One of the reasons for the cost disease issue in higher education is the resistance of many people to change. In a review of law schools, one Chronicle of Higher Education report states that despite changes in the legal profession, many law schools are very resistant to change. The inaugural dean of the University of California at Irvine School of Law, Erwin Chemerinsky, stated: “While schools are taking small steps to incorporate more experiential learning and encourage student to broaden their job searches, they remain remarkably ‘resistant to change’” (Mangan, 2011). In the same article, Richard A. Matasar, dean of the New York School of Law said: “We’re all old dogs trying to learn some new tricks, and all of us old dogs have got tenure and we’re not going any place” (Mangan, 2011). This is just an example of law school, however many other areas of education see the same issues when it comes to change.
Faculty members are not the only people resistant to change. White, Pennigar, and Esplin found that students are also resistant to change in the college classroom. In their study of students perceptions of learning outcomes, they found that when students are resistant to change, even if they might have learned something in the course, they will claim that they did not learn anything (White, Pinnegar, & Esplin, 2010, p. 138). They also found that students think that they are going to college to “learn something, and assume that the content, not pedagogy or learning is the essential component of university courses” (White et al, p. 138). I think this is important to cost disease because if students are not satisfied in their coursework because of their resistance to the new pedagogic techniques, then they will not persist and cost disease will continue to grow.
Resources
Mangan, K. (2011, February). As they ponder reforms, law deans find schools ‘remarkably resistant to change’. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/As-They-Ponder-Reforms-Law/126536/
White, J., Pinnegar, S., & Esplin, P. (2010). When learning and change collide: Examining student claims to have “learned nothing”. The Journal of General Education, 59, 124-140. doi: 10.1353/jge.2010.0007
