Robert Birnbaum's How Colleges Work

Robert Birnbaum’s How Colleges Work (1988) ch. 4 review how values and power are shared and effect a college community, specifically within Heritage College. Heritage college is different because of its lack of structure and tight-knight community surrounding the college (Birnbaum, 1988). It is filled with primary traditional students who have some type of family connection to the college (Birnbaum, 1988). Heritage College is referred to as a collegium, a place where the colleagues at the college are considered a community (Birnbaum, 1988). Collegiality can be defined by “a sense of mutual respect for the opinions of others, by agreement about the canons of good scholarship, and by willingness to be judges by one’s peers” (Sanders, 1973). Thus proving, that a collegium takes mature staff to work at it and the staff
One includes the cons to a collegial system. While they were shortly addressed in different places, the offering of a valid and clear counter argument for this type of system was nonexistent. Is this the type of school that all other institutions should aspire to be? Or was a counter argument not offered because it would take away from all of the positives this system has to offer? This system clearly works for Heritage College and I would have liked to know how they overcome the lack of change and progression is overcome due to lack of incoming, different faculty. Another ponder point is centered around how the students feel about this type of institution. Do they prefer the tradition over the challenge and growth? Do they value relationships with the staff? Which leads to a similar and final pondering point, do the students at a collegial system school outperform those at a non-collegial system school? Is there any proven benefit to this system? Does is prepare the students better or worse for life after college? What is the students’ perspective and how are they impacted by this type of