Wednesday, May 2, 2018

Educational Malpractice


You will find this hard to believe, but college has become a racket. American college, that is. 

John Leo has the story (via Maggie's Farm) and it is not encouraging.

First, he notes the results of the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress report on high school graduates. How proficient are they in math and languages? Not very proficient at all.

Whatever they are doing, America’s high schools are not teaching much of anything. Leo explains:

The nation’s public schools are a mess. Only 37 percent of 12th graders tested proficient in reading and only 25 percent in math. 

Proficient is a baseline. We are not talking about excellence… which, under these circumstances, feels like a joke.

And yet, lack of proficiency does not prevent these students from going to college:

Yet the inability to read or do math seems to be no barrier to college. Unprepared students are flooding into college in record numbers.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics says 70 percent of white high-school graduates and 58 percent of black graduates in 2016 enrolled in college. In his syndicated column, veteran columnist Walter E. Williams asks, “If only 37 percent of white high school graduates test as college-ready, how come colleges are admitting 70 percent of them? And if roughly 17 percent of black high school graduates test as college-ready, how come colleges are admitting 58 percent of them? It’s inconceivable that college administrators are unaware that they are admitting students who are ill-prepared and cannot perform at the college level. “

How do colleges adapt to the situation? They dumb down the curriculum, by offering a great deal of remedial education. That is, with the coursework that students should have completed in high school.

That’s why more than 200 colleges put more than half of incoming freshmen in one or more remedial classes. Colleges keep searching for unchallenging courses that barely literate students can pass.

Of course, there is also grade inflation. Anything but allowing these students to learn that they have been lied to throughout their school years. They have been lied to by teachers who puffed up their self-esteem by feeding them a diet of unearned praise.

Beyond the remedial education, colleges have instituted a series of programs in what are called “studies,” which are designed for students who could never survive in real courses.

Leo continues, quoting Williams:

Williams says one clue to badly watered-down classes is the word “studies,” as in ethnic studies, cultural studies, gender studies and American studies. And what major is most selected by ill-prepared students? Education, Williams says. When students’ SAT scores are ranked by intended majors, education ranks 26th on a list of 38. I’m not sure about what can be done about education,” Williams writes. “But the first step toward any solution is for the American people to be aware of academic fraud at every level of education.”

Of course, it’s an academic fraud. One suspects that it must be good business. Classrooms and dormitories are filled with students who are forced to borrow their way through school, only to end up, assuming that the graduate, being barely proficient.

What do you think happens when these students enter the workforce and discover that they cannot compete? Will they vote for socialist candidates who will provide them with cradle-to-grave security? Will they complain about discrimination?

America’s schools have chosen to teach children to become culture warriors, to think the politically correct thoughts, to vote for the most left-wing candidates. It is educational malpractice on a very grand scale.

4 comments:

  1. I am a college graduate of a demanding liberal arts program, and completed two graduate degrees. I spend more than $20K per year in continuing professional development and education. I believe ongoing personal and professional development is essential in the pursuit of excellence, and leads to greater accumulation of wealth, prosperity and personal satisfaction. I am also an adjunct professor at a nationally recognized college, an instructor in recreational pursuits I care about, and a counselor to persons seeking professional development in my field. I value education, and believe lifelong learning keeps us fresh. Passing on knowledge, skills and learning is a magnificent contribution toward making the world a better place.

    And that is why I find today’s educational and credentialimg environment such a disgrace. Today’s higher education system is a scam. Colleges and universities are bloated with overpaid administrators. Tenure is no longer about academic freedom, but is instead rank rent-seeking. Someone should open a RICO investigation on institutions of higher education that accept federal monies — which Is almost all of them. Most of today’s liberal arts departments (especially _____ studies) are ideological indoctrination mills, public works programs designed to mint militant activists with no ethical or moral compass whatsoever. Graduates go into four fields: (1) government, (2) education, (3) nonprofits, or (4) unemployment.

    Look into those remedial programs. I guarantee you they carry credit hours. People pay for credit hours. Colleges and universities are winning either way.

    One thing’s for sure in today’s environment: everyone feels good about themselves, and confident in their beliefs. Which is a huge symptom of the problem. That’s what kindergarten was for. It’s ass backwards.

    And I’ve always loved John Leo’s writing. Good to see his name again.

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  2. ☝️☝️ As Anonymous says.

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  3. The college's question is not can they do the work, but can they pay to attend? That's what's (capital I) Important. The Left does not want smart people, they want compliant, indoctrinated people.

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  4. The Gramscians told us they were gonna do it and we still let them.

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