Nurturing Minds and Cultures: The Crucial Roles of Universities in Alberta - Paper Example

Roles of the Universities in Alberta

The most crucial role played by universities in Alberta should be the education of the people. The university is an educational institution whose primary goal is to pass knowledge from the tutors to the learners. Education given in the universities varies depending on the courses that the students are taking. However, the main aim of education despite the difference in studies undertaken should be to equip the students with the knowledge they require to impact their societies by applying the knowledge acquired, which results in the positive outcomes from the different activities that the people undertake in their careers. Therefore, universities should be hubs for education and the passing of knowledge, which will equip the students with the needed experience to advance society to the best levels of prosperity and success through the universities' roles.

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Secondly, the universities are supposed to be centers for the exchange of cultures. People from different nationalities, cultures, and backgrounds meet at the university to get an education. However, there are instances where socialization results in the exchange of cultures through the people's interactions in the universities. Through the interactions that people from different cultures have, the possibility of people being more tolerant of people from diverse backgrounds leads to a more peaceful society whereby the vices experienced such as racism are eliminated. Racism is mostly a result of people not having experienced people who are from different races. Therefore they are likely to resist the possibility of interacting with those that they deem to be different from them. It is also through the universities' interactions that the students will understand the different cultural practices of different people, hence demystifying the wrong beliefs that they may have of the people concerned. Therefore, universities are centers for academic learning as well as sociocultural learning.

Importance of the Roles

The education acquired in universities gives the learners new ideas, knowledge, and exposure to technology. Through university education, one specializes in the courses that will help them provide society with answers to the challenges that they may experience along the way, resulting in improved societies that satisfy the different needs of society. Additionally, education helps society members think differently since they will be equipped with problem-solving techniques that will help them address the different issues that they will meet along the way. Different ways of thinking give the graduates an easier time in society since they will have all the cognitive and educational requirements needed for the achievement of positive outcomes from the different activities that they will engage themselves in. Education is, therefore, a sure way for society to achieve socio-economic prosperity. It should be encouraged as a solution for the socioeconomic issues experienced.

Cultural tolerance also leads to more peaceful societies. Through the socialization of the people in universities, it is easier for collaborations and cooperation to occur after different cultures interact compared to when the society does not have areas where people from different cultures can interact. When there is cultural tolerance, there will be instances of diversity in society's different socioeconomic activities, which will result in society being more advanced compared to when there is less diversity. Diversity offers the different aspects involved with different ways of looking at things, which means that the society will have all the different aspects of concern covered, resulting in more wholesome solutions being arrived at and reduced conflicts in society resulting in more peace and collaboration.

How to Achieve these Goals

The first solution would be to finance the universities to carry out their role of educating society effectively. Through finances, the universities will address the different aspects of education that have otherwise been untouched due to the lack of finances. This is evident since some courses require extensive research and due to the lack of funds, the universities may be unable to carry out the needed research due to a lack of research facilities as well as the lack of finances to facilitate the travel required for the researchers to carry out the needed programs for conclusive results.

Secondly, the government should fund the efforts to diversify the university population. This can be achieved by funding the less privileged members of society to acquire a university education. When all the members of society are funded to receive education, they will interact in the universities, resulting in the achievement of diversification in the schools and the possibility of this being replicated in society. The government must also provide slots to be filled by people from diverse backgrounds to be considered significant. This will require the universities to reserve some positions for different races in the schools and the policies to include the universities' requirement to be tolerant and friendly to people from different backgrounds. The government should also ensure that they set strict laws against racism and intolerance to ensure that society does not experience these instances, which will deter the possibility of positive change being achieved in society.