T-Chart for "Is college worth it?" Opinion by William J. Bennett and David Wilezol

Pros

Cons

-          LOGOS: Before deciding whether or not college is the right choice, it is important to make an honest assessment of a student’s ability and inclination to do college-level work. -          LOGOS: If a student can get into a highly ranked school, it is probably worth it to go there, even if she has to borrow money -          LOGOS: Secondly, it is important for students to consider the probable financial impact of their course of study -          LOGOS: Students need to make smart decisions about their capacity for academic work, the job prospects for their major, and how they will pay for their education

-          ETHOS: Federal Reserve has estimated that the current nationwide amount of student debt is over $1 trillion. -          PATHOS: found that approximately 50 percent of the class of 2011 was either unemployed or underemployed. As a result, many recent graduates are putting off getting married, starting families and buying homes. -          LOGOS: Too often, unchallenging or novelty academics, such as courses on Lady Gaga, have replaced rigorous learning in the traditional liberal arts and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) disciplines. -          PATHOS: Additionally, most college campuses have an unabashedly liberal political orientation, and are rife with binge drinking, illegal drug use and the degrading “hook-up” culture. -          LOGOS: If a student has real doubts about whether he can commit to four years of papers, tests and class time, he shouldn’t go.

"Is college worth it?" Opinion by William J. Bennett and David Wilezol

Summary: In “Is college worth it?” (2013)  by William J. Bennett and David Wilezol, they begin alluding to the recent news declaring that going through college has many hardships and as a  result many graduates become “boomerang” students or college graduates that return home and are left without a  job. The authors then proceed to acknowledging studies that negate the idea of going to college. They conclude with stating their position on the topic and supporting it with three main points that students should consider before entering college.

Analysis:  William J. Bennett and David Wilezol’s main assertion is that college is worth going to depending on the circumstances. The authors allude to both side of the topic by stating facts that put a bad image on college but stating reasons that give an insight to the reasons why people should enroll into college. They establish ethos by stating statistics given by the Federal Reserve “ student debt is over $1 trillion.” The Federal Reserve handles money crisis of the nation and therefore should know the debt that surrounds college students after graduating making it a reliable source. Going to college and not being successful will also have negative effects on society, “many recent graduates are putting off getting married, starting families and buying homes.” Having a companionship or a family will have positive effects on the soul. It will bring inner peace to rely on someone to be there after a hard day. Also, these students are left with debt towards the government with no way to pay it back. College is just a plain waste of time and money to people. Many colleges spend money on not classes that do not teach anything and as a result “only 45 percent of college graduates made substantial gains in critical thinking, complex reasoning and writing skills..” College is just a waste of time to some people and is seen as an opportunity to enter the party life. These students are still not adults and are not able to comprehend real responsibilities which lead to bad temptations like drug use. The authors appeal to the other side of the issue by stating suggestions in which students must consider before going to college. Many of these suggestions are logical but many students seem to ignore.

Works Cited:

Bennett, William J. "Is College worth It?" Www.foxnews.com. Fox News, 3 May 2013. Web. 2 Mar. 2015.

                          <http%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fopinion%2F2013%2F05%2F02%2Fis-college-worth- it%2F>.

"Yes, a college education is worth the costs" Editorial by Rodney K. Smith

Summary: In "Yes, a college education is worth the costs"(2011) by Rodney K. Smith, he begins by stating the real reasons on why teenagers choose to not go to college. He then proceeds to acknowledge the statistics of the Bureau of Labor in which they argue that acquiring an education will lead to more financial benefits. Smith then concludes with a personal anecdote of when his family got the roots of education and how following these footsteps have led him to become a well-educated person. 

Analysis:  Rodney K. Smith’s main assertion of his editorial is that kids with a higher level of education have a higher possibility of acquiring jobs rather than a person with lower education. His claim is supported by the statistics of the Bureau of Labor which presents the higher wages of person with high education and the higher percentage of people with no job that have low education levels. This gives his argument more liability because the Bureau of Labor’s main focus is on the statistics of people working in the United States. Also the Bureau of Labor is a popular name known around the American public which gives it more credibility. Smith’s personal anecdote appeals to the emotions of the audience in which it ignites them with feelings of possibility. The story of his grandpa giving his dad the family’s life savings causes for the audience to think that anything is possible and that college is worth going to be cause of how far smith has gotten in life.

Work Cited

Smith, Rodney K. "Column: Yes, a College Education Is worth the Costs." USAToday.com. USA TODAY News, 06 Dec. 2011. Web. 17 Feb. 2015.

                <http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/story/2011-12-06/college-education-debt-jobs/51680176/1>.

"Yes, a college education is worth the costs" by Rodney K. Smith

In "Yes, a college education is worth the costs"(2011) by Rodney K. Smith, he begins by stating the real reasons on why teenagers choose to not go to college. He then proceeds to acknowledge the statistics of the Bureau of Labor in which they argue that acquiring an education will lead to more financial benefits. Smith then concludes with a personal anecdote of when his family got the roots of education and how following these footsteps have led him to become a well-educated person.  

Smith, Rodney K. "Column: Yes, a College Education Is worth the Costs."USATODAY.COM. USA TODAY News, 06 Dec. 2011. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/opinion/forum/story/2011-12-06/college-education-debt-jobs/51680176/1>. 

Visual Analysis

In Jeff Danziger's political cartoon Hey, Kids! Here's What You're Borrowing to Pay For! (2010), he states that the money people pay for college goes towards activities that don't benefit them. This cartoon appeals to ethos by the facial expressions painted in the people at the bottom. The people at the bottom can be students paying for their education or they can be parents paying for their child’s education. The expressions on their faces symbolize the struggle they have to go through to earn the money. College costs a lot of money people don’t have so they turn to loans from the government. As time passes they become in debt and have to carry that weight of their shoulders. This cartoon also appeals to logos by the different activities the money they’re paying goes to. The money, leaving people in debt, goes towards sports like football. College Football is one of the top money making industries in United States. The college presidents thus put the money of students into new helmets, new balls, new pads, and more importantly maintenance of the stadium. This does not benefit the students at all of accomplishing their academic goals but it does help the college presidents become wealthier. Danziger’s political cartoon is directed towards the people in debt that are struggling to get through their education, while the rich presidents sit back, drink wine, and relax. College is not worth going the large amount of money people pay for goes towards irrelevant academic activities, as presented in the political cartoon.

Date created: Aug. 23, 2010
Date seen: Nov. 12, 2014

http://billhicksisdead.blogspot.com/2011_08_14_archive.html ---- website for political cartoon

"For some, college not worth the debt" by Glenn Harlan Reynolds

In his article "For some, College not worth the debt" Glenn Harlan Reynolds (2013) states that college is not worth the amount of money and time as many people have different backgrounds, economic status, and mindset. The main concept in today’s society is that college is for everyone. Students applying to college should really think about the downsides and upsides of college.

People that went to college often have a mixture of imagination and memory. People who attended courses and acquired a job degree often have positive memories about their college experiences.  Other people who attended the same college and courses have different opinions about their experiences.

Some people are very sociable and are able to make friends that causes for memorable experiences. There is other people that don’t have their life set up or planned yet. Thus, making it hard to focus on one major and causing for their experience to be hectic. These people are stressed throughout the year. Making it hard to be friendly and eventually leading towards graduating with a lot of debt on the easiest degree. In other cases, some of these people don’t graduate and are left with debt causing adulthood problems that can interfere for the rest of their life.

People go to college to become financially stable and prosper in life. Colleges rely on admittance of people with the same grades and tests scores because the organization feels that these people have the same capabilities and knowledge to prosper once they graduate.  People are the same educational wise but come from different backgrounds causing for them to become liberated once they attend college. These highly intellectual women start partying and lose their mindset on why they came to college.

People who have money and come from a better background, are most likely to get away with any party relative issue they might have. On the other hand, the people who come from a poor background and start living the party life, get problems that their not able to get away from. These problems lead to not having impressive records and having a hard time acquiring their dream job. Once graduated these people are also left with debt issues causing for poverty. People who come from a poor background do the best when they attend a non-party school.

The people with a poor background who choose to go to an expensive college don’t come out with the results promised. People can agree that the more expensive a product is, then it is expect ed have a higher quality. This argument is made by parents whom feel their kids don’t get the necessary results or education they paid for.

 If you are father of a student or a student who is planning to attend college, you should really think about how college will benefit you in the future and why you want to attend it.  Also people should not follow the trend of going to college as there’s different forms of acquiring money.

Colleges is not efficient for all forms of students.  Students who come from a poverty household come out with worst test results. This can be blamed on living a party life but whatever it is, it shows that college is not teaching them anything and therefore is a waste of time and money. The success in college can depend on skills not many people have. Whether these skills is coming from  a minority household, living a party life, not having enough money, or just being plain and simple not ready for college.

Yes, although a low acquiring college degree is a credential and you are seen as higher intellectual; college can be a waste of time and money. In the future college degrees may not even matter anymore but rather be substituted with people whom have skills and knowledge on certain situations.

These people are not based off of any grades but rather their skills.  As many people can have skills but not the good grades. Society thinks that kids with a low GPA are not ready for college and are often not given the chase to prove them wrong. Before attending college and try to acquire a four year degree, you should really think about the upsides and downsides of this long lasting investment. As college is not for everyone since everyone is different and can have different resources.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2013/08/05/college-students-loans-debt-column/2616761/

Is College Worth It? Walter E. Williams

As September comes along, many parents help their kids pack for a new chapter in college. Many of these parents asked themselves if college is really worth paying the money and their children's time.

The U.S. Department of Education shows that the probability for kids who graduate under the 40 percent of their high school class are not likely to graduate from college. Colleges have even made classes more simple to fit these types of students, Although students are not prepared to go to college and take on college level courses based on the examinations of the ACT in 2007, colleges still manage to accept these kids.

Colleges have strong financial motives to admit these under-prepared students, but for students who don't accomplish their goals, their life at college can be devastating. When they decide to leave college, they are left with financial debt. The process of leaving college can also devastate a student's self-esteem. The students feel they have let their families families down by not graduating college, Worst of all, many of the students who attend college and waste an amount of money but still end up at jobs that a person with a high school diploma can acquire.

On the other hand there is students who are prepared for college. Less than half the 2 million freshman going into college graduate in four years. Having a college degree doesnt mean much to the world at times. Many college seniors failed tests that would apply to daily base lives in the real world. For example, 20 percent of the students could not calculate if they had enough gas to get to the gas station. Many employers come to the conclusion that college graduates lack critical thinking, writing, and problem solving.. many of the subjects brought upon in school.

Parents and taxpayers give millions of dollars to education systems. Colleges make money whether the student learns or not so the main priority for a college is not education. There's prove a person is able to be successful without a college education, so the question stands; is college worth spending the time and money? There's no doubt that out of the thousands of colleges enrolling students, there is some colleges that do a fine job to educate the mind of these apprentices.