Why Education Suffers from the “Oh So Precious Syndrome”

Sometimes, I believe a little sarcasm and humor about our industry plays an important role in advancing our thinking, so here it goes.

Environmental disruptions, such as the coronavirus pandemic, global terrorist attacks, and economic resets, play a pivotal role in accelerating the existing challenges and issues ailing private schools and colleges. Add to this the impact of the rapid infusion of artificial intelligence into the consumer space. Experts have been predicting a reset of education for years and that the occurrence of one or two catastrophic events could reshape the entire education landscape.

Well, it seems to me that education is at an inflection point and is in the moment of re-creation. Full stop.

And, yet we still see some schools and colleges that fail to recognize that simple reality. They believe that if they keep doing the same thing that people will value them more. They fall prey to what I call the “Oh So Precious Syndrome”.

The “Oh So Precious Syndrome” is a belief that they have to protect their faculty, staff and parents from the very innovations in education that will actually heal and transform education.

They are protective of their structures, not their mission, in some odd way, as if it is the thing that will sustain them. They are focused on preserving the organization, not the needs of their students or clients. They also seem to have this odd belief that their old style of education will come back in vogue and that people will value it more and pay even more in the future. It is sort of like thinking that the third class postage stamp and snail mail will become a thing again. It’s not going to happen.

Oh, so precious. So, the next time you see a dog in a stroller, ask yourself what crazy are they trying to protect the dog from?