Inequality, Abolish Ivy League By Glenn Reynoldss

Language and diction are the basis of this article, as the author applies caustic, yet sarcastic elements to his style. In the opening paragraphs of “Don’t Send Your Kids to the Ivy League,”

There was a time when America’s education system was top-notch according to the culture and society. With time, a myriad of things has changed, but unfortunately what has not evolved is the American education system. The country is still following a system which was not designed for the current global economic climate. Equality, as positive as it sounds is not as sufficient when it comes to education. The system treats students equally yet expect a similar culmination and outcome. Every child has his individuality and distinct abilities; one cannot judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree. Conversely, a few of the prominent reasons why the education system is failing are overcrowded schools, the rise of technology, and following the same old school hours.

In “The Argument for Tuition-Free College,” Keith Ellison addresses the matter of free-tuition for colleges and universities in America. The high cost of tuition increasing inequality and the largest personal debt in the country, student loans, are the main two problems Ellison discussed. Claiming that minorities are less likely to succeed in the community is one of Ellison’s ways to support the issue. He promotes his argument with two solutions. In the first one he explains how to eliminate student loan debt. Ellison uses free primary and secondary schooling as an example to explain his second solution.

Andrew Simmons published his article for The Atlantic, “The Danger of Telling Poor Kids that College is the Key to Social Mobility” on January 16, 2014, which raises his concerns that higher education is only being promoted as an opportunity to increase their economic status, when it should be an opportunity to experience an education (Simmons). Through the use of students such as Isabella, Simmons disagrees with the way students now look at higher education and blames the educators through the students’ lives for this view. Instead, Simmons views education as an intellectual opportunity rather than a way to elevate ones economic class which is all people see when they see “higher education.” He believes that education, ambition and work ethic is how you have a satisfying life, not with how much you make. He makes the point that when economics becomes the main goal of education it’s all children begin to think about and they might not pursue something that they are truly passionate about or what they want to learn about, which then does not create an intellectually awakening experience (Simmons).

When people hear the term “Ivy League school”, they oftentimes think of a prestigious, high ranked college where extremely intelligent, well-rounded individuals go to shape themselves into an efficient member of society. However, a piece published by William Deresiewicz called “Don’t Send Your Kids to the Ivy League” does exactly the opposite, as Deresiewicz, a former 8 year Yale professor, criticizes Ivy League schools for being too constricting and not allowing their students to be themselves and come out to be a well-rounded efficient member of society. Deresiewicz is an award winning essayist and critic, as well as a frequent college speaker, and the best selling author of the 2014 novel “Excellent Sheep,” which also criticizes the roles of major Ivy League schools relating to American society. The main theme of “Don’t Send Your Kids to the Ivy League” is to convey the message to parents that contrary to popular belief, Ivy League schools do not always create perfect, well rounded individuals, and Deresiewicz uses his years of experience at Yale and the years he attended Columbia to back up his claims that sending away your kids to the Ivy League is not always the best choice.

James Coleman is the author of the famous, “Coleman Report”. The Coleman Report is an article based on James Coleman’s findings in a major study conducted at John Hopkins University. Professor Coleman worked along side others to conduct a study with the goal of resolving the problems of equal educational opportunities. This report was published by the US Government, under the title “Equality of Educational Opportunity”. It is noted that the concept of “equality of educational opportunity” has changed drastically over the years. The research conducted used data collected from over 600,000 students and teachers across the U.S. in more than 3,000 schools. The results of this study suggested that academic achievement was more related to the student’s sense of control, the verbal skills of teachers, and the students background than being related to the quality of a student’s school. The results of this study informed people on how to shape desegregation policies and equalize racial issues in public schools across the U.S.

Ever since a young age, the youth of the United States are taught that they must strive to be the best they can be. This would ultimately result in one possessing a competitive edge, once one enters the selection process of joining one of many higher institutions of education or the job market. In the essays “Project Classroom Makeover,” “Biographies of Hegemony,” and “Rent Seeking and the Making of an Unequal Society,” respectfully by, Cathy Davidson, Karen Ho, and Joseph Stiglitz, the topic of competitive behaviors and practices is widely addressed and heavily criticized. Education is competitive, yet bias. Institutions of higher education value students based irrelevant factors, something which is unacceptable in the modern, digital age. This heavily impacts the selection process of candidates, leading the system to favor unqualified individuals. Prevalent business superpowers, many residing in Wall Street, pick low hanging fruit. In other words, these firms take very minimal effort to choose candidates in positions that are extremely competitive and valuable. They recruit individuals who graduate from top schools and have no other realistic edge for the company, aside from namesake. Woven into these practices, many examples of uncompetitive behavior arise as well from other factors of the system. In this essay, I argue that competitive and uncompetitive behaviors have molded modern America, with massive organizations and authorities playing into these behaviors from all

The United States is a country based on equal opportunity; every citizen is to be given the same chance as another to succeed. This includes the government providing the opportunity of equal education to all children. All children are provided schools to attend. However, the quality of one school compared to another is undoubtedly unfair. Former teacher John Kozol, when being transferred to a new school, said, "The shock from going from one of the poorest schools to one of the wealthiest cannot be overstated (Kozol 2)." The education gap between higher and lower-income schools is obvious: therefore, the United States is making the effort to provide an equal education with questionable results.

     Will Durant, a businessman and the founder of General Motors, once said, “Education is the transmission of civilization.” Unfortunately, education is still one of the most deliberated and controversial issues in the United States. Thus far, the privilege or right to receive education has not attained the level of equality throughout the nation; poor districts obtain less educational funding while rich districts obtain more, creating an immense gap between the quality of schools in poor and rich areas.

Kristof appeals to his readers by evoking emotion and providing logical situations that relate to his points. He incorporates an example that “the 20 wealthiest Americans, a group that would fit comfortably inside a luxury private jet bound for the Caribbean Island, are worth more than the poorer half of the American population.” Kristof evokes emotion because he wants his reader to sympathize with the poorer half of America, and realize that it is unfair that they have to go hungry while the wealthiest people are traveling to tropical islands on private jets. Kristof also appeals to his logical readers because of the statistics he includes. There are more than 318.9 million people who live in America, and 20 of those people account for the wealth of half that number. Kristof wants the reader to understand that the economic system is unfair and benefits the wealthy, and he accomplishes this by including that statistic. He allows the reader to think of the situation in his/her mind, and comprehend

As a high school senior, the pressure to pick the school that will provide me with both a good social and academic experience is on. For someone like me, I would be content with going to a good state school to save money. But for other students, Ivy League is the only option. These same students and their parents strongly believe that an Ivy League education is the principal to the finest opportunities in life. William Deresiewicz claims they do not give a remarkable social experience nor do they allow room for students to think themselves. In his article, “ Don’t Send Your Kids to the Ivy Leagues”, he uses his status and personal anecdotes to persuade the reader of just that.

The author opens the last paragraph of the excerpt with a sentence written in passive voice not only to contrast with the active voice that characterizes the remainder of the passage, but also to encourage the reader to pay special attention to the subject that appears at the end of the sentence – the “emotional upheaval.” The word “upheaval” makes the reader understand the power of the movement on campus – a movement powerful enough to uproot ingrained racial attitudes. Other words would not have evoked the same response in the reader. By combining her use of the passive voice with diction, the author heavily emphasizes and indirectly praises the intellectual discourses that took place at Yale instead of public demonstrations. This has an equally persuasive effect on the reader.

I wonder whether my socioeconomic status has hindered me from gaining admission in an elite college. I find it morally wrong to deny a student who has dedicated their entire life to learning, while a richer student who has gotten by in life due to their wealth. This article has made me wonder whether colleges who have lower income students have deeper discussions since elite colleges are “hurting the quality of intellectual discussion in the classroom”. I predict that in the next ten years the educational system will be provided to those that can pay full tuition and be hindered to those that can benefit from education the

Other than the door, another problem exists on the pave walk of pedestrian’s street. I have experience there are several difficulties while going around on wheelchair on the streets on campus. One major problem was tilted side walk towards the road which caused wheelchair to slide. However, this problem was resolved as I pay more attention to the street. The street on the Rice campus is relatively wide and I could above these tilting as long as I pay attention and distance myself from it. Many tilting on the streets avoidable if I didn’t need to use them. However, the problem raises when I have to use these inclines. With 58 pounds of wheelchair, as well as my own weight and the weight of my backpack, it was very tiring to climb these inclines.

Raspberry often opens his columns with a specific problem relating to today’s society. By providing relevant information, the reader can instantly be drawn in and connect with the argument. In the introduction of “The Price of Low Expectations”, Raspberry brings to attention the imprisonment and custody of black men being “under half of all young black men in the District of Columbia were in prison, on parole or probation . . . In Baltimore one in five black men aged 20 to 30 was in custody”. Likewise, “Our Lost Community”, addresses the lack of community our country has been having since Hurricane Katrina. Raspberry uses these situations to give a specific example of the topic he’s about to address. In addition, before transitioning from his introduction, Raspberry uses emotionally provocative sentences such as “numbers like these are no longer a surprise”and “we can’t count on each other” to further indicate his position while also grabbing the reader’s