Introduction
Capitalist economies, such as the United States, emphasize democracy and the freedom to be able to own property, produce and sell goods, and offer services to consumers with minimal restrictions. The capitalist culture and mindset focus the economy on results and competitiveness, which may be good for the growth of the economy. Today, capitalism has impacted every sector of the economy, including the higher education sector. Institutions of higher education are no longer sacred places where people uphold the inherent virtue of education. Institutions today are more focused on maintaining their competitiveness by offering more platforms of learning, offering more courses and enrolling more students. External factors like good grades and qualifications motivate students, and they are also necessary for landing good jobs. Critical thinking has diminished in higher education as a result of the increasing focus on results, competitiveness, and discourses such as job readiness rather than an emphasis on the inherent virtue of education.
Capitalism Overview
Capitalism refers to the economic system in which people or private businesses are free to own goods or properties ( Galbraith, 2017) . In such an economy, there is no central planning when it comes to the production and consumption of goods. Firms rather base the production of goods and providing services to their clients. The general market referred to as the market economy, makes it possible for people to freely produce, create value for their products, and sell to consumers. Individuals can invest in businesses they are interested in unrestrained. The supply and demand of products and services in the market leads to either a rise or a decrease in the value of those products or services. Individuals or businesses are free to determine the value of the products or services without any restraints. Capitalistic economies are often democratic economies where individuals fully possess democratic rights, including the rights of ownership of property. The United States, among many developed countries, is a good example of a capitalist economy ( Galbraith, 2017) .
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Capitalism emphasizes development as people are always looking for ways to improve their products and services to meet the changing demands of the market and consumers. It also emphasizes individual development, economically and socially. Wealthy people are powerful economically and occupy the higher classes in society. In a capitalist economy, everyone thrives to become rich or at least economically stable to survive or maintain a comfortable lifestyle. In the United States, at the moment, twenty percent of children are living in poverty, while the owners of almost half of the country’s wealth are one percent of the whole population. According to Giroux (2012) , it shows what a capitalistic economy can do to society as everyone cares about themselves. No one seems to care or act in the interest of other people. Greed is a good thing for a capitalist. At the same time, the growth and expansion of businesses also create more job opportunities for many more people.
The capitalistic economy favors those who have what it takes to survive or those who have the capabilities to compete favorably. There is no limit to how much property a person may accumulate. Competition is ever-existing, and nothing comes easy without any competition. The supply and demand for goods or services remain as the major determinant for the production and value of those goods and services. The capitalistic mindset is present in every sector of the economy, including higher learning. As opposed to the past, where people could easily get jobs with lower qualifications, today, even with a master’s degree, one may remain stranded and frustrated looking for job opportunities. Therefore, higher education is a place of gaining more knowledge and not an avenue for acquiring job qualifications ( Giroux, 2012) . The more educational qualifications an individual has, the higher the chances they have in getting jobs. The institutions for higher education as well, have declined in emphasizing critical thinking and providing students with proper education. They instead focus on getting as much revenue as possible by enrolling as many students as possible, providing as many courses as possible, and offering education through various avenues and in the quickest ways possible. Students no longer have the excitement of joining the institutions of higher education for learning and expanding their knowledge but to get their certificates so they may stand a chance at getting jobs afterward.
Modern Higher Education
The current system of higher learning is completely different from the previous ones. In the past, most institutions of higher learning were publicly or government-owned. Universities were sacred, and getting into one was determined by the educational qualifications of students. Students had a focus on getting to learn more on their paths to professionalism. They looked to engage and expand their critical thinking abilities and become more knowledgeable and innovative. Bass (2012) asserts that with no much competition in the job sector, students were comfortable enough to focus on their education and gain as much knowledge and expertise in their fields as possible. The institution at the time focused on bringing out highly qualified graduates whose expertise would ultimately change the world.
Today, higher education is still as important, but people emphasize other factors other than the inherent virtue of education. Almost anyone can acquire certificates from institutions of higher learning ( Bass, 2012) . People blame capitalism for the changes in the system of higher education. Numerous private institutions of higher education have emerged in recent times, making it possible for almost everyone to get their certificates in various fields of education ( Shumar, 2013) . One single genuine certificate may not be enough for an individual to get a proper job or any good job for that matter. Other people rush to get a degree and diploma certificates to get job positions or to be able to hold on to their current job positions due to the increasing job-qualification demands. There are many institutions of higher learning, offering numerous courses on flexible terms. One can work and attend classes at the same time. Even better, one may not have to be physically present in a class to attend lessons. The purpose of the form of learning is not purely capitalistic as learners only pursue careers to attain their certificates at the end.
Students replace critical thinking by using ‘Google’ as information technology makes operations easier. The ability of students to think deeply is deteriorating through the availability of almost every kind of information on the internet ( Liu, 2014) . There is no reason to involve critical thinking as everything is already available on the internet. Even better, there are different sources and materials on the internet. Research is carried out through the use of the internet, even when the instructor strictly warns against it. The same applies to other assignments and writings, such as essay writing. There is simply no need to put long hours in researching and reading books when learners can find simplified notes on the internet ( Hunsinger, 2019) . Some students go as far as to use smartphones in exam rooms to look for answers.
Online courses and international students compromise another feature of modern higher education. Most universities and colleges today offer online courses to part-time students or overseas students. While this is convenient for such a group of students, the quality of education offered is highly questionable. First, there is no guarantee that professors or other educators provide quality lessons. The communication between the instructor and student also lacks in an online platform. The online platform does not allow for proper monitoring of students. Foreign or overseas students are the most beneficiaries of online courses. Some of these students are not even able to speak the local languages in countries they are taking the courses but still learn effectively. There is no way to tell whether they genuinely work on their assignments by themselves or if they had their assignments done for them by other people. Such students want to get their certificates without having to work so hard for them, with the hopes of getting jobs in foreign companies or a foreign country when they finally land there. While students no longer which to engage in critical thinking in their education, institutions exacerbate the situation by providing alternative educational avenues and shortcuts for acquiring certificates of higher education.
The main priority for universities and colleges today is to maximize enrollment of students ( Natale & Doran, 2012) . In recent times, there has been a lot of concern about the value and nature of some of the courses offered by various institutions. Many institutions offer several non-existent courses in recent times. In other cases, institutions offer courses where resources and facilities are either missing or poorly developed. These actions make students lack practical knowledge as the institutions mostly offer theoretical skills. Courses that require students to be involved in practical work are in theory form. Just like individuals are concerned with what gives them job opportunities and makes them prosperous, institutions are no longer concerned with grooming students to become professionals and look to gain as much money as possible. Institutions, therefore, enroll as many students as possible to increase their fee earnings. The number of courses offered must also increase to meet the demand of students and to be able to accept and accommodate a variety of students. Such culture throws away the inherent virtue of education and puts the focus of everyone away from educational excellence. Institutions look to develop themselves and become greater at the expense of students who only attend classes to get certificates and job qualifications by the end of their educational engagement ( Giroux, 2013) .
Case Studies
Case Study 1
John Battler was very pleased to get into one of the most popular universities in the country. Before getting into university, he had never really known what he wanted to do in his future. Given his good qualifications, he was eligible to pursue very many good courses. Through the advice of those close to him, John finally settled for an engineering course. The fact that he got the entry into the university alone was quite pleasing, and he did not give much thought to the nature of the engineering course. Things were not going well for John in school, academic-wise, and he constantly performed poorly. He did engage much of his time on his education as he did back in high school. After his second year, he received some important advice from a mentor and resolved to make a drastic decision. His mentor was an entrepreneur and a managing director at a big firm in Los Angeles. He told John that university education no longer guaranteed any jobs. One had to be smart and work towards getting a job and not a mere bachelor’s degree.
John had confided in him and told him of his frustration in class. According to the mentor, John was not being lazy but was pursuing the wrong profession. He led John to believe that it would be easier to get a job through a business course than a frustrating engineering course. John changed his course the following year and started taking a business course. He soon realized that there were a lot of students taking the same course, which was both inspiring and worrying. It meant that there were a lot of opportunities in the business sector, but the supply was also overwhelming. Later, John had difficulties explaining to his parents that he had to drop the engineering course. John had been a promising student, and everyone expected him to pursue a great course and become a great individual in his future life.
Case Study 2
Caren Hutchinson was on the verge of becoming a professional nurse when a job opportunity came her way. Before joining the university, Caren had a different mindset compared to John and focused on becoming a great nurse. She had known she wanted to become a nurse years before she finally got entry to a good university. She had her priorities put together, and nothing would come between her and her vision. Back then, she would not have accepted any opportunities other than the opportunity to pursue a nursing course at a good university. The situation quickly changed for Caren, and she began to see things quite differently. At the university, students seemed to pass time, do all they could to get good grades, and wait for their graduations. Life was difficult for students who came from low-income families like Caren. Nobody cared about getting the best of education, and it seemed like anyone could do anything, and the profession did not matter.
In her third year, Caren miraculously received a job offer through the recommendation of a friend. It was a job that did not require many qualifications but would pay her a lot of money. She, however, had to quit school, at least for a while, is she wanted to secure the job. Given her frustration at school, she accepted the job and called off the semester. The firm, which was an online-based company, had just been launched, and Caren worked as customer care assistance. The company quickly grew and started employing professionals, and everyone was required to have at least a bachelor’s degree. Caren had to enroll for a course at a private college where she would attend part-time classes and online classes for her to keep her job.
Overall Impacts of Capitalism on Critical Thinking in Higher Education
Capitalism has greatly impacted on critical thinking in higher education and changed the focus of higher education. Observation of students in various colleges and universities today clearly shows that critical thinking has diminished in higher education. Students acquire motivation through the kind of jobs they hope to get after they graduate. Part-time students are only concerned with getting the certificates to keep their jobs or get promotions. The internet makes the situation even worse, providing students with all kinds of information and discouraging them from applying critical thinking in their studies. External motivational factors such as good grades, take center stage in modern higher education, and students no longer get self-motivation ( Maisuria & Helmes, 2019) .
Capitalism has crept into every sector of the economy, including higher education. Institutions no longer emphasize the inherent virtue of education and focus on getting as much fee earnings as possible. Every institution tries to be as competitive as possible, offering as many courses as possible, providing as many avenues of learning as possible, and working to enroll as many students as possible ( Shireman, 2019) . The flexibility of learning in higher education changes the focus of education on other factors such as job readiness. Students, on the other hand, see higher education, merely, as an avenue for their journey towards professional life. In such a capitalistic environment, critical thinking is irrelevant as it does not point an individual towards achieving professional or economic success.
Conclusion
Critical thinking, as discussed above, as diminished in higher learning, mainly due to the capitalistic culture and mindset of the modern society. Critical thinking is no longer relevant in a competitive environment where the only thing that matters is the results. Good grades, certificates, and qualifications are important for landing good jobs, keeping jobs, and getting promotions. People, therefore, rush to gain these things and have no regard for the inherent virtue of education. The demand for higher qualifications and certificates allows institutions to enroll many students, offer many courses, and provide various flexible avenues to suit various kinds of students. Other factors, such as information technology, only make critical thinking more irrelevant in the modern higher education arena.
References
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Galbraith, J. (2017). American capitalism: The concept of countervailing power . Routledge.
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Giroux, H. A. (2012). Neoliberalism, youth, and the leasing of higher education. In Global neoliberalism and education and its consequences (pp. 50-73). Routledge.
Hunsinger, J. (2019). Against speed cosmopolitanism towards the slow university. Fast Capitalism , 10 (1).
Liu, O. L., Frankel, L., &Roohr, K. C. (2014). Assessing critical thinking in higher education: Current state and directions for next ‐ generation assessment. ETS Research Report Series , 2014 (1), 1-23.
Maisuria, A., &Helmes, S. (2019). Life for the Academic in the Neoliberal University.
Natale, S. M., & Doran, C. (2012). Marketization of education: An ethical dilemma. Journal of business ethics , 105 (2), 187-196.
Shireman, R. (2019). The Policies That Work—and Don’t Work—to Stop Predatory For-Profit Colleges.
Shumar, W. (2013). College for sale: A critique of the commodification of higher education . Routledge.
