[Rhodes22-list] Academics - another view

[Jim White]

Herb:
   
  This is a subject I am passionate about, having put myself through college and grad school on grants, loans, the GI bill and my own money. I finally finished paying off those loans not long ago. The dilution of academics, and the notion that everybody is entitled to a college degree is just plain nonsense.
   
  I am reminded of a story of a rather dense entitlement student that I had when I was TA’ing general biology. I was trying to get them to regurgitate Darwins theory on a test, asking the question “Explain Darwin’s theory” to which I received the following answer from her:
   
  “Darwin proposed survival of the fetus”
   
  I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry (of course I did the former), but briefly considered giving her credit for such a beautiful, if slightly obliquely correct answer. In a strange way I reasoned, in a manner of speaking she was right
. adaptation, embryonics and genetic mutation (god forbid, ontogeny recapitulating phylogeny!) producing strong and fit species
.but of course she had no idea that this was the case, and her wild stab at an answer was simply petty semantics gone awry
.
   
  I ended up hanging a copy of her answer on my “wall of shame” where everybody who was legitimately striving to understand the world around them got great guffaws every time they read it.
   
  My eldest at-home daughter is turning 18 Friday and will soon be graduating high school, college bound. She struggles sometimes in school, but maintains high grades and is an excellent student of whom we are deeply proud of.  Her mother and I are average, semi-talented middle class working folk, who struggle to pay bills. It will be a major challenge to simply help her get through college.
   
  Meanwhile, had we been able to certify ourselves as “economically disadvantaged” i.e. migrant workers or some other cause celebre
.she would’ve had the whole (excuse the pun
.but we are a mixed ethnicity family) enchilada paid for, she would’ve been entitled to that education
.compliments of you, me and Uncle Sugar. I know this as fact, because my wife happens to direct the high school college prep center, and has to award these freebies to underprivileged (and often ungrateful) students, long used to the perks and benefits of entitlement.
   
  So, instead of encouraging survival of the fittest (genetic or otherwise), we are now encouraging the masses (regardless of ability or aptitude, (and
.I’m not being discriminatory here, because there are most assuredly some who would benefit) to get that hallowed sheepskin and head out into professional life to make decisions of great importance. In doing so we dilute, and thus lower the standard to the lowest common denominator.
   
  Pretty intelligent of us huh?
   
  jw
   
  Le Menagerie (1976 Rhodes 22)
  Olivia (1974 Westerly Centaur Ketch)
  http://www.yotblog.com/WesterlyC/


Herb Parsons <hparsons at parsonsys.com> wrote:  Robert,

You're missing a link in the chain. Yes, you're 100% right on it going 
"where the bucks are"; however, it's the (typically) liberal agenda of 
"education for all" that brings in those bucks that are combined with 
poor self-motivation or initiative.

In "the old days", you basically had two types of people going to 
college - those that had wealthy parents, and those that worked they way 
through on their own. Obviously, there would be a percentage of those in 
the former group that weren't particularly motivated to do what needed 
to be done. It wasn't their money, so it didn't matter.

On the other hand, the poor slob that ate peanut butter sandwiches 6 
days a week, and "splurged" on Spam once a week, so he could work his 
way through school, understood the cost, and was more likely to do what 
needed to be done.

As we made the financial burden easier (or in some cases, non-existant), 
we added to the pool of those that were going on someone else's dime.

And this is a capitalistic society. The colleges are going to adjust for 
that shift, and make courses easier.

In other words, as PI (Politically INcorrect) as it may sound, there's 
something to be said for elitism.

And, as we further dilute what it means to have a "college education", 
it will become of lesser and lesser value.

Robert Skinner wrote:
> ...
> The dumbing down of college curricula may not be 
> entirely the result of whatever one might construe
> as "liberalism." It may be a matter of where the 
> bucks are, and who is willing to dilute education in
> pursuit of the student dollar.
>
> 

-- 
Herb Parsons
S/V O'Jure - O'Day 25
S/V Reve de Pappa - Coronado 35


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