justification for higher education Essay -- essays research papers

excuse For Higher EducationAfter analyzing William A. heat content III s In Defense of Elitism and Caroline birdwatch sCollege is a Waste of condemnation and Money , it is clear that atomic number 1 s production line concerning thepurpose of an pedagogics is more rational than Bird s due to the fact that Henry survives his claimswith credible statistics, dianoetic insight, and uses current real world scenarios. Bird, on thecontrary, bases her argument solely on manipulated statistics, overly dramatic claims, andridiculously out-of-this-world scenarios.While in that respect are diverse viewpoints and perspectives on the subject of high education,Henry for one, has set down the conclusion that in America higher education for the masses has nononly been extremely costly economically, but it has also greatly get down the educational standardizedsand in that locationfore defeated the purpose of higher education itself.Henry s primary grievance against higher education for the masses is that the influx ofmediocrities relentlessly lowers the general standards at colleges to levels the weak ones canmeet (335). quite an simply, higher education is by no means any higher if the standards keeplowering just so some students can still meet the minimum standards. For example, although Iam a full admirer of the chime curve in college, it is certain that this recent innovation has had its component in lowering the university s educational standards. This practice of calculating the students number score on an exam and then re-scaling grades to help those who didn t bed as headspring is aclear example of bringing the standard of college down to everyone s level (336). I can certainly certify to this claim because I was recently directly affected by the bell curve. In the first quarter ofmy freshman year, I received a score of 44 out of a possible 100 points on my Physics 7A finalexam. According to the general 10% increment equalization scale, this would mean that I earned an Fon the exam. However, thanks to the mediocrities earning hitherto lower scores than myself andthe establishment of the bell curve, I fared quite nicely and escaped with a B- grade. Although thisis definitely good news for me, Henry s claim that the mediocrities tend to lower the educationalstandard seems to prevail.The influx of mediocrities fill college campuses has also lowered the credibility andstatus of a college degree.... ...re noguarantees in these professions either (329).After dissecting her claims and supporting statements, it is clear that Bird is trying to neutralize the value of a college degree. Tying this into her previous claims, we must ask sincewhen is anything in life guaranteed? If we consider her implication that some students shouldobtain vocational education, well then it is obvious that thither are no guarantees in jobs of that nature either. It is troubling to see that Bird simply dismisses certain jobs just because there iscompeti tion for them or because she thinks colleges fail to warn students of the competition.William Henry and Caroline Bird both have sharply different approaches in regards tomaking there arguments about the purpose of an education. Although they share common groundon various issues, the two become divided due to the types of examples and evidence they use tosupport their claims. After careful analysis, it is clear that Henry s line of debate and concreteevidence tops that of Bird s due to his logical insight. Unfortunately for Bird, she is simply leftscrambling in the dark in search of bogus evidence in an attempt to backup her claims.