An Analysis of Ellen Condiffe Lagemann’s Article on What Can College Mean? Lessons from the Bard Prison Initiative

Higher education in modern day America has become a debated topic, with some saying that it is not worth it due to the debt it leaves upon leaving, and some saying that it opens opportunities that surpass the results of obtaining one. A resulting view from this conflict is that certain forms of education aren’t as beneficial as others. A primary example of one of these less valuable educations is the study of Liberal Arts. Author Sanford J. Ungar discredits this view in his article The New Liberal Arts where he discusses the many misconceptions that have come to form this interpretation. To convince the reader of these misunderstandings, Ungar uses the appeals of Ethos, Pathos, and Logos, with heavy appeal to logic (Logos) over the other two. Each misconception uses and focuses on more of one appeal than others, and by doing this, he is very successful in influencing the reader into considering that these misunderstandings are present.

In “Let Prisoner’s Take College Courses”, John Lennon argues the concept of online educational programs for inmates. In this article, Lennon explains how workers in prisons support and allow the use of TVs in cells because TVs reduce the amount of time to create violence. Though, the televisions could have a much better use, such as free, pre-recorded university lectures to help the prisoners learn. Years ago, educational programs for inmates were a key component, but legislation squashed out the ability for prisoners to learn. Currently, very few prisoners are able to participate in these classes, though, the prisoners rarely are reincarcerated because of taking these courses. Governor Andrew M. Cuomo attempted to create more educational programs

“What Is College For” by Andrew Delbanco, shows the need for both a universal college system; one which caters for all of society, and one which provides a liberal education. Delbanco gives many reasoned thoughts on how, and why the college system has become restricted, to purely those of a higher socio-economic background, rather than being exclusive to people of all backgrounds. The idea of college being a platform for people to learn, advance their skills, and become whatever they want to be has seemingly diminished over time. The ideas in favor of such an educational system are put forward, but they are foreshadowed in my opinion, by the notion that people should have the same educational opportunities in life; regardless of their economic or social background. A universal education system is needed for our society to prosper, especially if it provides a liberal education; this is not just for the individuals that make up a community, but for the community, as a whole.

“Tomorrow 's future is in the hands of the youth of today” is not a particularly new sentiment. But what is new, what has become a pressing question, is what is to become of the future if our youth are behind bars instead of in schools? Youth today are being pushed into the criminal justice system at an alarming rate. This issue is known as the school to prison pipeline ─ the rapid rate at which children are pushed out of schools and into the criminal justice system. The school to prison pipeline is a term that came into use by activists in the late 1970’s and has gained recognition throughout the years as the issue became more prominent in the 1990’s. Some activists view policies meant to “correct” misbehaviors, especially in regards to Zero Tolerance policies and the policing of schools, as a major contributor to the pipeline. Others believe that the funding of schools and the education standards are to blame for the rapid increase of youth incarcerations. While the school to prison pipeline affects every student, African American students, both male and female, are more often the victim of discrimination in education. The school to prison pipeline must end, and the trend must be reversed.

To discuss the value of liberal education, there should be a mutual understanding that investing in college means to invest in oneself. Furthermore, while some consider this investment to be a critical stepping stone to success, others dismiss it, explaining that school simply cannot prepare someone for the “real world.” Sanford J. Ungar and Robert Reich explore both of these subjective values in their essays “The New Liberal Arts” and “College is a Ludicrous Waste of Money.” Ungar, the president of Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland, discusses why a liberal education should be sought after; he does so by introducing common misconceptions about liberal arts and, using argumentative persuasion, proves their insignificance. On the other hand, Reich, the former secretary of labor, argues against the conventional belief of college being the only road to financial wellbeing; rather, he explains why a two-year education may better accommodate many college students, especially those in need of immediate work or those that simply cannot afford a four-year education. In all, although both Reich and Ungar generally discuss liberal education, their perspectives differ when it comes to its practicality in the current economy. Also, to express their different views about liberal arts, the authors use contrasting tones to present their ideas to different intended audiences.

While the term liberal education is heard from the most prestigious university to an inner city community college, the phrase itself has a hazy definition at best. While educators across America struggle with the definition of the phrase, William Cronon uses purpose, structure, and appeals in his essay "Only Connect: The Goals of Liberal education," to define a liberally educated being and the characteristics that such an education should impart. Cronon capitalizes on inductive structuring to lead the reader along, gently building each new statement upon a foundation of previous ideas. This effectively leads the reader to a strange

Education in America is important; due to rising costs, he claims many think liberal-arts degrees are too expensive for the average family to afford. Ungar suggests that a liberal-arts degree prepares people for adapting in their respective career field. Career specific majors are not offering students the broad range of qualities one needs for job opportunities. While he acknowledges the stronger start of students with prior experience in college, it is those students with little experience that end up with the most original ideas, making them valuable to an employer.

In the” Are college worth the price of admission “Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus, Professors of political science and international relationship at Queen College, focus on what Liberal arts college are doing good .They urge different things college have done to promote high education and give examples of college that are putting effort in liberal arts education .The authors also note the most important thing of liberal arts education are the small environment , affordability and the religious affiliation .Finally the author argues that liberal arts education is promoting higher education

A student enters Kindergarten who is not familiar with their ABC’s and struggles to retain a lot of information. Meanwhile their classmates are writing words making the student feel discouraged. The student is too far behind in class and does poorly causing them to misbehave in class to seek attention. The teachers constantly send the student to the Dean’s Office for punishment. By 6th grade the student is frustrated with school and never learns the material they miss out on. Rather they just get behind and drop out to pursue illegal activities to sustain themselves. Eventually, the dropped out student gets caught doing a crime and gets sent to Juvenile Court. According to Kupchik, within The School-to-Prison Pipeline: Rhetoric or Reality, schools and prison are interlinked as school reveal student’s deficits, some frustrated individuals may fail out of schools causing them to turn to illegal means, and the schools’ method in disciplining certain behavior causes students to be integrated in the Juvenile criminal system. Kupchik allows for a thoughtful discussion of the School-to-Prison Pipeline highlighting the metaphor’s implications, risk factors, and methods to remedy the issue.

The first point Bok brings up in the vocational program is the fact that the students in vocational programs are focused on perfecting the competent skills needed in their career. This gives the students in the vocational program an advantage since they will graduate with the skills needed to “hit the ground running” and have a better chance than liberal arts students in acquiring a job. Bok mentions a downfall about vocational programs in which vocational focuses so much on the skills students don’t learn the essential traditional skills of college. Bok then continues on to give the liberal arts side of his perspective, in which he states, “The most important step that Arts and Sciences faculties can take is simply to do a better job of achieving the traditional goals of liberal education” (Derek Bok, 42). Bok believes the advantage of liberal arts is the key fact that students learn the abilities vocational students don’t such as communication, critical thinking, problem solving, self-discipline, creativity, and human relation skills. The two disadvantages Bok mentions is that liberal arts students will have a more difficult time acquiring a job during the first ten years of work compared to vocational students and liberal arts professors disregard the need to teach skills that will be learned on the job. Bok has a neutral point

Martin Luther King Junior said, “Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.” Higher education does not exist for the sole purpose of preparing students for future jobs; it’s there in order to prepare individuals for life where they are expected to participate in their community, their government, and the lives of those around them. Liberal arts, in particular, exist for the broadening of students’ minds in order for them to be successful not only in their chosen career but also in their lives outside of it. Liberal arts lost their past popularity during the last few decades, but they shouldn’t be disregarded in favor of technical and professional degrees because they still provide students with skills that are perhaps less tangible, but no less necessary for life in modern world.

Offering classes to convicts while in prison and informing them of the dangers of drug abuse, would ultimately reduce the reincarceration rate when they are released. Throughout the documentary, “The War on Drugs”, there was a segment in which former convicts are actually attending college classes. There was around 25 of them that had attended the classes focused on wood technology. Because of these college classes, only 2 out of the 25 had returned to prison within the year, and the remaining 23 had found stable jobs to support themselves (“The War on Drugs”). This kind of success should not go unnoticed, college classes in prison should be implemented across the entire nation. By expanding the knowledge of convicts when they are in prison,

To most Americans, the word “college” brings up thoughts of lifelong loan debt, furthering education, and eventual career opportunities. To inmates in prison, the word “college” encourages thoughts of hope, improved lives, and education that some inmates may never have had. John J. Lennon explains the impact that funding college courses in prisons could have in his op-ed piece, “Let Prisoners Take College Courses”. In this article, Lennon brings up copious reasons as to why incorporating college education in prisons would impact inmates in a positive way, and shares stories of his personal life struggles and the struggles of his roommate, Roberto Rivera as proof of how education can have an impact on individuals. Lennon also brings up some of the recent political issues that are surrounding this controversial topic, including a plan that was

Before proceeding any further in a discussion of vocational and liberal arts education, it is important to define and clarify the differences between the two systems. In a vocationally-based education system, students are trained to perform the specific job that they have chosen. While a vocational education system is not solely devoted towards working on the skills needed for the job – as it will provide some sort of general education, the general education that students will receive in a vocationally-based education system will be in order to achieve basic competency in general subjects such as math, reading and writing. On the other hand, a liberal arts education system is one which provides a general education for students in areas such

“Jerry Brown’s 2012-13 budget allocated nearly $1 billion more to prison spending than to higher education”, reported Hansook Oh and Mona Adem in “California Budgets $1 Million More to Prisons than Higher Education and Leaves Students Hanging.” Many students either cannot attend college or drop out because they cannot afford to continue onto higher education. American students are not succeeding in college and the United States is falling behind in the percentage of people having a degree beyond high school. The issue of overcrowded, overfunded prison systems in California and in the United States is talked about