Analysis Of Tony Wagner 's Speech At The Rsa

Higher education in America is facing many challenges, i.e., low retention, low graduation rates and less funding. Postsecondary institutions are scrambling to remain a competitive entity within society. In order to do so, students must remain in school (Talbert, 2012). The Office of the White House states (2014), educational attainment is critical to our county’s economic success. In essence, the work force is creating more jobs requiring more education and a higher level of skill than was previously achieved. Individuals with only a high school diploma will not make into the middle class sector because of

John Spayde’s article What Does it Mean to Be Educated (June 1998) offers insight into the world of philosophical questions and studies of our educational system. Spayde shares and responds to the opinions of different novelists, journalists, professors, and colleges that have taken a stance on what it means to be educated. His article briefly covers topics such as; educational decisions, financial division, entitlement, humanities, and technology. Spayde also discusses the importance of being connected and learning from a real-life experience. Spayde believes that having a connection to the world around you allows you to use any experience as a learning mechanism to further your education.

Does college really give graduates the tools and knowledge required to succeed? In the article “Where College Fails Us”, author Caroline Bird attempts to argue that college may not be worth as much as people are led to believe. Bird believes that with the rise in college graduates being well above the Department of Labor Statistics anticipated job needs, college is quickly becoming a waste of time. Moreover, several reasons listed depict colleges many shortcomings, including the stress it puts on students and the unrealistic expectations it gives them combined with huge financial burdens. The author believes that the successful college graduates would have been successful regardless of their education, and that the majority of students felt forced to attend. Finally, she states that before wasting your money on a college education the reader should reflect on her article and determine if there is still value in a college experience. Although Caroline Bird presents many persuading arguments against the college experience in her article, I believe her logic to be outdated and generalized, and her content lacking of discrediting information. I disagree that all college graduates are taking dead-end jobs, and universities have withdrawn from the social side of their educational experience.

Education is a wonderful asset to anyone. With a good one the sky is the limit, and without one opportunity may never come knocking. In today’s society, so much emphasis is put on education. How many times have we heard the saying “if you get a good education, you’ll get a good job and make a lot of money”? Even today, my parents remind me of how much a college degree would add to my marketability. But when does it become too much? Is it possible that one could overlook the more important values in life in search to become a “learned man”? In Richard Rodriguez’s story Challenging The Traditional Classroom he examines his life as a student, and the affects his learning has towards his attitude about family and heritage.

In “Are Too Many People Going to College?”, the author, Charles Murray explains the advantages of a liberal arts undergraduate degree, diminishes the importance of a college B.A., and claims that more people should consider providing goods and services rather than pursuing more advanced careers. He begins by outlining the importance of “core knowledge” being taught at a younger age in order to provide students with “cultural literacy” in American history and literature. After addressing a basis of education, he continues to discuss the importance of a liberal arts education over a “brick-and-mortar campus”. In the final part of his writing he connects the previous information to belittle the importance of a four year college degree

Colleges are struggling to adapt to society’s changing requirements for adults entering the work force. John Fawell laments this change and states that humans intrinsically desire to learn more for the purpose of knowing more. However, the focus has shifted away from this and has become more career-oriented. This shift is not well supported in the current college system. The education system is aware of this change and some have modified their programs, but they are too narrow and a broad college education is lost. Even though it has become almost mandatory in society, a college degree does not prepare students for a real-world work environment and is not necessary for most occupations. Many, such as lawyers or doctors, do require further education and a system that instructs them while also training the majority of the workforce would be an improvement.

Yet even with these realizations that delve into the deeper meaning of education, modern education is still calling for simple measurable outcomes and continues to be geared towards specific employment ideas. This model of education is blatantly inadequate though. Many students today will end up holding jobs not yet invented in fields not yet discovered, so the teaching of answers to today’s questions is utterly useless. Albert Einstein once said, “Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think.” and this statement reigns true throughout time. To continue academic success, the education system needs to impart a mastery of one’s own mind that allows students to not only answer current questions but also to pose questions that will shape the future world.

In the essay, “Are Too Many People Going To College?” author Charles Murray addresses the issue of the increasing demand of college degree from all individuals, regardless of their abilities and talents. “Today, if you do not get a B.A., many people assume it is because you are too dumb or too lazy”(Murray, 253). Murray puts a strong argument against this kind of growing culture among people. He believes that a B.A. degree is not a gateway to success as different people have different ability in various fields, making them unique. Murray also emphasis instilling the liberal arts education in the minds of young students of this country. Furthermore, he explains that the development in technology and an increase in the availability of online

In ‘Miseducating the Young’, David Brooks uses metaphors along with life expectation of growing up and questions that propose how society is able to prepare the next generation for their future in a way for them to navigate everything life throws towards them. David Brooks talks about how college students are left to figure out their life the moment after they receive their diplomas. Brooks continues to mention about how children are placed into school for years and years becoming book smart, but students are not receiving meaningful tactics on how to prepare for their future in the real world.

Michelle Obama’s “Bowie State University Commencement Speech” and Mike Rose’s “Blue-Collar Brilliance” both address the similar theme of a higher education. Obama motivates her audience by connecting to the fight for education by African Americans and the drive required to complete a higher education throughout history. Obama’s central argument is to inspire the graduates, such as previous generations have done, to encourage future generations to care about their education, continue on with higher learning, and also to get them back on track if they begin to stray. Obama cites multiple statistics such as ones that declared educated African Americans actually live longer and make more money than those without a degree or who have dropped out of high school. On the other hand, Rose addresses the common held belief that work requiring less schooling also requires less intelligence. Rose provided two stories; one about his mother Rosie, and one about her brother Joe, neither of whom finished high school. Rose declares that their lack of institutionalized education did not mean they were not educated in other ways. In their lines of work, one at a factory and one at a restaurant, required a combined demand of both body and mind. The primary thesis Rose is trying to point out is that our society today devalues everyday learning and we offer limited educational opportunities that cause us to reinforce cultural divides. My feelings on the issue of higher education are mixed. While I

In the essay titled “the Diminishing returns of a College Education,” by Kathleen Parker, Parker contends that in the grand scheme of things students who attend college are not getting the full benefits of the college education they are paying for, that the lack of academic rigor is detrimental to students when they try to enter the workforce. She contends that the a study done by the National assessment of Adult Literacy found though students in the united states pay the most tuition per person; they tend to lack basic learning skills such as basic math and critical thinking. In this day and age the discussion

With the cost of higher education skyrocketing and reaching rates that put students thousands of dollars into debt, the investment that is a four-year education is being called into question. As Dr. Kevin Manning, president of Stevenson University, states “In the eyes of many families, long gone are the days when a college degree was perceived as a cornerstone achievement that guaranteed the degree recipient a place in the job market” (Manning). He goes on to describe that one contemporary challenge in higher education is integrating career preparation with the tradition academic model of a four-year university. Another college president, John Ebersole of Excelsior College, also lists workforce development as a challenge in higher education,

In the United States most schools use the banking concept of education which sets students up for failure in the future. Education's purpose is to push students to find their own paths to their own dreams. Students in high school and college are constantly asking if the curriculum they are given actually prepares them for anything in the future. But, while many students argue whether to believe if that’s true or not, there are other things the system still needs to do. Schools need to stop teaching students in a traditional fashion; it has to be one of the most important keys to preparing students for success.

​"Education is the movement from darkness to light". In The Closing Of The American Mind, by Allan Bloom, Bloom argues that higher education has been drastically modified over the years and has ruined the psyche of today 's students. Once upon a time Americans dreamed of a better and brighter future, one that could transport them into a perfect utopia of societal bliss. Higher Education was the enthralling stepping stone for happiness. It inspired students to find their voice, while drawing from the past. It was a place where they could make mistakes and change their major once or twice. Today, higher education has become more about the career path and how it is more necessary than before. Higher education is no longer an adventure that allows the student to embark upon a journey of discovery and self-expression as it once was. This is due to the vigorous demands of the general society and how students today are required to maintain focus on a career that is valuable and not adventurous. Basically, we have lost touch with what makes this country so great; the impossible becoming reality. The creativity is gone. The belief that our imagination can grant us happiness if we work hard enough and believe is nonexistent. Higher education has separated the extraordinary and left us with dedicated, intelligent drones working towards the path that pays the most and will always have job security.

In this era of global economic stress, Lieberman encourages students to go follow their passions and go to college. even though they may not get the job they desire in the start of their career not to give up. In Lieberman’s article Stop Scaring Students, one of her main ideas is that college helps students develop basic life skills. Lieberman proves that she truly believes in healthy dose of learning because she states that “All students need a healthy dose of learning opportunities that build the skills and capacities that will support them as their professional and personal lives unfold.”(Stop Scaring Students) Lieberman believes that all students young and old should get a strong education so students can build their skills in college for