We believe in the power of the global classroom. Finding one’s place in the world and exploring one’s passions are vital before choosing a college major and defining a life path. As one’s frame of reference and life experience broaden, the understanding of oneself deepens.
In Western Europe, New Zealand, and Australia, it is common for high school graduates to embark on a gap year to explore the world before committing to a life path. In contrast, US students race to gain admission to top colleges, building resumes from as early as 13 years of age. Admissions officers from universities such as Duke, Harvard and MIT as well as college guidance counselors in high schools across the country express concerns about the pressure on today’s generation.
There are many indicators that this pressure is not alleviated once in college. The American College Health Association reports that an increasing numbers of college freshmen struggle with feeling hopeless, depressed and overwhelmed. Frequent course changes, multiple university transfers, binge drinking and destructive behavior are common across college campuses. The United States boasts one of the highest college dropout rates among industrialized countries: more than 30 percent of students do not return for their sophomore year.¹ Those that do graduate from private institutions take an average of 5.3 years to earn their bachelor degrees, while those graduating from public institutions require an average of 6.2 years.
And it’s costly. The total expense at a four-year public institution averages $21,000 per year, while private institution expenses exceed $30,000.² At the end, many students find themselves with a degree that does not fulfill their passion and financial debt requiring immediate attention.
The pressure from this intensive process to gain entrance to the most selective colleges may be best alleviated by taking a gap year. For over thirty years, Harvard has recommended a gap year before matriculation. Students who took time off found the experience "…so valuable that they would advise all Harvard students to consider it.” Harvard's overall graduation rate of 97% is among the highest in the nation, perhaps, in part, because many students take time off.³
Our current educational culture substitutes secondary, mediated experiences for real world participation: static textbooks presented in simulated environments coupled with the ubiquity of internet and television overwhelm us with information and “connectivity”. Yet lack of genuine human interaction breeds a sense of separation from shared global issues such as poverty, terrorism, disease and environmental degradation. While current solutions to our global issues focus on acute interventions, truly solving our crises requires thinking and acting as one world community. This lesson of interconnection can only be learned through direct experience; there is no substitute for rubbing against the skin of our human mosaic.
Fueled by a passion to provide a vehicle for positive global change, Magic Carpet Rides transforms the classroom-based teaching paradigm into one that is without borders to the world of possibility, empowering young adults to make informed global choices as they mature into tomorrow's leaders.
By providing direct, unfiltered educational opportunities such as working side by side with Guatemalans to improve respiratory health or regenerate damaged rainforest, Magic Carpet Rides enlivens global issues. Self-directed projects and the collection of conscious choices to meet one's basic needs empower self-reliance and compassion, providing a foundation to enhance all future life decisions.
Capitalizing on a collective four-decades of travel, non-profit, volunteer and management consultancy experience, Magic Carpet Rides guides students throughout the journey, recognizing that the true educational experience lies in the participant’s active learning as a path towards self-discovery.
By recognizing our connection to all humanity and finding and fulfilling our unique purpose, we create a supportive environment where peace on earth and love towards all creatures reclaim our natural unified state. Magic Carpet Rides awakens the greatest potential for global change in the place that matters most...within the individual. Back to Top
Sources:
1) National Center for Education
2) College Board
3) "Time Out or Burn Out for the Next Generation", William R. Fitzsimmons et al., Harvard University
In Western Europe, New Zealand, and Australia, it is common for high school graduates to embark on a gap year to explore the world before committing to a life path. In contrast, US students race to gain admission to top colleges, building resumes from as early as 13 years of age. Admissions officers from universities such as Duke, Harvard and MIT as well as college guidance counselors in high schools across the country express concerns about the pressure on today’s generation.
There are many indicators that this pressure is not alleviated once in college. The American College Health Association reports that an increasing numbers of college freshmen struggle with feeling hopeless, depressed and overwhelmed. Frequent course changes, multiple university transfers, binge drinking and destructive behavior are common across college campuses. The United States boasts one of the highest college dropout rates among industrialized countries: more than 30 percent of students do not return for their sophomore year.¹ Those that do graduate from private institutions take an average of 5.3 years to earn their bachelor degrees, while those graduating from public institutions require an average of 6.2 years.
And it’s costly. The total expense at a four-year public institution averages $21,000 per year, while private institution expenses exceed $30,000.² At the end, many students find themselves with a degree that does not fulfill their passion and financial debt requiring immediate attention.
The pressure from this intensive process to gain entrance to the most selective colleges may be best alleviated by taking a gap year. For over thirty years, Harvard has recommended a gap year before matriculation. Students who took time off found the experience "…so valuable that they would advise all Harvard students to consider it.” Harvard's overall graduation rate of 97% is among the highest in the nation, perhaps, in part, because many students take time off.³
Our current educational culture substitutes secondary, mediated experiences for real world participation: static textbooks presented in simulated environments coupled with the ubiquity of internet and television overwhelm us with information and “connectivity”. Yet lack of genuine human interaction breeds a sense of separation from shared global issues such as poverty, terrorism, disease and environmental degradation. While current solutions to our global issues focus on acute interventions, truly solving our crises requires thinking and acting as one world community. This lesson of interconnection can only be learned through direct experience; there is no substitute for rubbing against the skin of our human mosaic.
Fueled by a passion to provide a vehicle for positive global change, Magic Carpet Rides transforms the classroom-based teaching paradigm into one that is without borders to the world of possibility, empowering young adults to make informed global choices as they mature into tomorrow's leaders.
By providing direct, unfiltered educational opportunities such as working side by side with Guatemalans to improve respiratory health or regenerate damaged rainforest, Magic Carpet Rides enlivens global issues. Self-directed projects and the collection of conscious choices to meet one's basic needs empower self-reliance and compassion, providing a foundation to enhance all future life decisions.
Capitalizing on a collective four-decades of travel, non-profit, volunteer and management consultancy experience, Magic Carpet Rides guides students throughout the journey, recognizing that the true educational experience lies in the participant’s active learning as a path towards self-discovery.
By recognizing our connection to all humanity and finding and fulfilling our unique purpose, we create a supportive environment where peace on earth and love towards all creatures reclaim our natural unified state. Magic Carpet Rides awakens the greatest potential for global change in the place that matters most...within the individual. Back to Top
Sources:
1) National Center for Education
2) College Board
3) "Time Out or Burn Out for the Next Generation", William R. Fitzsimmons et al., Harvard University