Getting a college education is a value that is emphasized in America. From the time an American child reaches the sixth grade, they are taught that the key to success in life is to do well in high school so that they can get accepted to the best possible college. They are taught that if they get into a great college and get their college degree, any type of job they desire in the field of their choice will be there waiting for them. After getting their dream job, they will be able to buy any car and house they desire, start their own family, and live the American dream. Now days, a high school diploma just isn’t enough. College is an absolute necessity in order for people to stay in the middle class.
Last week in class, we had the chance to watch a video on Education. The video focused on a couple different Universities, and the expectations that are placed on students at each institution. One question that kept coming up in the video was, are teachers being “easier” on their students, so that they can get good grades and graduate? According to the video, there are some universities that say that their teachers are easier on their students than others. There were a few statistics that were given in this video that I thought were interesting. One in four college students don’t make it to their sophomore year. Why is this? Well, according to the video, if freshman students walk into college and fail their classes, there is a huge chance that that student will give up, throw in the towel, and give up on college and an education. However, this is a huge disadvantage to universities, because they are losing money. Universities need their students to graduate in order to make money. Having one in every four students drop out of college is a huge loss for these educational institutions. So the question how do we lower the number of students to drop out arises. What do you think? What can be done to prevent students from dropping out of college? Well, one idea would be to have the professors be “easier” on the students, so that they can get good grades, and have the confidence to continue and graduate from college. Is this idea a good one though? Is it better for students to pass the class with the bare minimum? Should there be more expected from students?
When professors and teachers are easier on their students, the students quickly learn how to pass the class by doing the least amount of work. In other words, the student learns how to “beat the system”. This means that students understand that they don’t have to study as much, or don’t have to do as much homework as they usually do, but they can still pass the class with a decent grade. There are also students that work hard, and that put in a lot of time studying and understanding the material, but they are getting the same grade as the students that are “beating the system”. Is this fair? Is it fair for the students that are working hard for their education? Are these students being cheated? What do you think? In my opinion, they are. How is it fair that the students who are putting in hours upon hours studying are getting the same grades as the students who are putting forth the bare minimum? Something needs to change.
I think that going to college and getting a higher education is a privilege. Students need to understand that getting a college education is not meant to be easy, its hard work that pays off in the end. I think that educational institutions are doing their students a huge disfavor by expecting less from them just so that they can have a higher number of students graduate. So how do these universities increase the number of students graduating without lowering the expectations for their students? In my opinion they need to keep their expectations high for their students, because that is how they are going to grow and learn. In the beginning, I think that the number of students dropping is going to stay the same if not increase, but over time those numbers will rise, because people are going to realize that they need a college education to live the life that they want to. They will learn how to study and work hard for their education. If they want it bad enough, they will put in the effort it takes to graduate.
Another thing that caught my attention during the video was the difference between a professor and a teacher. Do you think there is a difference between the two? According to the video there is. A professor is someone who “professes” things. They don’t really care about the success of their students. They don’t have a lot of one-on-one interaction with their students, instead they have a teacher’s assistant (TA) teach the students the things that they don’t understand. On the other hand a teacher is someone who cares about their students, and wants them to progress and succeed. Their office is open to students who need extra help, they have a desire to help their students, and they will do whatever they can in order for their students to succeed. I think that there needs to be more teachers than professors in the college scene. You might argue that there is no way a professor with 200 kids in their class to be able to help every student that needs help. A solution to this problem would be to lower class sizes. There are a variety of different solutions to this problem. Professors need to make themselves teachers. If they were to care about the success of their students, I think that the number of students dropping out of college would decrease, and in the end the college or university would continue to make money.
As a college student, I have attended a variety of colleges and universities. As a freshman, I attended Snow College. It’s a little JV school in central Utah. I loved it there because I had teachers versus professors. My teachers at Snow cared about me, and they wanted me to succeed. They always had office hours open where I was able to meet with them about questions that I had while learning the material. My class sizes were small, which made it easier for me to ask questions in class, and have more one-on-one time with my teachers. After I finished my time at Snow College, I attended Brigham Young University. My experience at BYU was completely different from my experience at Snow. I had around 300 students in my classes, and my professors could care less about the grade I was getting, or if I was understanding the material. I saw the class TA more than I saw my professor in some of my classes. I only attended BYU for one semester, because I felt like it didn’t matter what grades I was getting, because no one cared. I expected more from my professors to help me succeed in my classes. I then transferred to Westminster College. Westminster is a liberal arts school, meaning that there is more one-on-one time for the students to meet with their teachers. My grades are the highest they have ever been here. Out of the three schools I have attended, Westminster is by far my favorite. Not only because I get a lot of one-one-one time with my teachers, but because they expect a lot from me, and because I have high expectations, my grades are high. They don’t lower their expectations for me just so that I will get good grades. They are hard on me, but they also help me through the things that I don’t understand. I am growing and gaining a better education because they are hard on me, and because they expect a lot from me.
I think this is the key to successful education. Educational institutions need to push their students, not lower their expectations. College was not meant to be easy, it was meant to push you, so that you would learn and grow. If colleges and universities would have more one-on-one interaction with their students, I think that you would see an increase on the number of students graduating with good grades, and a good education.
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