A COLLEGE EDUCATION...NOT WORTH THE BIG BUCKS -- The High Price of Campus Political Correctness!

ICONOCLAST ^ | By Wendy McElroy

[clintonbaiter]

Parents should read two new reports on education before sending children onto a campus in North America. What passes for education at many universities is not merely an intellectual embarrassment; it is also tremendously expensive. Fortunately, there is good news for the future: a spotlight is now shining on the problems, and students in the near future may receive the quality education for which their parents pay, both through tuition and taxes.

The first study, Death of the Liberal Arts? was released last month by the Independent Women's Forum. Melana Zyla Vickers examined the curricula of the top ten liberal arts colleges as ranked by the authoritative U.S. News and World Report. She concluded, "Even at the best...freshmen can't obtain a sound education in history, literature, and other fundamentals of civilization."

Some of the knowledge that freshmen will not find includes any course on Shakespeare at Bowdoin, any overview of American history at Amherst, and any overview of any literary period at Swarthmore. Meanwhile, freshmen at William College can explore such esoteric areas as an English course on "man's desire...to take, order, idealize and copy nature's bounty while humanizing, plundering and destroying the environment" -- even though there is no comprehensive course in history.

Only three colleges offer students "a course that could roughly be termed Western Civilization." Only three receive a "pass". That is, they provide a comprehensive introduction to English, History, and Political Science, which constitute the basics of a Liberal Arts education.

Yet the cost for a freshman to graduate from one of the "top ten" could run as high as $120,000.

A second report, Trends in College Pricing 2003 -- issued by College Board, a non-profit schools association -- states, "college tuition and fees increased an average of $579 at four-year public institutions, $1,114 at four-year private institutions, and $231 at two-year public institutions" in 2002.

Most students will pay less tuition than listed in catalogues but their parents, as taxpayers, will still be foot the bill. The report explains, "Almost 60 percent of undergraduates receive some form of financial aid to help them pay for college." In that regard, 2002 to 2003 saw a record amount of student financial aid -- $105 billion.

Although a significant amount went to student loans that are supposed to be repaid, "over $40 billion of [non-repayable] grant aid was distributed to college students by federal and state governments and by colleges and universities."

Using research from the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES), Neal McCluskey of Cato Institute offers the ratio of tax to private funding. "More than half of public universities' revenues -- $79 billion -- were extracted directly from federal, state, and local taxpayers, while only 18.5 percent came from student fees and tuition."

For good reason, an increasing number of parents are questioning whether the money -- public or private -- is well used.....

[LindaHarr]

On the subject of homeschooling:
Homeschooling is legal and thriving in the UK.
Their web site is "Education Otherwise".
We homeschool here in Italy. There is a message board on the subject:

http://communities.msn.com/HomeschoolingFamiliesinItaly

Homeschooling sure saves money when a spouse gets a job abroad. Milan, Italys's "American School", a private school where they teach in English, costs $12,000 a year. For elementary school. Ouch.

[Porterville]

If you know how to use college, an education is worth the bankroll. If you let your kids just take liberal arts classes, you are letting your kid take on a life of meritocracy and depression. However, less competition for me

[Porterville]

Mediocrity= Meritocracy .... wow, thank God I don't rely on my grammar to make a living
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