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This blog was started as my reflections on the 2011 Change MOOC. It is now an on going journal of my thoughts on Higher Education, specifically teaching Biology.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Perceived Problems in MOOC (Part 3 -weird employees)

NOTE:  yes, I'm blogging multiple times today.  The April 13th chronicle commentary by David Youngberg really inspired me to put down some thoughts regarding MOOCs.  So there will be a couple more posts today.


Daivd Youngberg's third criticism of MOOCs (and I would gather all online degrees) is that "employers avoid weird people."  While repetitive from my last blog, but...WHAT?  I'm not sure what business he is talking about, but I know some mighty strange people who work in all manner or technical fields.  Come down to DragonCon here in Atlanta, GA, and I'll introduce you to some of them (even those who have high ranking positions).  In this case, we may need to have a definition about weird if we are going to accept this proposition.

What bothers me about this argument is that Youngberg is either tell those of us who participate in MOOCs that we are weird, or that companies are so stupid that they can't spot a potential problem applicant.  How many time have you had students who thought they were going to change the world?  How many of you have had young assistants or graduate students who thought they were going to lead the next revolution in your discipline?  It is plain old neurophysiology and aging at work.  They all soon realize that they are not as revolutionary as they thought, and the work environment molds them.

Most HR professionals I know can spot the non-team player fast, and coming from a college or university does not guarantee that a person will be a team player.  I don't see where the link between "unconventional degree" and "radical thinker" comes from.  There is no reference to studies, no evidence, so I left to wonder where this idea started.

Of all the arguments, this is the one that seems the most absurd and out of touch.  Most of the people I know in HR and corporations are looking for people who are competent and don't need extensive training.  They have a probation period to feel out how they will fit in.  I don't see an unconventional degree as labelling them weird, and let's face it, even the best screening practices fail.

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