to a 4 year college is highly cost effective. Some high school programs allow students to earn their high school diplomas and 2-year associate degrees simultaneously. This makes their bachelors degree that much cheaper. There's all kinds of options. You just have to look.

[@pogisosehume4228]

Which source is he quoting as reference

[@zenjeongrebelle1808]

Troll, why do you want his works silenced or question his sources? What’s your reasoning I wonder?

[@sarcofaygo6218]

This guy is A republican plant now

[@zenjeongrebelle1808]

Lol democrats have gone insane, I see this is 4 years ago so I’m sure your views have changed