College for all - right?
 

This is worth a read. It is definitely long, but worth it.

Sad, but true.

Good read CP. Kind of reminds me of that line from The Incredibles....."Everybody is special Dash"......Dash responds mumbling "another way of saying no one is"

Having faced this, having conquered it (though arguably, I was always meant for college... the train just got derailed...), I don't find it sad, but to be one of the most honest pieces I've read in ages.

At the same time I know I can be proud to have made it through all that, I can't help but thinnk about the Ms. Ls I met, the guys with overstuffed briefcases looking for better pay or a new line of work, the peoplel looking just to grow and learn something new for what seemed like no particular reason at all. And you know, not all of them were as bad as a "Ms. L" though arguably it is probably the most tried and true of college stereotypes. Bless them all.

I was not "groomed" to go to college. It was never expected of me, and in fact was continually "wet blanketed". There are a myriad of reasons why, and none of them matter now. Yet here I am, struggling to balance work/home life while going to school full time. Going to school because that piece of paper is what is needed to get a job, even in fields where it's "hands on" learning.

The article reminded me of my time at University of Phoenix. Classrooms filled with students who rushed to get there from work. Our main break was filled with a mix of dinner, work and phone calls home. Some students were Ms. L, yet they passed with an A (college for all, an A for all at UoP). Most of my classmates where there because their work insisted they go, or be let go. One of my classmates had been a manager at an aerospace company for 10 years before they decided he had to get a degree or be let go, and replaced with someone much younger, with a degree - but no experience.

College is not for all and high school is not preparing everyone for college. Bachelor degrees are going to become as common as high school diplomas. I suspect that we'll see a similar push for Masters degrees in about 15 years.

Yep, I suspect my grandchildren will look at me, with a mere bachelor degree in History, the way I looked at my Grandfather who only had an 8th Grade degree:eek:

Of course their grandchildren will wonder why they only have Phd's:D

I bought a PhD off the interwebs.

High school did not prepare me for college math.

Wow, there is definite truth in that article. Although I'd say the sole reason we allow them to put themselves through the exercise is for the people who can and do make it through.

What is a shame is that with so many people having bachelors degrees, the value of it is so diluted that jobs paying maybe a dollar or two above minimum often require/desire a degree. Ridiculous. So we have a populous who have acquired massive student debt in the hopes of a better paying career that fails to materialize because too many other people have taken the same path.

At least 30 years ago those people with high school diplomas didn't have student loans to pay.

I read this, rather slowly and in pieces, as time permitted me at work. I'm just not getting what the point of the article is. Maybe it's because I had to read it in bite-size chunks, or maybe it's because I just don't get it.

What I do get from it is that the author equates not passing English 101 to not being college material. I disagree.

I've found that we often become snobbish in the things we focus on...either in home or work life. It's seems snobbish to me to look down on someone (in the academic sense) for not having read To Kill a Mockingbird. That doesn't mean that they can't learn something even if they fail (I'm sure Ms L did learn something and will benefit from it). And it doesn't mean they can't benefit from or excel at other subjects offered up by the college.

Every time I take my car to the mechanic I get "scolded" for not changing the oil every 3,000 mile/3 months. I wonder if they think I'm not ready to own a car. My dental hygienist disapproves of my poor flossing habbits. I'm flabbergasted by people who don't apply regular security software updates to their computers. People who tell me they've never been to any Disney park in their life (adults...with kids even!) just get blank stares of bewilderment from me. And don't even get me started on people who buy DVDs that have been formatted to "full frame." *shudder*

So, yes. I too get snobbish about the things that I focus on. I might think that some people aren't ready for computer ownership, or need to high-tail it to the nearest Disney park, or need to plead to the movie gods for forgiveness. But in the grand scheme of things, I would be wrong.

I think the author's point wasn't so much that nobody had read To Kill A Mockingbird, but that he was lucky if they'd read anything at all.

Plus, the point of English 101 is to prepare you to be capable of writing the papers needed to pass your other classes. That is, to be able to read, process, and write AT a college level.