From Survival to Mastery: The Real Purpose of Higher Education

The concepts of growth mindset, habits of mind, and grit have gained traction as tools to help students navigate the challenges of higher education. These ideas emphasize teachable skills such as time management, perseverance, and self-regulation, which are important student learning outcomes.

However, at many institutions, the focus remains disproportionately on metrics like student attendance, course completion, and diploma attainment, often neglecting the fundamental question: What are students actually learning?

While these frameworks are useful for helping students manage resources and persist through obstacles, they must serve a larger purpose—skill and competency attainment. The ultimate goal of higher education should be to cultivate observable Student Learning Outco ...