Factors That Affect The Probability Of An Individual

The first determinant of one’s fate is their family’s background. Almost none of the children from low-income families made it through college. With the expenses of college today, I’m actually not surprised by that statistic. Of the children from low-income families, only 4 percent had a college degree at age 28, compared to 45 percent of the children from higher-income backgrounds. "That 's a shocking tenfold

While overall college enrollment and graduation rates have risen for all minority groups, there continues to be concerns for this segment of the population, particularly for African American students. Even

With the growing importance of higher education, more people than ever are attending college. According to a middle-class parent, “[Higher education] seen as a means of developing a career and getting secure employment.” (30, Higher Education, social class and social mobility) Moreover, “parents believe that their children need a university education to get on in life… over the past decades (parents) fearful that without a degree their children will be in danger of downward social mobility. (32, Higher

is through socioeconomic status. According to Sean Reardon, a main outcome of the widening income gap for families has been a widening gap in achievement among children, which he refers to as the income achievement gap (Reardon, 2011). Therefore, the children of the poor remain at an educational disadvantage when their parents’ income becomes as much of a predictor of their educational achievements, as their parents’ educational obtainment. To emphasize the results of the income achievement gap, Reardon states, “As the children of the rich do better in school, and those who do better in school are more likely to become rich, we risk producing an even more unequal and economically polarized society” (Reardon, 2011, p. 111). For example, as standardized testing shifted towards standardized achievement testing to determine a student’s academic achievement, parental investment in their children’s cognitive development began to increase. Educational disparities occur when affluent families can very easily afford tutoring outside of the classroom for their children to perform highly, while children being raised in impoverished homes are at a disadvantage, and at a lower chance of doing well on these exams. This becomes problematic when SAT reading, math, and writing scores increase with income as exemplified by the disproportionately small amount of minority students in higher education (Brand lecture,

Caucasian students as well as those that come from upper-class families, tend to be overrepresented (Kim, Y. K., & Sax, L. J. (2009), whereas people of color, in this case, immigrants, compose 5% of the immigrants that obtain a college degree (Williams, S. , & Ferrari, J. (2015). Those from the upper-class families seek the assistance of faculty and professors,

In 1976 black students accounted for 1% and Hispanics made up .03% of total enrollment at two and four year colleges, while the percentage of whites enrolled was 83%. By 2011, both black and Hispanic enrollment had increased by 14% with white enrollment decreasing by 24%. These numbers illustrate that the black share of total enrollment between 1976 and 2011 almost doubled, the Hispanic share quadrupled and the White

The exponential growth of the Latina/o population is symptomatic of an unquestionable shift in the demographic landscape, and is also reflected in the demographic make-up of higher education. As of 2012, Latina/os constitute the largest ethnic/racial minority group in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012). Furthermore, Latina/o undergraduate students constitute the largest minority group on college campuses, at 19% of total students enrolled (Pew Research Center, 2014). Research also indicates that Latina/o students experience continued racial discrimination on college campuses (Chavez & French, 2007; Yosso, Smith, Ceja, & Solórzano, 2009; Cokley, Hall-Clark, & Hicks, 2011; Zeiders, Doane, & Roosa, 2012).

Poverty leads to insufficient opportunities, especially in college education. For instance, according to U.S. Department of Education, students who do not enter college or drop out of their classes are “predominantly persons from low-income families.” In support of this argument, the article states that “only 21 percent of those with family income of less than $25,000 were highly qualified for admission at a four-year institution” compared to the 56 percent of students with family income above $75,000. Therefore, students with bad economic conditions struggle with attending university even after entering it. The problem is that the African Americans race gets the harshest disadvantage from their poor economic conditions. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services publishes that almost 40 percent of African Americans under 18 are below the national poverty line, which is three-times higher than their white counterparts. This explicitly proves that unequal economic conditions are the main reason for inequality in education; African Americans are the most disadvantaged. Furthermore, the correlation between poor economic conditions and a lack of education among African Americans creates a chain of inequality. The poor economic backgrounds of African Americans obstruct their children from attending colleges and subsequently, the lack of higher education makes

There are many different factors in our world today that can have a major impact on why some students finish college and attain their degree and why others either drop out or do not pursue it at all. One is disparities in debt, which is the biggest factor in why college students drop out and do not attain their degree. There are two theories that predict which students have a greater chance of obtaining the most debt. The other is racial/ethnic disparities; there are many socioeconomic factors that limit minority groups from attaining their degrees compared to the white population. Inequalities in college degree attainment are a big problem in our world today, this can be caused by a variety of reasons and we must be able to come up with

In the article “Who Gets to Graduate” by Paul Tough examines a problem about low income students are less likely to graduate from college than students from middle class or wealthier families. In the United States, school systems are not created equally. Middle and upper class students have access to safe and modern schools equipped with everything they possibly need to stay in that high rank because they came from a family who has the money to support their studies. Students from low-income families don’t have a lot of the support, stability, and money from home that higher-income students can take for granted.

The equal opportunity that affirmative action provides has also increased the amount of minority applicants applying to each school. It has “resulted in doubling or tripling the number of minority applications to colleges or universities, and have made colleges and universities more representative of their surrounding community” (Messerli). Since the playing field has been evened, it has encouraged more of those who are disadvantaged because of their ethnicity to apply for and get admitted into college. However, the quotas cause schools to admit under qualified students of minor races who don’t meet the limit over highly qualified students who’s race has reached the limit.

The results from this study show that students from low income households have a significantly lower chance of receiving a bachelor degree than those coming from higher income households, which one could probably assume. Even the students that preformed at the top of their class in eighth grade, but lived in low income households had less than thirty-three percent chance of completing college (Roy). This astonishing fact proves that even the highest achieving students still do not have a guarantee of receiving a college education, if their parents have no way to afford it. Another study, conducted by the National Student Clearninghouse Research Center, tracked two million, three hundred thousand people from high school into college to track their performance while in college based on where they attended college. They found that low income students from lower income high schools tended to wait a couple years before enrolling in college while high income students attending higher income high schools enrolled in college the fall semester after graduating high school. Out of these participants, twenty-two thousand, one hundred eight students continued their education into college, and eighty-one percent of these college students successfully completed at least their second year of schooling (Sparks ).

Sadly, numerous children who don’t meet the mark with Common Core standardized tests, receive placement in special classes. They then become passed on through school without acquiring any assistance in preparing them for college. They leave high school without any aspirations of furthering their education, as in these classes, there is added encouragement to enter the workforce straight out of high school. Another reason these children don’t pursue college is a lack of money as “lower-income families often struggle to cover costs of education” (Mather and Jarosz 13).

The education in the United States today has main focuses, such as educational attainment, which is how far a student can get in school depending on family income and race/ethnicity. Family’s race and income can affect the possibility of someone’s attendance in college. The rate for dropouts in schools is highest for Latinos and Native Americans and lowest for Whites and Asians. As for income, families with high income are more likely to attend college than families with low income. Gender also effects educational attainment. There is a gender difference today that females are more likely than males to graduate high school, and finish college and obtaining a degree. The UnitedStates is considered a credential society, which indicates if a person has the knowledge, degree or skill

In order to study the need of a racially and culturally diverse college campus, the journey and battles fought must be dicussed. While there is a lack of diversity on college campuses today, they are not completely devoid of people of color. However, there was a time when college campuses were one hundred percent Caucasian. Jonathan R. Alger, Jorge Chapa and a team of researchers conducted studies on various college classrooms. They then went on to publish their findings in a book titled Does Diversity make a Difference? The purpose of their paper was to discuss the importance of diversity and reveal the effects of non-diverse campus. They begin their book by taking a look into the history of diversity in America. The start of the Civil Rights movement along with President Lyndon B. Johnson’s war on poverty took place in the mid 1960s. These events forced the country to face the reality of the people of color in America. These Americans of color did not have equal access to education, jobs, housing, or other valued resources (Alger et al. 2000). College administrators and faculty were starting to understand the necessity of a diverse campus. The realized that people of color had just as much to offer to the United States as the Caucasian majority. During that time, “many higher education faculty members and administrators were deeply concerned that abandonment of race sensitive admissions and hiring, at a time when most minority groups continue to be unrepresented in higher education, will severely limit campus diversity and would undermine the learning environment for all students.” (Alger et al. 2000). Additionally, a lot of the traditionally white colleges and universities were provoked and questioned by the concerns of their students. The universities and colleges began to notice their inability to extend the same educational