Omar Ha-Redeye in The Star on Education Reform

Omar Ha-Redeye published a letter in The Star on education reform in Ontario,

Re: 3-year degrees will end in tears, Column, July 2

The proposed changes to Ontario universities are simply reflecting the changing demand of the consumers, the students.

Three-year undergraduate degrees are a good idea because we no longer run on an agricultural cycle that require summers off for the harvest season. Universities are dormant and largely vacant during these periods, creating huge waste and inefficiencies.

Nor is online education necessarily substandard. The younger generation learns almost everything online already, and this is the medium through which they best absorb information. Several top-tier universities around the world are already engaging in online delivery formats, and are not necessarily seeing any compromise in quality.

But the strongest reason to consider education reform is that an undergraduate degree today is the equivalent of a high-school diploma to the previous generation. This means students almost have to continue on to do a professional or graduate degree to be competitive in today’s market.

That’s a lot of tuition, and a lot of years in school. Let the kids get on with their lives already.

Omar Ha-Redeye, Toronto