Beyond the Easy Way

Earlier this year, Robert Serrano, a Brown University Professor of Economics, gave a take-home, closed-book midterm exam in an advanced course. Out of eighty-six undergraduates taking the test, nearly half scored a perfect 100. Dozens of students made a similar argument in their response, the same overly complex one that ChatGPT made when prompted with the exam question, even though a much simpler proof would have sufficed.

The professor, a game theorist, confronted the class with the results and then told them that their midterm grade would stand if the grade distribution on the final exam, which would be in-person, was roughly the same. Otherwise, only the final grade would count.

Twenty-seven students then dropped the course, including twenty-two of those who had a perfect score on the midterm. Of the remaining students, only forty passed the final.

It is said that only the strong survive, but history teaches a different lesson. Innovation is a primary driver of societal success. Finding the most efficient way to accomplish one’s goals has been a human pursuit for generations. Many of these Ivy League students seemingly agree.

They are, however, missing out on what a higher education is designed to do.

College is the place to hone your intellectual approaches and tools as you receive feedback from experts in their respective fields of study. By repeatedly pushing yourself to do something just beyond your current abilities, you reach greater levels of achievement. This is why athletic coaches exist—and why the coaching philosophy extends to other areas, including the performing arts, management, and education. Practice and talent will only take you so far. Striving for peak performance is the key to becoming all you can be.

These moments of intense development can become something far greater when the arc of one’s time in higher education is taken as a whole. In The Hero with a Thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell, an American Professor of Literature who specialized in comparative mythology, describes the hero’s adventure, labeling it the common “monomyth” that is found in many of humanity’s most powerful narratives. According to Campbell, the story begins in an ordinary setting, but then there is a call to cross into a new and unfamiliar world, usually with guidance from a mentor. After many trials and tests, sometimes with the assistance of new allies, there is the greatest challenge. The hero, once triumphant, returns to the ordinary world and uses their newfound wisdom and skills to improve it. George Lucas cites this work of academic speculation as a key influence in his development of the plot of Star Wars, and there are glimpses of this framework other classic works, such as the Odessey, as well.

A college education can be a hero’s journey. It is an exceptional time when you can focus your efforts on personal and professional growth so that you can apply the knowledge and skills you obtain for the betterment of your future and that of those you love. Furthermore, it is an opportunity to grow in moral virtue. Aristotle’s Theory of Habituation, from his Nicomachean Ethics, describes how morality is acquired through the repeated application of right choices, resulting in habits that define an individual of character.

Professor Serrano, blind since age 17, castigated those students who had used AI, asking “do think you need a Brown degree for that?” Being a hero is not about the easy way.

As you choose your path, may you choose well.

Kevin Beardmore, Ed.D., is President of Southeast New Mexico College. He may be reached at kbeardmore@senmc.edu or 575.234.9211