Michael Nicholson 29 Degrees (including a Doctorate)

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by Garp, Jan 29, 2023.

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  1. siersema

    siersema Active Member

    I’m curious, what did you find in New Zealand?
     
  2. Messdiener

    Messdiener Active Member

    Brilliant ideas as well! Would be good excuses to study some Afrikaans or Maori.

    Specifically regarding South Africa, does anyone know if that agency still exists that helped North American students enroll at UNISA? I remember it being mentioned quite a few times, but that was at least a decade ago now.
     
    Rich Douglas likes this.
  3. TEKMAN

    TEKMAN Semper Fi!

    This makes me think again about continue my journey at the University of the Cumberlands. I just dropped my classes for spring 2023 semester to work on my business and the cabin. Perhaps, he should do something likes this. :D
     
  4. Lerner

    Lerner Well-Known Member

    February 14th, 2017
    Luciano Baietti, a retired school headmaster from the town of Velletri, in Italy, holds the Guinness record for the most university degrees.
    The 70-year-old currently has 15 bachelors or masters degrees from various universities across Italy, and is getting ready to get his 16th.

    Baietti first made it into the Guinness Book of Records in 2002, after getting his eight degree, but he didn’t stop there. After getting degrees in physical education, sociology, literature, law, political science philosophy and motor skills, he spent the next 15 years adding seven more bachelors and masters degree to his collection.
     
  5. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    Seems to me Dr. Nicholson's count is way ahead. I'm thinking perhaps he is more interested in learning than in holding a Guinness record Title. And eight degrees - Signor Baietti's record in 2002? I can't believe that as a record. Seems like we've ALWAYS had the odd DI poster who holds at least that many! :)
     
    RoscoeB likes this.
  6. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    The website - www.iaci-canada.com is gone. There is a Facebook Page at https://m.facebook.com/people/IACI-International-Distance-Learning-Programs/100067171487405/
    Can't tell you what's on it, other than the Front Page because, as a non-member, I can't see more. I opened and closed my Facebook account in the early 2000s and will never be a member again. No matter what. Worst experience of my online life.
     
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  7. Courcelles

    Courcelles Active Member

    8 is high but I know two close to retirement special education teachers with that many. Both came to teaching later in life, have doctorates, and are multicategorical plus English or math certified.

    What I find remarkable about this guys degree list is how much they overlap and almost at times duplicate each other…
     
  8. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    You mean Dr. Nicholson? Yes - that pattern has been remarked on in previous threads. I'm not sure if this is the reason - but I'm sure there's confidence and some calm to be found in terrain that's somewhat familiar. If you're studying for the pleasure of it - might as well make the road smooth and maximize the pleasure, if you get the chance. I suppose the overlapping programs were in subjects he never tired of and the programs could very possibly add, in some degree, to depth and width of knowledge within those fields, also.

    When your employer is providing all-you-can-eat education, you can choose your own path and go back to the buffet for as many servings as you want - similar or different. If you want 7 helpings of spinach and 5 of potatoes - or 7 of economics and 5 of literature - it's all there.
     
    Last edited: Jan 30, 2023
  9. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    My take? NO EXCUSE needed to study ANY LANGUAGE. Ever. :)

    That's the truth. (English.)
    Dit is die waarheid. (Afrikaans)
    Koira te pono. (Maori.)
     
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  10. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    Kia ora, siersema

    Discussed in another thread. The 16 polytechnics in New Zealand have been integrated into one institution, Te Pūkenga – New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology. The offer a Master of Professional Practice for around $US10K and a Doctor of Professional Practice for around $US16K. Both are research only, designed to produce projects and measure their impact. Truly self-designed and can be based on workplace challenges in just about any discipline (since the purpose is to advance learning and practice).

    I think it's a neat idea to do such a degree at a polytechnic. This used to be the case in South Africa, especially at Technikon SA, but it no longer exists, having been absorbed in to Vista University--which in turn was absorbed into UNISA. The Technikon SA awarded the DTech in several work-related fields (like business, HR, etc.).

    The post-nominals for the master's and doctorate are awkward--MProfPrac and DProfPrac--but I imagine it would be okay to truncate them to MPP and DPP, respectively. The master's is NZQA Level 9 and the doctorate is Level 10. This means the degrees are considered equal to university degrees, just more occupationally oriented.

    This is an opportunity to research grounded and evidence-based workplace challenges at a school well-suited for it, offering a low price, flexible schedule, and the ability to shape your research around your work and career, both now and into the future. I like it.

    Ngā mihi nui, nā!
     
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  11. siersema

    siersema Active Member

    Thanks Rich!
     
  12. Neuhaus

    Neuhaus Well-Known Member

    I'm all about continuing education. I do think, though, that there comes a point where you should be free to pursue as many courses as you like, accumulate as many credits as suits your fancy but where no further degrees should be awarded.

    Yeah, I get it "if you did the work" and so on.

    I just would like it if we, as a society, would normalize learning even if it doesn't monetize. If we could embrace pursuing knowledge for the sake of it without expecting a title or a diploma. It was part of what made me so excited when coursera first came out. Now? It's a platform for credentials.

    Not a criticism of this, or anyone else who did multiple degrees of course. But I would like to think that if I went out for another bachelors someone would tap me on the shoulder and say "Sir, don't you think you've had enough?"
     
  13. Rich Douglas

    Rich Douglas Well-Known Member

    Credentialing is hard to avoid since the burden is on individual workers to accumulate and carry around (metaphorically) their bona fides for others to judge. This is so much hard in the post-lifelong-employment era where individuals are faced with proving themselves to prospective employers who do not know them.

    I wrote a chapter on credentials in the Association for Talent Development Handbook, 3rd Ed. It's a really expensive book, so I don't recommend it as a casual read.

    And even if we dismiss the human capital market's demand for credentials, there's always the personal urge to keep score. I'm pondering a research project that I might want to undertake under the auspices of some institution. I have absolutely no use for a resulting credential, but I still wonder what that might look like anyway.
     
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  14. Michael Burgos

    Michael Burgos Active Member

    I can attest having taken each in my undergrad. It was gloriously difficult.
     
    Garp likes this.
  15. Garp

    Garp Well-Known Member

    Seems to be some variation at the graduate level. Some seminaries only require Greek and others both. One clergyman told me Koine Greek was difficult enough but Hebrew was a whole other issue and level (on top of all the other classes and requirements). And some professors seem to believe their class is the only one you are taking.
     
  16. Michael Burgos

    Michael Burgos Active Member

    For many decades, mainline seminaries have downplayed the importance of languages, making them optional or reducing the requirement down to one or the other. Some evangelical institutions have done the same, affording "language tools" courses as a substitute actual language study (e.g., Liberty). However, in most evangelical institutions, the MDiv requires at least a year of both, with many requiring two years (elementary to intermediate) and a year of exegetical work. In my own experience, I pursued academic degrees instead of an MDiv and took the equivalent of three years of Greek at the grad level. That said, having taught Greek at the high school and undergraduate levels, IMO whether a student finds the language difficult entirely depends on their initial grasp of English. One reason why biblical languages are dreaded is that students tend to have to learn English while they learn Greek or Hebrew (or both!).
     
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  17. Rachel83az

    Rachel83az Well-Known Member

    This is pretty true of all languages, not just Biblical ones. It's pretty difficult to learn a language when you never learned half the grammatical terms. As far as I can tell, Americans (mostly?) stopped learning how to diagram (English) sentences in elementary school/junior high some time in the early 1900s. I think at least some foreign language instruction later in life would be much if that had continued instead of being phased out.
     
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  18. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    Great posts- both Rachel and Michael. You scooped me, Rachel - I was in the middle of saying the same thing. It's exactly as Michael said - and also extends to all other language instruction, at any level. Now, as Rachel touched on, if English could just be taught (or learned) properly....

    In my earliest days in Canada , (1950s) , sentences were analyzed and parts of speech parsed, from about the middle of elementary school onwards. If you learned grammar that way, you had a good handle to work with it in other languages - in high school and beyond.
     
    Last edited: Feb 24, 2023
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  19. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    I noticed in the late 1970s and through the 80s, our sons were not taught grammar to nearly the same extent as we, their parents, were. Despite this, they have both done well, have great families and --- I can understand what they say and write, anyway. So it's all good. :)
     
    Last edited: Feb 24, 2023
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  20. sideman

    sideman Well Known Member



    As an American I am embarrassed on many levels for my fellow countrymen and women. I guess I was lucky that my Dad was a former teacher and administrator, and always corrected me when I made a mistake. In elementary school, in third grade no less, as students we had to read a full biography (written for that grade level of course) and give a full book report on what we'd learned. It still sticks out to me to this day, since both my kids were never challenged like this until the sixth grade. The grade given consisted of sentence formation, grammar, presentation (delivery to the class), et al. I still remember the teacher stopping me and the other students to correct us on the spot. Talk about leaving a lasting impression. Can you imagine that happening today? A parent might take offense at their son or daughter being subject to humiliation and shame. Sarcasm intended.

    So why have we fallen into this grammatical abyss? I believe it's a combination of things: (1) Overuse and acceptance of slang, (2) Grading more on relevance in papers/reports/projects vs. proper grammar and structure and (3) Not attracting the best educators that we can for a variety of reasons, and (4) Discontinuance of Latin in high school (Yes, laugh if you want). And don't get me started on texting. This has been, and continues to be, the ultimate bastardization of the English language.

    But don't you worry! We have Grammarly to the rescue! Cough, cough, wheez.
     
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