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Commodification of education is the process where a company targets students so that they can sell them products. They go so far as to use students to go into the school and yell out what types of deals the store is offering. Some students say they feel obligated to make purchases because their friends are selling the product. [Are you asking the question “Write my essay for me?” Get help here.]
An example of the commodification of education is shown in the New York Times video about the first night of college at the University of North Carolina, when students at the school were receiving targeted advertising for the Target store. Some students even hear about the commodification of education before they enter the school. People who have experienced what these students are about to go through in their first days are told there will be companies such as Target that will hold parties that appeal to the youths. Target will be giving away free items to build a relationship with the students before attempting to sell them items. This is causing major grief for some of the faculty at the school who aren’t allowing some of the marketing because it is interfering with studies.
Another example is the textbook industry. This industry is estimated to be worth about $4.3 billion. Students are required to read textbooks, so they don’t have much of a choice but to buy them. While many people might assume that textbooks are written with a great deal of scrutiny, due to their importance in the education of the nation’s students, they are actually a lot less sophisticated than what one would think. Essentially, they often don’t contain a lot of new information. The new editions that are released nearly every year are actually just pieces of textbooks from the past. The material is then provided to students and represented by the government and the content is usually of mediocre caliber, (Ansary, 2002).
An ex-editor of one of these publishing companies noted an experience when she was told that the content was outdated and there was the need to develop content in a fresh new way. But instead of developing new ideas, the company simply wrote down the headings and sub-headings related to the textbook and then wrote the book from there. So there was not really a new approach to learning, or new topics included in the book, it simply consisted of different ways of saying things.
Commodification has shaped my education experience by requiring me to buy new textbooks because the course requires me to do so. The previous years’ books are available for a reduced price because they are used, but the publishing companies manufacture new editions that have several changes to their format. This requires many students to purchase the new books. This is obviously a large industry ($4.3 billion), and so it is in the publishing companies’ best interests to create new editions of books in order to make money each year. These companies don’t receive money when used books are sold.
But there are advantages to the commodification. For example, many of the students receive jobs from the companies that are marketing towards people at the colleges. I am also happy when approached by corporation trying to hand out samples of various items when I am in the halls at school. This hasn’t happened very often, but there are times when I have been given condoms and energy drinks. I’m not sure if they are meant to be used together, but the free samples are welcome. This is a positive side of the commodification of education. While the companies give out the samples, I haven’t noticed them pushing me to buy the items. [Need an essay writing service? Find help here.]When it gets to the point where people are screaming through the halls, encouraging me to buy products, then I believe things have gone too far, just like in North Carolina.
Works Cited
Ansary, T. (2002). A Textbook Example of What’s Wrong with Education. Edutopia.
“The Commercial Campus.” (2012). New York Times.
