Flexibility Is King: Why Rigid Education Models Shut Out Talent
In more than two decades of teaching (first in high school classrooms, then university lecture halls and now through the nonprofit tech‑training programs I run), I've met a lot of educators. Wonderful, passionate people. And yet, sprinkle in any discussion about how learning should happen, and the mood shifts. Suddenly, everyone's clutching their pedagogical pearls:
'Courses must be in‑person due to the social aspect of it!'
'Online is the only way to scale!'
'Eight a.m. classes build character!'
Rigid certainty is oddly fashionable in education circles. It's comforting to declare one universal 'right way,' but it's also the way to keep smart, motivated people stuck on the outside looking in.
The Privilege Of A Roof And The Myth Of 'Free' School
I was lucky. My parents offered me a roof and food until I finished my studies at university. The deal was that everything else (weekend outings, vacation money, even some textbooks) was on me. And so that's why I started working when I was 17 years old, doing many different things.
Plenty of people probably share my experience. Many others do not. Even in countries with 'free' tuition, the hidden price tag is real: transportation, food, childcare, lost wages, the cost of juggling night shifts with morning exams. Tell a single mom working one or more survival jobs that scholarships exist and see if that helps. Scholarships rarely cover diapers or bus fare, and they certainly don't solve a rigid lecture schedule.
It's simple: When the choice is attending biology lab at 9 a.m. or paying the electric bill, the lab loses. Not because students lack discipline, but because Maslow organized that hierarchy for a reason.
Are We Really Opening The Door?
Many institutions tout diversity initiatives. Worthy efforts, but often focused on entry rather than completion. Once a student steps through the door, we stick to a fixed timetable, mandatory attendance, single‑attempt exams and 15‑week semesters.
Take the single mom again. She obtains a scholarship, then misses class because her toddler spikes a fever. A zero for participation follows, and her grade slides. The scholarship renews only with a B average, and soon she's gone. We pat ourselves on the back for 'access,' never noticing the revolving door spinning behind us.
What Students Actually Want
Earlier this year, my nonprofit surveyed 500 learners. The results were unsurprising if you've been paying attention:
• 45% prefer a hybrid format: part self‑paced, part live instruction.
• 46% crave a balance of independent and collaborative work.
• Only 40% believe formal degrees are the best path, though many say prestige still matters on a résumé.
Translation: Students welcome structure, but not at the expense of sanity. They appreciate community, but not if it means forfeiting their paycheck. They respect credentials, but only when those credentials signal real-life skills.
The Case For Flexibility (And How To Do It Without Lowering The Bar)
Break courses into bite‑sized units that can be started at different moments in the year. Give evening, weekend and recorded options. Mastery, not seat time, should drive progression.
Swap high‑stakes midterms for projects that mirror real work. If a student can demonstrate competency at midnight on a Tuesday, why force them into an exam hall at dawn?
Pandemic Zoom fatigue taught us that slapping a webcam on a three‑hour lecture is torture. True hybrid learning mixes asynchronous micro‑lessons with short, purpose‑built live sessions for discussion, feedback or group work.
Allow a limited number of 'life happens' passes per term—no doctor's note required. Missed a class because your bus broke down or your shift ran late? Use a pass, catch the recording, complete an assignment and move on.
Offer micro‑certificates that build toward a larger credential. A student who finishes two modules earns something tangible even if life interrupts the third. Momentum can be a powerful antidote to dropout rates.
Will The Ivory Tower Survive The Remodel?
Critics worry that flexibility dilutes academic rigor. In my experience, it does the opposite. When you remove arbitrary barriers, you're left with the actual barrier: learning the material. Students no longer fail because the daycare closed; they succeed or fail on understanding algorithms, supply chain theory or Renaissance art. Exactly as it should be.
And employers? They love it. Ask any CTO if she'd rather hire a graduate who perfected Java at 2 a.m. while caring for aging parents or someone who breezed through a lecture‑only course. Resilience, time management, grit. That's the hidden curriculum flexible programs teach.
Flexibility: An Equity Issue (And A Talent Issue And A GDP Issue ... )
When education only fits the schedule of a 19‑year‑old with no dependents and plentiful cash, we waste oceans of talent. Single parents, newcomers, rural learners and neurodivergent students are not edge cases. They are the workforce we claim to need.
By 2030, global shortages in tech alone could leave millions of roles unfilled. Meanwhile, capable adults shelve their potential because classes clash with paychecks. The math doesn't add up.
Crowns, Thrones And The Future
Which brings us back to the headline: Flexibility is king. In medieval times, the king's word was law; in modern education, flexibility should rule with similar authority. Not as a feel‑good add‑on, but as the organizing principle around which curricula, funding and policy revolve.
If we fail, we'll keep graduating a narrow slice of the population and wondering why innovation stalls. If we succeed, we'll unleash minds previously sidelined by timetables and tuition receipts.
Twenty years in, I've learned that teaching isn't about delivering content; it's about removing every nonessential barrier between a learner and the aha moment. Roof and food not included? Let's figure that out. Child with a fever at 10 p.m.? Record the session. Need to work the breakfast shift? Offer the lab in the afternoon or the evening.
Because when our systems bend, talent doesn't break. And that, whether you're a university dean, a boot‑camp founder or a hiring manager, is the smartest investment you can make.
Forbes Nonprofit Council is an invitation-only organization for chief executives in successful nonprofit organizations. Do I qualify?
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If there are assets you want to keep just to yourself, then you might want to consider a prenup or postnup to make sure they're protected in the case of a future divorce. Married couples owe each other fiduciary duties Hargrave also taught us about fiduciary duties, which are the legal obligations spouses owe each other, namely honesty and good faith. "Couples owe each other fiduciary duties — this means you should not be lying, cheating, or stealing from your spouse," she said. "Hiding spending on extramarital activities, such as gambling or paramours, is — in most states, as far as I know — a big no-no." She continued, "But also, this might mean not giving big gifts to family members, like loans you know will never be repaid, or engaging in risky investment opportunities." When you fail to abide by honesty and good faith, the other party may bring a claim for "breach of fiduciary duty" in divorce. Before getting married, partners should have a conversation about privacy Although my partner and I have never had arguments or disagreements around privacy, it was worth discussing how we feel about certain issues, like giving each other access to our business financial accounts and looking at each other's phones. "You do not have the right to snoop around on your spouse's password-protected accounts," Hargrave said. "That being said, you might want to talk about how you will address privacy and your expectations for transparency in your relationship." She added, "Doing things like installing spyware, keylogger tracker, or tracking devices can be criminal." Have a serious conversation about children early on Hargrave made it clear that couples also need to have conversations about subjects that don't apply to their present-day lives. Big topics — like whether you want to have children — can become relationship shakers in the future if you don't get on the same page before getting married. "Are you going to have kids? It's important to know that both parents have a duty to support their children — it's not uncommon for parents to divide and conquer those duties, with one parent taking on more of the financial responsibilities and another parent taking on more of the childcare responsibilities," she said. "It's good to have a general idea before you tie the knot, exactly what your expectations are regarding children and responsibilities," she added. Not having conversations about these potential life-changers could lead to a lot of stress and tears later on. Consider drafting a prenuptial agreement — the right way Before getting engaged, I never considered getting a prenup, but I also didn't know much about it. The word carries such a negative connotation and seems like something only wealthy people have. But after chatting with Hargrave, I realized it can be a nice way to lay everything out on the table and have a plan in case the relationship ever ends. "If you all are considering a prenup, you need to carefully consider the process you choose for doing the prenup," she said. "Most of the time, one partner will go hire a lawyer, have the lawyer draft a standard prenup, that prenup is handed to the other partner, who is told to get a lawyer and review it." She explained that the better way to prepare a prenup is to do it collaboratively. "Do it where you both have an opportunity to talk about what your goals and interests are with regard to the marriage, and the prenup, and then together to make decisions about how you will handle property issues upon death and divorce," Hargrave said. She told us that the couples she's worked with "come out of this process feeling heard and loved" when it's done this way. It sounds dramatic, but meeting with a divorce lawyer before our wedding was eye-opening Meeting with a divorce lawyer before getting married helped us understand how our relationship, money, and lives would change after we signed on the dotted line of our marriage license. It also opened the door for us to have serious and important conversations we'd never have known to have. In the end, it's something we recommend other couples do. You might have to explore some awkward topics around money, privacy, and assets, but I think it's better to get those out of the way before walking down the aisle. This story was originally published in December 2020 and most recently updated on July 29, 2025. Read the original article on Business Insider Solve the daily Crossword
