Del Rosario 1

Angelo Del Rosario

Professor Turner

ENG 114B

18 May 2017

Education: College

Education helps students obtain general knowledge and skills that will benefit an

individual personally and professionally throughout life. It plays such a rudimentary role on our

society that if we didnt have any form of education the society would not be advanced like how

it is currently. Its an important factor for the society because it helps us develop skills that help

make our society an advanced community. Everything that society has created up to this day is

based on the knowledge that people have obtained through their education. Focusing in, higher

education is a goal that most people seek to be successful in life, it provides graduates more job

opportunities to choose from than of those who dont seek an education after high school. It

gives an individual the knowledge and skills that will soon benefit him/her personally and

professionally. I believe that the education system fails many of their students due to many

factors that a society as a whole needs to improve on. Although the system fails students to

pursue or finish obtaining a college degree, I also believe that the system provides a sense of

hope and an opportunity to individuals who seek it.

Throughout your education you are taught the basic knowledge of Science, Math, History

and English to help you understand the basic knowledge of our society. Yes, it is important to

teach these subjects in the beginning, but I believe that in high school students should be given
 Del Rosario 2

the freedom to choose their field of interest. Yes, I know that is why we have college for, but I ay

this because it is easier to catch early failing students rather having them fail later on when they

are already old. I believe that the education system could flourish if students were give the right

to choose their field of interest in the last two years of high school. This could lead to cheaper

college expenses, excite more students to be learning what they are more interested in, and it

could better prepare them for the future.

Our society is evolving in a rapid rate where high school diplomas could possibly only

get you a low-income job. As a result students try to continue their education by attending a

University, CSU, State Universities, or their local community colleges to pursue their dreams

and hopefully earn a high-income job. College is the main education system that students aim for

to grow to be an adult, learn life lessons, and achieve life goals. Unfortunately, the huge rise in

tuition fees have made it extremely difficult for some students to pay for their education.

According from an article by, Travis Mitchell public universities rose 295 percent and private

universities rose 170 percent in tuition fees from 1995-2015. There are programs that help low

and middle income families to help pay for tuition, but for some students it isnt enough. Some

work harder than others to accomplish their future goals, but soon to realize they wont have

enough money. In the article Should Working Class People Get B.A.s and Ph.D.s? by

Briallen Hopper and Johanna Hopper shows us how a student lives and continues her stressful

life with education. Johanna...was considered to be obvious college material by her teachers

(207), she was ready for college, but the tuition fees for her college made her work one year to

earn money. As soon as she saved enough money she went to her local community college and
 Del Rosario 3

took classes which then she later discovered that after receiving poor advisement she took classes

that werent even required for her course, making her waste her money.

I believe that teachers through middle school and high school are not preparing their kids

for the future. According to the article City Schools Pressuring teachers to Pass Failing

Students, by Susan Edelman, she points out how teachers are forced to pass failing students

because their school could get bad reviews with the lack of diplomas given out. In my own

personal experience, I have seen this certain scenario of when one kid in my school was failing

every class. He would ditch class, of course the administration called him in, but unfortunately

that did nothing as he continued to fail his classes. As the year passed by, he moved on to the

next grade when he had failing grades, as a result the current classes that he was assigned to were

way over his basic knowledge. Failing students should be held back, they shouldnt be awarded

for failure. Teachers without the voice to speak up for the right thing could potentially ruin a

students career in the future. Students that are handed out diplomas without actually deserving it

could possibly end up not attending college or dropping out the first semester because they are

simply not ready for a college education. In the 2013-2014 school year graduation rates were up

82 percent according to Were Graduating More Students Than Ever, but Are They Prepared for

Life After High School?, by Laura Moser. In the article it points out that most students are

given a diploma for the sake of their school records and reviews. This may cause some students

to feel unprepared for whatever comes their way. Why give a student the diploma when they are

simply not ready for what comes ahead of them?

Teachers can make all the difference in the students studies. The teacher could be the

number one reason of why the student succeeds or fails in his/her education. According to the
 Del Rosario 4

article Most Teachers are not Engaged In Their Jobs, by Allie Bidwell, 7 out of 10 are not

emotionally connected to or dissatisfied with their workplaces. Every school needs good

teachers to help students enjoy and connect with their teachers, but its getting too hard to fire

those unwanted teachers. Those teachers that lack the ability to teach their students properly are

not being fired due to the fact that it cost too much money for the school to fire them. This

allows them to teach the way they want which does not help with creating a positive bond

between the students and teachers that schools look for.

Other than the teacher, the parents were a huge impact on the way their kid took school.

Parents have a very large impact on a students education, which leads people to blame for the

parents for the horrible education system, parents are just not involved. If the student's parent

enforces their child to study at a young age it could potentially carry on to their teen years. If the

parent educates them about the importance of education and how it could change your life the

child could change his habits. Without parents continually emphasizing the importance of

education, the student is less likely to succeed in his/her studies.

In 2002 President George W. Bush passed the No Child Left Behind Act which was a

government program the required schools to give out tests to see how well the school was

currently running. It did have positive outcomes, like having better school ratings, but it had

more downs. In the article Negative Implications Of No Child Left Behind: As Graduation

Rates Go Down, School Ratings Go Up, it shows the negative implications that the act has left

behind the education system. These state run tests were providing school ratings to escalate but

the graduation rates to go down, it created avoidable problems according to the article.

Personally standardized testing was the worst of my whole education, it made me feel like I was
 Del Rosario 5

studying for the test rather than for my future. With the test teachers were forced to teach in a

way so they can comprehend with the questions on the test rather than teaching their own ways. I

believe that the standardized testing destroyed the creative thinking of students, it pressured

teachers to teach a certain way which encouraged students to think the same way. Its like we

were being created with a chip in the back of our heads learning to think and do the same way.

Higher education, meaning education that is provided by universities, colleges, and other

institutions that help award academic degrees. Why is higher education so important in shaping

our future? According to an article, Why is Higher Education Important?, by Dr. Heather

Allen, a study shows that an average college graduate earns $54,704 which compares more to a

high school graduate which is an average of $30,056. Ultimately looking at the statistics of the

average income of an individual, it would be more likely to want a college degree. This shows

that obtaining a college degree could potentially improve your lifestyle. The education system

gives opportunities to individuals who need it the most, it helps them get out of their old lives

and create a better future for themselves. In an article by Anaya Kamentz, How More Education

Could Save Half-Million American Lives, she explains how higher education could change

your life, Even if your degree doesnt earn you one cent more, it may give you more

knowledge, more of a sense of agency, more self-efficacy, better peer connections(Kamentez).

Other than the money that a college degree can offer you, it provides the knowledge of the

outside world and what you could do to live your life to the fullest.
 Del Rosario 6

Works Cited

Moser, Laura. Slate. Were Graduating More Students Than Ever, but Are They

Prepared for Life After High School?, 2016,

http://www.slate.com/blogs/schooled/2016/04/05/high_school_students_aren_t_prepared_for_co

llege_and_careers_says_education.html. Accessed 17 April 2017.

Edelman, Susan. City Schools Pressure Teachers to Pass Failing Students. 2015,

http://nypost.com/2015/08/09/teachers-say-they-feel-pressure-to-meet-citys-pass-quota/.

Accessed 17 April 2017.

Mitchell, Travis. 20 Years of Tuition Growth at National Universities. 2015,

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2015/07/29/chart-se

e-20-years-of-tuition-growth-at-national-universities. Accessed 17 April 2017.

Bidewell, Allie. Most Teachers Are Not Engaged in Their Jobs, 2014,

https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/04/09/most-teachers-are-not-engaged-in-their-jobs-

gallup-finds. Accessed 17 April 2017.

Rice University. "Negative Implications Of No Child Left Behind: As Graduation Rates

Go Down, School Ratings Go Up.", 2008,

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080214080530.htm. Accessed 17 April 2017.

Hopper, Briallen and Johanna. Should Working Class People Get B.A.s and Ph.D.s.

Money Changes Everything.

Del Rosario 7