It has been observed that in many countries not enough students are choosing to study science subjects at university. What do you think are the causes of the problem? What are the effects on society?
ESSAY #107 FROM OUR BOOK
It has been seen that very few students select science streams for their tertiary education. This essay intends to delve into the reasons for this trend, and also discuss the adverse effects of this development on our societies.
There are many reasons for the young people’s lack of interest in science subjects. The first reason is that in most schools the sciences curriculum is outdated and irrelevant, with little emphasis on practical education. As a result, children find science boring and do not pursue it further on leaving school. Secondly, learning science requires hard work and considerable time and many youth are not interested in devoting so much of their time and effort into it. Moreover, despite putting in more hours and effort, science graduates earn substantially less than graduates in other fields like IT, business management, economics etcetera.
In addition, it is not fashionable to pick up science as students who choose to study science are perceived as boring and nerdy. Students fear that if they choose science, they will have no social life in college and they would be social pariahs. Finally, science as a subject is dependent upon basics and foundational knowledge. However, due to the lack of well qualified primary and high school teachers, students fail to develop these rudimentary concepts and as such are not confident to pursue science as a career.
The shortage of scientists can be very detrimental for societies. To begin with, it impacts the society as employers are unable to find people with the skill they need to innovate and grow. As a result, many companies are also forced to hire people from other countries, and this negatively impacts the economy of the country. Last but not least, societies are dominated by ideas and products from science and technology, but if there is a shortage of science graduates, it may impact the development and progress of society.
To sum up, there are many reasons for students not taking up science subjects at university and this phenomenon is definitely detrimental for society.
