College: Is It Worth It?

Education in the U.S. has been slowing down recently.
Image found here.

“Throughout American history, almost every generation has had substantially more education than that of its parents.  That is no longer true,” according to David Wessel and Stephanie Banchero who wrote “Education Slowdown Threatens U.S.”  American education levels have ceased to increase as they once did, and high-school dropout rates continue to be high (Wessel & Banchero, 2).  Additionally, “There is also growing skepticism among some Americans about whether a college degree actually translates into a well-paying job” (Wessel & Banchero, 2).  I want to explore the numerous reasons to why U.S. education has been declining, but first I would like to introduce Louis Menand’s “Live and Learn: Why we have college.”   In his article, Menand presents three theories of education, which essentially explain “why we have college.”  No theory is more correct than another, while no explanation to America’s education slowdown is the “right” answer.  It is, however, interesting to see how the different theories and explanations relate and interplay with each other.

Are grades a fair way to measure competition?
Image found here.

The first theory Menand presents says that education is a sorting mechanism.  “The theory goes like this: In any group of people, it’s easy to determine who is the fastest or the strongest or even the best-looking” (Menand, 1).  Supporters of this theory believe that those who get the best grades are therefore the most intelligent.  Education is seen as a filing system that is all about selection.  Getting good grades is not the idea of this theory per say, but the theory states that people get the grades that they deserve, which separates the smart from the dumb, producing new types of elites.  The problem with this theory though is that it assumes that higher education is equally accessible to everyone, regardless of social class and financial conditions, when, in fact, this simply is not the case.  Two people can have the same level of intelligence but end up being “sorted” differently.  This is because one person may be wealthier, better connected, and provided with more opportunities than the other, which would allow that person to receive a top tier education, while the other person may not have the financial means to receive that same education.  This problem aside, education slowdown in America may be attributed to the fact that if one is a supporter of this theory and comes from a lower class background with a low level of education, why would this person want to pay money to go to college?  If education is a sorting mechanism and this person knows that he or she will be sorted in the lower echelon of the system, it is a complete waste of money and time to attend college only to rediscover what is already known.  “There is also growing skepticism among some Americans about whether a college degree actually translates into a well-paying job” (Wessel & Banchero, 2), providing further reason not to attend college if one knows he will be sorted in the lower stratum.

Menand’s second theory is: “In a society that encourages its members to pursue the career paths that promise the greatest personal or financial rewards, people will, given a choice, learn only what they need to know for success. They will have no incentive to acquire the knowledge and skills important for life as an informed citizen, or as a reflective and culturally literate human being. College exposes future citizens to material that enlightens and empowers them, whatever careers they end up choosing” (Menand, 1).  I, personally, support the ideas of this theory, as this is the reason I believe why we have college.  I go to college not for the grades or to sort myself but to learn and grow personally and intellectually.  This produces more educated and well-rounded individuals who cooperate in society more easily.  How does this theory relate to the United States’ education slipping then?  A possible explanation is that people simply do not believe the price of college is worth the reward.  “Lately, the rising cost of higher education has emerged as an increasingly visible obstacle to going to—and staying in—college, ad the spotlight on the mountain of student debt has discouraged others” (Wessel & Banchero, 5).  This increase in cost leads to many students accumulating large debts from attending college.  Obviously, this is not a problem for the upper class, and smarter students are often times able to earn scholarships.  Additionally, financial aid is frequently offered to deserving students, so there definitely are ways around the financial burden.  But there still is a large population of people that cannot afford college and do not believe that the debt is worth the learning and personal and intellectual growth needed to be a democratic citizen.

Lastly, the third theory is “advanced economies demand specialized knowledge and skills, and, since high school is aimed at the general learner, college is where people can be taught what they need in order to enter a vocation. A college degree in a non-liberal field signifies competence in a specific line of work” (Menand, 4).  I also support this theory.  I believe Theory 2 is why people go to liberal arts colleges and Theory 3 is why people go to colleges such as business school, nursing school, and architecture school.  Again, an explanation to the education slowdown under this theory is once again financially related.  “Today, student debt outstanding now exceeds Americans’ total credit-card debt. […] 55% of public four-year college students graduated with debt” (Wessel & Banchero, 5).  As Mr. Gavic says, “You spend all this time in school, then you are in debt, then you have to find a job to spend 20 years paying it back […] That never made sense to me” (Wessel & Banchero, 6).  Furthermore, “Governments and colleges have offered more financial aid, but the complexity of the American system—a dizzying array of grants and loans, tax deductions and scholarships—confuses and sometimes scares off some potential college-goers, says University of Michigan economist Susan Dynarski” (Wessel & Banchero, 5).  Many people believe that it is a smarter decision to immediately go into the workforce out of high school—or dropout of college in order to do so—instead of attending college because then they will not have to pay back the debt, and they will be able to hands-on learn the necessary skills of the given job while working for those two or four years that they would have been spending in college.

U.S. education is falling behind that of other countries.
Image found here. 

Regardless of the reason to the education slowdown, “Twenty countries have higher high-school graduation rates than the U.S. […] In the U.S., about one in five ninth-graders drop out before getting a diploma” (Wessel & Banchero, 3).  Moreover, “Thirty years ago, the U.S. led the world in the percentage of 25- to 34-year-olds with the equivalent of at least a two-year degree; only Canada and Israel were close.  As of 2009, the U.S. lagged behind 14 other developed countries, the OECD says” (Wessel & Banchero, 3).  Clearly, this presents a threat to the U.S., but in order to fix the problem, the root of the problem needs to be identified.  Yet it is very tough to pinpoint why this slowdown is really occurring.  I offer various explanations, but these are just a few of many possibilities.  The bigger problem, for example, could be the widening gap between the rich and the poor, where the rich, who have the means to attend higher education, are becoming fewer but richer, and the poor, who cannot afford college or do not view it as worth it, are increasing and becoming poorer—relative to the rich.  Or perhaps the problem is that middle schools and high schools are not emphasizing the importance of college to the students.  Regardless of the reason to the slowdown, “President Barack Obama has vowed to change that.  ‘By 2020,’ he has said, ‘America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world,’ […] He has proposed that all states require students to graduate from high school or stay in school until age 18 (as 21 states do already) and pushed successfully for increases in federal student aid” (Wessel & Banchero, 3).  Is making college a requirement by law a good thing though?  Is this the right way to go about making a change?  Is the root of the problem even being identified and will this be a success?  As illustrated, there are many unanswered questions and this matter is a complicated one to say the least.