College for All

Additionally, many students fail in their college course work because they don’t know how to follow directions, and they don’t know how to manage their time. Returning adult students are often single parents striving to make a better life for their children, but they first must find a way to balance family, school and work. They make the mistake of thinking that they need to find a large block of time to study for classes and complete assignments. When that block of time doesn’t appear, they feel pressured and often give up. Instead, they need to learn to take every available moment of free time and put it to productive use.  Young and older students alike are also faced with the task of learning to read and follow instructions.  Quite often, I am forced to give a failing grade to a paper not because it was poorly written but because it did not conform to the specifics of the assessment.  Or, they fail to turn in work on time and are not prepared to take deductions or face the fact that not all professors are willing to accept late work. In secondary school settings, there is so much pressure to make sure that all students pass the grade level that teachers are often willing to take any and all work regardless of when it is turned in. At the college level, there is a higher level of personal responsibility placed on the student, as well as a greater degree of accountability, that many of them are not prepared to face.

For some students, ultimately, college is not the right choice. There are people in this world who really do not have the skills or intellect that are required of them at the college level. This is not meant as a means of discrimination, but merely as a fact. Perhaps these individuals are talented in other areas that they should be encouraged to explore. By putting all of the focus on the need to obtain a degree in order to have worth as an individual, we are negating the fact that there are certainly occupations and endeavors that do not require nor do they need a piece of paper to give them credence. Admissions counselors and the media, however, have made it seem that unless an individual has a college degree he or she will not be able to get anywhere in this world. Let me let you in on a secret. The media is paid to say that by the colleges, and the admissions representatives who encourage underprepared students to sign on the dotted line and start class anyway are largely operating on commission just like any other salesperson. They want students to succeed, but they are more concerned with meeting quotas.

Education should be available to all. However, no one should be encouraged to enter college unprepared. Expanded availability of remedial level coursework, focused training for certain jobs, and a “return to high school” program for those students who truly want to succeed in college some day would be a far better way to improve the overall educational level of Americans. Making sure that all are prepared for college is the first step to truly making a college level education available to all.