Oddly enough, one college major is well known to have limited economic value: Music. Yet music education follows the apprenticeship model. Individual lessons, practice, ensembles, and performances, are central to the education of music performance majors.
Composition and improvisation (where relevant - mostly surviving today in performance on the organ, and almost totally dead in other instruments) are also taught the same way. Somewhat surprising perhaps, since there's actually quite a bit of intellectual engagement with these topics, too - but a heavily practical attitude has long been recognized as yielding the best results.
I'm a jazz musician, but learned improvisation on the bandstand. It was certainly "learning the hard way," and I'm not sure I recommend it.
I think one reason for needing practice is that in either of those areas, you're going to suck for a long time before you get good at it. Maybe this is true of writing too. The academic environment is a place where you can get that kind of practice.
> I think one reason for needing practice is that in either of those areas, you're going to suck for a long time before you get good at it. Maybe this is true of writing too.
