Academic Argument
Dominic Lowman
11/28/12
Engl 102 sec 018
Academic Argument High school students today are all excited about post-college life, which for most means going away to college to further their education. The question is, are they truly being provided the necessary tools needed to be successful at the college levels? Are teachers, counselors, parents and the government both state and federal doing enough to lead these young minds out into the world? We all know how expensive college is and that only a small amount will graduate college and go on to live the life the always dreamed, but without a college education the odds are far worse. So shouldn’t every student who has aspirations of going on to college be awarded a little more preparation? The bottom line is we being parents, teachers, counselors, and the government needs to have better programs available for high school students so that the transition, that is already hard enough, is a little easier; as Benjamin Franklin once said “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” (www.goodreads.com) The National of State Legislature defines college prep programs as “programs aimed to increase college access, particularly for those students who are least likely to enroll. These programs take many forms and serve a variety of students. Some start as early as elementary school, others in the senior year of high school. Some college preparatory programs focus on increasing academic readiness, while others specialize in college admissions or financial aid. Some involve families and mentors, and others incorporate service learning or recreational activities.”(www.ncsl.org/issues-research) What I want to know is where are these programs being used and what are they? In 2007 the NY Times published an article stating that only a quarter of high school students who take a full set of “college prep” courses which include four years of English and three each of mathematics, science and social studies are well prepared for
11/28/12
Engl 102 sec 018
Academic Argument High school students today are all excited about post-college life, which for most means going away to college to further their education. The question is, are they truly being provided the necessary tools needed to be successful at the college levels? Are teachers, counselors, parents and the government both state and federal doing enough to lead these young minds out into the world? We all know how expensive college is and that only a small amount will graduate college and go on to live the life the always dreamed, but without a college education the odds are far worse. So shouldn’t every student who has aspirations of going on to college be awarded a little more preparation? The bottom line is we being parents, teachers, counselors, and the government needs to have better programs available for high school students so that the transition, that is already hard enough, is a little easier; as Benjamin Franklin once said “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” (www.goodreads.com) The National of State Legislature defines college prep programs as “programs aimed to increase college access, particularly for those students who are least likely to enroll. These programs take many forms and serve a variety of students. Some start as early as elementary school, others in the senior year of high school. Some college preparatory programs focus on increasing academic readiness, while others specialize in college admissions or financial aid. Some involve families and mentors, and others incorporate service learning or recreational activities.”(www.ncsl.org/issues-research) What I want to know is where are these programs being used and what are they? In 2007 the NY Times published an article stating that only a quarter of high school students who take a full set of “college prep” courses which include four years of English and three each of mathematics, science and social studies are well prepared for