Team 1

Specific Problem Affected & Gains/Losses Who holds power/

Who is vulnerable

Gender bias Females are receiving lower
scores in the academic setting
for the same performance.
Affected: Women and the Power: university
universitys, Vulnerable: women
Gains: through reformations
the end results between
genders were more equal

Achievement Community College transfers Losses: Those who cannot Power: government,
gap having low success rates once afford full 4 year universities. more prestigious
transferring to a 4 year universities
university. Vulnerable: people
from low income
homes

Segregation on Creating safe spaces while still Losses: Diversity cannot be Power:
campus having diversity achieved with different groups University/Student
only interacting with similar Body
people. Vulnerable: Students

Gains: Creates talk to shed

light on these types of
situations

Changes in Offering nonconventional Affected: Students view on Power: Professors

liberal arts classes by having students
education spend all of their class time
surfing the internet and then
reflecting on it
education
Vulnerable: Students
Gains: Students gaining a
broader perspective on
learning

Technology The issue if flipped classrooms Losses: traditional ways of Power:

and academic actually produce significant teaching... students/university
habits of mind results to question if this is the Affected: how students are Vulnerable: professors
better way of teaching. being taught... and their teaching
methods

Achievement gap

Ask about the history of your topic:

Why did topic come into being?
What came before/after topic?
 Statistics and data on the actual funding
Why have Universities become so expensive?
Why does it seem like scholarships are becoming harder to receive?
How does the government decide to send specific funding where?
What leads students to community college? What are their motives and goals?
When is the achievement gap first created? (ex: public schools, elementary, middle,
high schools, geography

Ask about its structure and compositions:

How does topic fit into the context of a larger structure or function as part of a larger
system? How does your topic represent the values of another different groups,
institutions, or cultures?
How do its parts fit together as a system? What parts of the topic is significant in
particular systems?

Ask how is your topic categorized:

How can your topic be grouped into kinds or qualities?
How is funding allocated state by state? (is it different?)
Who has access/ability to attend certain schools?

Turn positive questions into negative ones:

Examples: Why dont we end self-segregation? > Why has self-segregation not been
stopped? Why should we support women in the classroom? >How are women
unsupported in the classroom? Should we fund rural schools equally? > Why hasnt
funding been allocated to provide resources for rural schools?a
Why is funding constantly being taken away from schools?
How can we give community colleges a better reputation? How can we better fund
them?
Should community college transfers be accepted/focused on more for four year
colleges?
How has the experience of transitioning from a 2 year institution to a 4 year institution
been for students? How can we make the transition better and close the achievement
gap?

Ask what if and other speculative questions:

If more students transferred from community college:
How would the schools average graduation rate change?
Would the average GPA rise or fall?
What if they truly made it easier to transfer to a 4 year institution all across the grid?
How would this affect four year institutions?^
 Ask questions suggested by your sources:
I you find a sources claim persuasive, then ask questions that might extend its reach.
Example: Article X shows that the achievement gap is caused by unequal funding and
resources in rural schools, is this also the cause of the achievement gap in highly
populated urban areas?
Ask questions that build on agreement
What could be done to help both sides?
Ask questions that build on disagreement
Should there actually be a change in the funding?

Why do community colleges get less funding?

Article Title Authors Examples Your favorite Importance to What You Think
Claim information your issue about
college education

Receding The The governor This article shows I think this article
Scholarship increase of is making an how difficult it can sheds light on the
Programs college effort to make be to go to a four issues with
Covering tuition and college year university scholarships. Most
Fewer Costs the decrease their with little to no scholarships go to
decrease tuition. scholarship help. students with wealthier
of backgrounds, while
scholarship little money is given to
programs those especially in
across the areas of poverty and
board are need. I agree that
making it scholarships are
more becoming fewer
difficult for because my
college experience in private
students to high school confirms
succeed. it. Many students with
already wealthy
backgrounds got the
scholarships from
schools, while those
not as wealthy were
left to go to community
 college or not go to
college at all.

Will Free Free The bottom The cost of tuition I agree with Edens
Tuition college half of is a major factor to claim in that simply
Increase the tuition has students, in whether a student making college free or
Number of been terms of goes out to get giving money away
College proven to income, higher education. without some sort of
Graduates? provide already pay a obligation to the
more net of 0 for receiver is not the
negative their tuition solution to the problem
effects due to grants. at hand, however; I do
than think that universities
positive need to be more
effects conservative in their
spending habits in
order to make college
more affordable.

Assessing In order to Making the Majority The article shows I believe the article I
Students start to transfer chose the just how the read is just a start to
Transition bridge the process community transfer students bridging the
from achieveme easier and college for process is done achievement gap. The
Community nt gap, the able to be other reasons: vs. how it should author speaks of a lot
College to a experience done by a pathway to be done to start of ways to start this
Four-Year of the individuals discover their bridging the process. Focusing on
Institution transition on their interests, achievement gap. transfer students is
process for own. following what just part of the
transfer their friends equation to ending the
students had done, and achievement gaps.
needs to a cheaper, Theres also a lot of
be less rigorous other factors to
enhanced. alternative consider as well. But,
Qualitative that could if schools could get a
data must help to bridge handle on say transfer
be used in the path students first, then
order to between high schools could focus on
achieve school and a other aspects as well.
this goal. four-year
institution. Revised: The authors
theory on directing
focus on transfer
students and their
process is extremely
useful because it
sheds insight on the
difficult issue of the
 achievement gap.

The The If we do not This article shows I agree with the author
Widening achieveme find ways to that a familys that income can
Income nt gap in reduce the income can determine a students
Achievement relation to growing determine the achievement in
Gap income is a inequality in quality of education because the
growing education education that a author clearly shows
problem in outcomes member of that how income
the United family is able to determines the
between the
States that receive. amount of resources
rich and the
will lead to you have available
serious
poor towards education.
issues if schools will
not no longer be
reduced. the great
equalizer we
want them to
be

Closing The main Offering That a lot of This article points I agree with this
Achievement issue of the strategies the out that if we statement.
Gaps Can achieveme to close it achievement focused on
Boost nt gap is gap has to do redoing the actual
Enrollment due to the with the old basis of learning it
and ineffectiven fashioned would naturally
Completion ess of ways teachers close the gap on
learning are presenting its own instead of
and offered the focusing on
strategies information bringing in diverse
to individuals
overcome
the gap

Tuition Issues
Community College Issues

Inequality of finances. Expenses of 4 year colleges and lack of ways to relieve it. Perceived
inequality of instruction at community college.
The achievement gap that affects college students is very complex problem due to many issues
that include inequality of finances, expenses of four year colleges and the lack of ways to relieve
it, and the perceived inequality of instruction at the community college level.

PARAGRAPH GIST:
 The achievement gap that affects college students is a very complex problem due to
many issues that include inequality of finances, expenses of four year colleges and the lack of
ways to relieve it, and the perceived inequality of instruction at the community college level.
Also, due to the increasing parity between increasing tuition costs and decreasing scholarship
programs, average students are put at a disadvantage before they even begin a higher
education. Such a disadvantage is a familys income and whether or not a student starts off
their education on a strong foundation to lead towards higher education. From what we have
seen, those who are not as financially privileged have a difficult time succeeding in getting a full
4 year education, whether it's through community college or transferring to a 4 year university.
Those at community colleges are not given access to the abundant resources of a 4 year
university.

Pin the authors names to their specific claims

Questions to ask:

Issue-based Questions: Teams should create a new list of inquiry-based questions based on
the synthesis chart. Think about these questions as inquiries that you investigate through field
research (interviews, polls, surveys, pictures, web-captures).
What histories, system structures, categories, speculations, and negative questions can
you ask?
What questions about the different articles overlap?
What questions about the different articles appear to stand alone?

1. Are you paying for the majority of your college expenses through:
Scholarships
FAFSA
Loans
Personal Finances
Other
2. Did you attend a community college?
Yes, and I then transferred to a 4-year University
No, I went straight to a 4-year University
Yes, and have only been to a community college
No, I went straight into the work field
Other
3. Would you describe yourself as:
 Native American/American Indian
Asian
Black/African American
Hispanic/Latino
White/Caucasian
Pacific Islander
Other