Dual Education Benefits

Benjamin Franklin once said, “an investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” However, students today cannot receive the full interest on the investments they make in education when public school budgets prevent the hiring of new teachers and ultimately crowd excessive numbers of students in a single classroom. According to an article published by Robert J. Rios for the Johns Hopkins University School of Education, smaller class sizes can “...have a beneficial effect on the academic achievement of children from low-income families and those learning English as a second language (ESL),” and that “...overcrowded classrooms are associated with lower student achievement as confirmed by reading and mathematics competency tests.” In addition …show more content…
It is argued that dual enrollment will interfere with students’ regular school coursework and extracurricular activities, and can be harmful to a student’s resumé when applying to college if the student were to fail the dual enrollment course, or take a course outside of the field of study they intend to major in upon entering college (StudyPoint). However, the pitfalls of dual enrollment are often outweighed by the advantages that come with participating in such programs. College courses offered at the high school level do not always distract students from their education, but instead acts as a preventative measure for “senioritis,” or, a decrease in motivation regarding studies commonly felt by high school upperclassmen as they near the end of their high school careers, as college-level courses can serve to motivate students to rise to the challenge of more rigorous courses, and build their confidence regarding entering postsecondary education …show more content…
Students receive less individualized education, and teachers face difficulty in utilizing new teaching techniques and identifying the primary areas in which students excel and struggle with growing numbers of students in a single class. It is not practical to simply hire new teachers and build new classrooms, as many schools find themselves struggling to pay for such expenses, and cutting spending in other areas that students and teachers utilize such as teaching technology and extracurricular activities is not sensible, either. Instead, expansion of dual enrollment programs in public high schools prove to be a feasible method of decreasing class size and improving the education of all students. This solution will reduce the number of students attending classes at the high school at one time, which will reduce overall class sizes, without the need to cut spending in the public school budget. Furthermore, this solution will be beneficial to students in ways other than reduction of class size, since the introduction of college-level course material will motivate and prepare students for postsecondary education, thus greatly benefitting high school students even after they finish their high school