Above, “Is This The End Of College As We Know It?” is a Facebook sharing by Ivanka Trump, adult & digitally aware daughter of US President Donald Trump. The image comes from the article of that title[1] by Douglas Belkin in The Wall Street Journal published 12 November 2020. I cannot access the WSJ article, but suffice it for me to say that the American reality is the same Philippine reality – we are looking at being digital already.
Whatever the state of college education – which to this teacher is malabo, blurred, unclear – that WSJ story simply inspires me to think of PH youth going into agriculture but not having to earn a college degree, those young ones between 15 and 24 years of age, by UN definition. And this is what I’m thinking as the educational setup:
Entrepreneurship in Agriculture School for the Youth. EASY!
The school EASY will be hosted by willing and able state colleges & universities, SCUs, with funding from the Department of Agriculture. Calling the attention of Secretary of Agriculture William Dar!
The schooling/non-schooling is to follow the Danish Folk High School formula, where the Guru assigned to the student helps him/her determine the Subject Matters – and who are the mentors that could help the student understand more toward becoming an entrepreneur in agriculture.
I’m thinking of a 2-year entrepreneurial learning-work program for the youth:
Year 1 is Field Practice.
First, Digital Search:
Digital searches for agriculture options, then actually applied in the field: Crops, Combinations, Cultivations, Consequences. The Crops, Combinations & Cultivations are to be the products of digital research, defended in class by the proponent youth. Much like a thesis, the results of the defense will be applied in the field. The Consequences are to be reported and defended again in class.
Next, Actual Farming:
The youth now undertakes actual farming. One will keep records of crop, combinations, inputs, technologies, and machines – costs & returns. The Guru will try to help one succeed in earning much from so much labor.
Year 2 is Entrepreneurship Practice.
The Guru discusses what the youth has achieved in Year 1 in terms of what I call The Four Sustainability Successes:
1. Technical Success – Which of the technologies, techniques and systems that he used in Year 1 actually worked as expected?
2. Economic Success – How much did the youth entrepreneur earn as net in each of the farm produce? Which inputs put the earnings down and which inputs put the earnings up?
3. Environmental Success – Did the Field Practice in fact conserve natural resources?
4. Social Success – Is the way of farming as practiced in the field acceptable to the village where the farm is located?
That is to say, EASY entrepreneurship is a Four Successes Story!
All in all: An entrepreneur is not born – s/he is made. And it is those 4 Successes that make one!@
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