There is a stubborn vocabulary of hackneyed terms and phrases that assaults our ears on a regular basis in Higher Education. I have witnessed a reckless abuse of such terms in HE in the UK for the past 18 years, chief amongst them being 'in the real world', which I would dearly like to see stripped and then banned from our corporate vocabularies. We see and hear these phrases in coursework, marketing materials, student recruitment, induction programmes, and then regularly during the programmes of study, particularly, where "employability" (another of the terms) is applied.
The Confusion created by "the real world" means that it must stop
There are at least five reasons why use of this objectionable and confusing term must stop. First, it implies that the world students currently inhabit is not "real", that it is a parallel fantasy world that is a precursor to the real thing. Second, 'real world' has the obvious realist ontological implication that it is a separate and distinct reality 'out there' to be experienced beyond one's own being. Third, that whatever is being taught to students now, has limited application or resonance with the brave world. Fourth, as Guillebeau (2021) argues, "the widespread belief in delayed gratification - where we willingly put off things in a vague hope that one day we can enjoy life - is a false belief that prevents people from finding their purpose at an early age"; and finally and most shockingly, it has an intimidating quality - that the real world is something to fear and treat with caution and suspicion, rather than embrace and exploit for one's development and benefit.
Parallels between "the real world" and whatever world Universities think students are in
There are at least a dozen parallels that would suggest the worlds are not too dissimilar after all because many, if not all of a students study/learning experiences have an equivalence in the professional workplace, implying a continuum at best or two manifestations of the same reality, at worst:
1. Lectures, sessions, workshops and course materials all have equivalences.
2. Starting times for lectures can be treated as as arrival times at work.
3. Starting times of workshops can be treated as meeting times.
4. Module Tutors can be treated as line managers, Module Leaders as mid-level managers, and Programme Directors/Department Heads as senior managers.
5. Coursework Assignments can be treated as workplace tasks.
6. Capstone Assignments (e.g., Dissertations, Consultancy, Portfolios, etc) can be treated as Projects.
7. Classmates can be treated as workmates; with the student contract governing personal and relationship situations.
8. Team mates (group assignments) can be treated as team mates or project mates.
9. Progression (one level to the next) can be treated as Promotion, with increased responsibilities (and dismissal, on the other hand, can be treated as termination).
10. Graduation can be treated as equivalent to being 'headhunted' by a bigger, better firm (or promoted to head office).
11. Student complaints can be treated as workplace grievances (with unfounded complaints appropriately penalised).
12. References can be treated as references and recommendations for students (who have met all contractual guidelines).
If the above can be taken seriously and implemented, students will realise that the only distinction between these worlds is that they are paying to succeed in one, and will be paid for succeeding in the other. Students will be less intimidated by the prospect of venturing out of the classroom into a 'brave new world' and the false dichotomy created by use of this objectionable term will slowly begin to disappear!
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