Free college tuition in America is a highly disputed topic. One truth is undeniable, that America is no longer the global leader in collegiate completion. There are many ways to rectify this depressing statistic. An initial reaction may be to decrease the cost barrier allowing more students to enroll while others encourage a more comprehensive k-12 education system to better prepare students for the rigors of college. The commonality between both proposals is that something must be done. There is not, however, a consensus on how best to "right the ship".
The downward trend of college graduation rates must be halted. In an attempt to curtail this trend many are advocating for free college tuition. Andrew P. Kelly, the resident scholar …show more content…
The president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute and research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, Michael J. Petrilli, concurs with this ideology. According to Petrilli , "We know from multiple sources —including the National Assessment of Educational Progress — that just 40 percent of 12th graders are college-ready, even though nearly 70 percent already head straight into college. This is why more than half of those entering many colleges start in remedial courses — high school-level classes from which most will never escape." The essence of Petrilli 's argument is that a large portion of students entering the collegiate system are ill prepared. In a free college model this would likely end with an unnecessary expense to the taxpayers of "double dipping" or basically, paying for the same education (K-12 level courses) twice. Indeed, it is highly likely that the underlying issue with low postsecondary success is due to an outdated and aging K-12 …show more content…
The author of "Paying the Price: College costs, Financial Aid and the Betrayal of the American Dream" Sara Goldrick-Rab, believes cost is irrelevant and may boil down strictly to the public 's determination. In Goldrick-Rab 's view "How we finance public higher education is a matter of political will. Universal public higher education recognizes that college must be affordable for all if it is to help drive our economy and our democracy. Lowering prices for students is just the start — it also comes with shared responsibility for funding higher education and ensuring quality." Goodrich-Rab is corroborating the age-old adage that "where there is a will, there is a way." One can be of two minds about her claim: Universal public higher education will "drive our economy and our democracy" and a more educated populace will vote more discerningly with an empathetic, analytical, mindset improving our society as a whole. On the other hand, there is uncertainty if such a proposal will increase the prosperity of our economy. With an increase in collegiate graduation rates there may be an influx of underemployment creating a circumstance of devaluing the education attained.
The downward trend of college graduation rates must be halted. In an attempt to curtail this trend many are advocating for free college tuition. Andrew P. Kelly, the resident scholar …show more content…
The president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute and research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, Michael J. Petrilli, concurs with this ideology. According to Petrilli , "We know from multiple sources —including the National Assessment of Educational Progress — that just 40 percent of 12th graders are college-ready, even though nearly 70 percent already head straight into college. This is why more than half of those entering many colleges start in remedial courses — high school-level classes from which most will never escape." The essence of Petrilli 's argument is that a large portion of students entering the collegiate system are ill prepared. In a free college model this would likely end with an unnecessary expense to the taxpayers of "double dipping" or basically, paying for the same education (K-12 level courses) twice. Indeed, it is highly likely that the underlying issue with low postsecondary success is due to an outdated and aging K-12 …show more content…
The author of "Paying the Price: College costs, Financial Aid and the Betrayal of the American Dream" Sara Goldrick-Rab, believes cost is irrelevant and may boil down strictly to the public 's determination. In Goldrick-Rab 's view "How we finance public higher education is a matter of political will. Universal public higher education recognizes that college must be affordable for all if it is to help drive our economy and our democracy. Lowering prices for students is just the start — it also comes with shared responsibility for funding higher education and ensuring quality." Goodrich-Rab is corroborating the age-old adage that "where there is a will, there is a way." One can be of two minds about her claim: Universal public higher education will "drive our economy and our democracy" and a more educated populace will vote more discerningly with an empathetic, analytical, mindset improving our society as a whole. On the other hand, there is uncertainty if such a proposal will increase the prosperity of our economy. With an increase in collegiate graduation rates there may be an influx of underemployment creating a circumstance of devaluing the education attained.