A+ for Effort, C- for Impact: A Commentary on the Quality of Education

• By: Tia Khalil – Co-Deputy Editor-in-Chief

I can say with confidence based on my educational experience that my reflections and constructive criticisms about the quality of education here will find their way to those who desire change.

First, let’s zoom in on the classroom.

I can clearly see the passion and knowledge some professors have in their respective fields, but sometimes there’s this difficulty in relaying their experiences to the students. That’s where the disconnect resides, in this limbo that just hangs around the class, like a dense cloud blocking out the sun. There’s light, but it’s dim.

As a result, students like myself, leave the class maybe having passed the course, but the experience doesn’t stick.

But personally, that’s not my biggest concern, I have bigger fish to fry.

Let’s put the quality of education under the heat for a second. Student demographics have a large role to play in how tuned in we become with the coursework. Sadly, lack of interest prevails over the best of intentions.

Students’ attitudes are contagious, and I’m sure discouraging for those putting their heart and soul into teaching. But why is merely getting by the standard? What about those who care for their education, and happen to choose to go here? Should they catch this contagion?

I address my fellow students here: Think of how many nights you spent working on group projects, carrying the class discussion, or even being the only person who responds in class. In the midst of your hard work, other students who show a disquieting lack of effort have the audacity to ask for an A. On what grounds?

I love a good challenge, especially if it’s academic, but somehow these curriculums create no room for that. It just feels like every time we’re getting somewhere with the content, the chord gets cut, leaving the surface only scratched.

It gets superficial to the point where we’re still reintroducing basic topics that were discussed in prerequisites or—even more shockingly—in high school.

In my head, education should feel like a constant push and pull, a force that’s greater than what you are. Every time you get closer to understanding, a new element pops up, leading you to the information you never thought you knew before; and when it all makes sense, everything just lights up.

I understand that fields are broad, and there’s a lot to learn but there’s no balance between theory and practice.

Some majors lend themselves to fully being submerged in the literature, and I applaud them for that. I minor in English and Comparative Literature, so I understand how it goes.

But I’m also a senior in Multimedia Journalism and Communications, a practice-based field, and that balance between practice and theory is skewed, especially since this industry is in a constant state of perpetual change. But we’re faced with a larger issue on both ends, what happens when we leave this place?

This gap keeps on getting bigger and bigger when wanting to apply for a master’s. I’m sorry to say it, but we have to face reality here, grade inflation does exist, and greatly might I add. It’s all because the bar is too low, and this isn’t a means to discourage anyone from excelling in their education here, but excelling here doesn’t mean you are guaranteed to excel abroad.

I have this overwhelming fear that maybe after all the grades and the exposure, it might not be enough. The information and skills I’ve acquired here, wouldn’t be enough to give me the push I need, to continue to excel elsewhere.

I feel under-prepared, and it’s disheartening.

The International Trade Administration and UNESCO figures on student mobility show that as of 2022, 47,243 Egyptian students traveled to study abroad. This number has increased more than five-fold in the last two decades, and it’s expected to reach 5.6 million by 2032. These numbers are only a testament to the decrease in quality here, and that students are finding their academic pursuits overseas.

Laying all this here may seem overwhelming, but that’s far from the intent. This is a plea to see some change, this institution deserves it. There’s a plethora of potential waiting to be called to action, it just needs someone to point at it and say go.