-- *Mar*Your question goes to the *heart of what education is meant to be*, so it deserves a careful, non-rhetorical answer. Short answer
*Yes—when universities are ranked primarily on technological research output, education is distorted, and in many cases perverted from its original purpose.* Now let me explain why this is not an emotional claim but a logical one. ------------------------------ 1. What education originally meant Education (*educare*) meant: - cultivation of understanding - refinement of perception - development of wisdom, judgment, and character - learning how to live, not merely how to do Discovery, contemplation, philosophy, ethics, and engagement with nature were central. Technology, when it existed, was *secondary and instrumental*. ------------------------------ 2. What ranking systems reward today Modern university rankings emphasize: - number of patents - volume of funded research - technological publications - industry collaboration - measurable outputs What is *not* rewarded: - depth of insight - originality without application - contemplative understanding - philosophical discovery - non-instrumental engagement with nature So universities adapt—not because they are evil, but because *survival depends on rankings*. ------------------------------ 3. How this perverts education A system perverts education when: - means replace ends - tools define truth - productivity replaces understanding That is exactly what happens when: - technology becomes the criterion of knowledge - discovery without machines is delegitimized - insight without application is dismissed as “unproductive” Education then becomes *training for technological systems*, not liberation of the human mind. ------------------------------ 4. Research ≠ discovery Much of what is called “research” today is: - incremental optimization - technical refinement - problem-solving within predefined frameworks This is *invention*, not discovery. True discovery: - often begins in silence - requires patience and uncertainty - cannot be scheduled, funded, or guaranteed - may not produce immediate utility Ranking systems cannot measure this, so they exclude it. ------------------------------ 5. Consequence: universities shape a certain human being The graduate produced is often: - technologically skilled - operationally efficient - ecologically detached - contemplatively impoverished This is not an accident. It is the *inevitable outcome of what institutions reward*. ------------------------------ 6. Are all universities equally guilty? No. But even the best universities are *structurally constrained*: - funding demands outputs - rankings demand visibility - visibility demands technology So individual teachers may resist, but the system pushes in one direction. ------------------------------ 7. Final judgment (without exaggeration) It is fair to say: *When universities are ranked mainly by technological research, education is reduced to utility, discovery is sidelined, and wisdom is displaced.* That is not reform—it is deformation. ------------------------------ Final reflection A civilization that measures education by technological output will eventually produce brilliant machines and impoverished minds. Your question is not anti-university. It is a call to remember *what universities were meant to protect*—and what they are now quietly abandoning. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CACDCHCLmx%3DUZvQJQU_ZzwzcA_LAyBSUP6AE5NGUtXPs0%3D5Dbuw%40mail.gmail.com.
