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i like to wonder about the world today
and why we work and study and play in
the ways we do for example have you ever
wondered why is it that universities are
typically four years
why is it that we graduate and then we
go on to this other aspect of our life
that is about work
why is it
that parents can't go
to school with their kids and learn in a
classroom with their kids
why is it that in an era where we know
lifelong learning is important we still
create this huge partition in our lives
between our schooling years and our work
years so with these wonderings i decided
to see if i could pack the system
in the in a sense
and get thousands of people to create a
new type of university together with me
and i did this not because it was a
fancy business project or anything but
because i wanted this for my children
so
two years ago i released a video that
spoke about a new vision for what
education could look like this video led
to an idea called mind valley university
city campus and before you watch this
video let me tell you investors told me
i quote this is the stupidest idea i've
ever heard but still this idea took off
first in barcelona where 300 people came
together to build a campus from scratch
and then a year later it multiplied
threefold when a thousand one hundred
people came to thailand estonia again to
create a new type of university from
scratch a one month university for
people of all ages we're not stopping
there the next event is happening in
pula croatia i'd like you if you're
interested to watch this original video
to see if you're one of the crazy ones
that would like to take part in this
radical new idea of hacking the way we
live alan watts the great zen
philosopher once said
no literate inquisitive and imaginative
person needs to go to college unless in
need of a union card or degree as a
certified physician lawyer or teacher or
unless he requires access to certain
heavy and expensive equipment for
scientific research yet when watts wrote
that in 1972 he couldn't even have
imagined what would be happening in the
world today with new technologies rapid
change and shifts in how companies would
quote that would all combine to further
make college kind of useless but the
thing is college has numerous good
points we grow up we mature we make deep
meaningful connections we meet the
friends and find the interest that
ultimately define us so how can we
completely re-engineer college to keep
all of the good and disrupt all of the
bad obsolete points well we think we
have an idea a new model that radically
rethinks college that questions all the
rules about how we've been conditioned
to believe education should look like
and takes advantage of emerging
technologies new social movements new
types of knowledge accessibility and new
research on what truly creates happy
successful fulfilled lives ready to
catch a glimpse okay before i reveal
this new model first you gotta know what
makes modern college so absurd in the
first place
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let's start with the length of time so
you take a teenager and you plant him in
a bubble for four years same campus
surrounded by other 19 year olds problem
is in today's world things are changing
at an exponential pace peter diamandis
said that between 2016 and 22 there will
be as many new changes in the world due
to exponential technology growth as
between all of nineteen hundred to two
thousand
wow so we have kids coming out of
college with knowledge that has become
totally obsolete in their four years on
campus so what if we got rid of this
four-year model what if instead kids
went to college for one month of the
year and then spent 11 months in the
field you know doing real work like
having a job or starting a business and
then they come back for one month every
year what if this did not stop when
you're 22 what if it continued what if
this four years was stretched out so you
come back one month every year for 48
years sounds crazy hold on we're just
getting started second what if we got
rid of expensive campuses think about
all of that wasted tuition fees i was
stuck on the same campus in ann arbor
michigan for four years but the world is
so much bigger what if we did away with
fixed campuses and instead move this
college to a different city every year
what if we picked international amazing
cities like berlin singapore barcelona
places filled with culture places you
dream of visiting next
what if we could drop the price by 10
full no campus means huge cost savings
but now let's look at another art design
about college they say you are the sum
of the five people closest to you but at
college you're hanging out with other 19
year olds what did you learn from the
average 19 year old if you're 19. when i
went to college i remember my freshman
year the coolest guys were the ones that
could sneak us into frat parties or buy
a slicker not exactly brilliant so what
if we disrupted this what if age did not
matter your friends could be 19 or 30 or
50. we learn from the wisdom of our
elders they learn from you age becomes
irrelevant but then there's the
curriculum itself neil gaiman the
legendary writer set up school i've been
making a list of the things they don't
teach you at school they don't teach you
how to love somebody they don't teach
you how to be famous they don't teach
you how to be rich or how to be poor
they don't teach you how to walk away
from someone you don't love any longer
they don't teach you how to know what's
going on in someone else's mind they
don't teach you what to say to someone
who's dying they don't teach you
anything worth knowing
and you know what i'm talking about yes
you get a four-year degree but does it
need four years more and more of the job
related aspects of college are free
online harvard berkeley mit their
courses are now online just go to
edx.org you can learn anything from app
development to physics for free study
the classes you need for your chosen
career but why do we waste four years on
a fixed campus hanging out with 19 year
olds trying to get enough credits to
fill some arbitrary degree that we might
never ever use the world is changing so
fast many of the top jobs today were not
available as college degrees a mere five
years ago so what do you teach you teach
what neil gaiman preached real world
skills how to lead how to create a
vision for your life how to be a better
parent spouse lover how to have healthy
self-esteem and emotional intelligence
goal setting crafting a vision for your
life entrepreneurship personal growth
skills like how to keep fit and healthy
practice meditation and mindfulness
these are the skills that truly lead to
happy successful lives but you do not
learn these in college which brings us
to the teachers are the best teachers in
the world today in the world's
universities not always and here's why
teachers today have their hands tied
more than ever to survive as a teacher
in a classical system you are often
rewarded for the research much much more
than your actual teachings so as a
student you don't always get the best
learning experience books offered are
quite dry in classes not too engaging
leading you to disconnect and not truly
retain the knowledge you've been given
those who have a true passion for
teaching find themselves gravitating out
of the traditional system the very best
teachers are the ones writing
best-selling books building their
businesses speaking at large seminars
speaking on the ted stage they have
transcended the need to be stuck on a
singular campus colleges may have great
researchers and scientists but not
necessarily the best teachers so what if
you could learn from these people what
if your teacher was someone whose work
was so profound he had sold 20 million
books or broken a guinness record or was
the new york times best-selling author
the best india feels
so let's recap
normal four years it's now one month a
year no fixed campus you move to a
different spectacular city every year no
fixed age your peers come from all
around the world and of all ages no
outdated curriculums you learn the
skills that actually matter the
happiness and success and making an
impact on the planet and your teachers
are the best in the world but wait
despite all of this college does have
some good bits you meet some of your
best friends in the world you form your
character find your community and create
incredible memories
so what if
we can retain and amplify these good
parts and disrupt and reinvent all the
obsolete parts
what would education look like then you
can choose to live an ordinary life same
city same job same style of parenting
and relationships and daily nine to five
as everyone else or you can choose to
question everything
welcome to a new style of education
and a new style of living
so if you found these ideas interesting
comment and let us know your thoughts
and i'll see you in pula croatia this
year
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