A ccording to media theorist Neil Postman , “The way to be liberated from the constraining effects of any medium is to develop a perspective on it — how it works and what it does.” Media are evolving, morphing, and converging in ways we once wouldn’t have imagined. Newspapers, books, radio, and television all share one common trait: they only allow communication in a single direction. There are exceptions to this rule; a radio program, for instance, may allow its listeners to call in to the show. However, this method of feedback is usually limited to a single person. In more recent times, technology has turned communications upside-down. Blogs, vlogs, and social media have provided every consumer with a voice. Communications is no longer one-directional, and it has progressed beyond bi-directional. Discourse now spans the globe in a web of interactions which challenge ideology and authority. There is, however, a notable exception: the traditional textbook. Since its incept...
Canada’s economic stability hangs in the balance as the nation’s youth becomes saddled with student debt.
Free tuition is not only beneficial to young students, but necessary for the continued sustainability of the country’s social programs such as pensions, subsidised housing, and healthcare. A recent study commissioned by the Royal Bank of Canada showed that Government funding for university education fell from over eighty percent in 1980 to less than fifty percent in 2018. Tuition fees tripled within the same time frame. These steep increases in student expenses mean that younger generations are having to increasingly rely on student loans and part-time work . As more students carry the burden of ever-increasing debt, this burden is in turn passed on to the country’s economy. Young debt-addled students will often delay life milestones such as purchasing a car, getting on the property ladder, saving for retirement, or having children. With children being born later, Canada’s population is aging. As the 2016 census shows, 5.9 million Canadians are over the age of 65, whe...