Cost of Education
The rising cost of education is rapidly becoming unaffordable for a majority of Americans. This inflation is making higher education out of reach for the majority of the people inside the United States. The cost for a college tuition is unreasonably high but families will pay for it because it is an investment. It is an investment which carries a very high return which is why they will sacrifice their yearly income.
With an already high unemployment rate, desperate college graduates are scrambling around trying to get hired. The supply of graduates with degrees is very high, however the demand is microscopic. Even with a limited supply of jobs, having a post-secondary degree or credential is almost a prerequisite when having a chance at these fast growing jobs. The cost of going to college is the most essential factor when determining which school to go to as well as if someone can attend a college and with recent inflation of the cost we may be heading into a future with a lower educated society. Education affects a society in which almost no other factor could possibly produce. There are countless social benefits that education imposes on a society and the vast variety of these benefits can range from containing violence all the way to improving an individual’s overall health.
These are only two very large effects on society brought about by education but it is important to ask ourselves why we want an educated society or what is the purpose of having one if there are not enough jobs to fulfill the population. Education not only influences the entire society but also on an individual. In Alan Moore’s “The Watchmen”, Adrian Veidt, a.k.a. Ozymandias is a character who attains incredible intelligence and uses the concept of education through media by marketing a magazine he published called “The Veidt Method.
” In short, this magazine were attempts to sell the average man a better version of himself. He deemed this possible to the audience by creating his method with several different courses, each of which designed to make each person a completely better individual. Veidt’s courses were designed to make a better body, increased confidence, and advanced mental techniques. The entire concept of the Veidt method is just marketing through media but he succeeds so well in it because he doesn’t only target certain individuals but rather the entire society. Getting away from The Watchmen, all of the courses that the Veidt method includes, which is designed to make a utopian society all come from the basis of education.
I’m now going compare all of the alleged results one is supposed to attain from the Veidt method to some of the outcomes and possibilities of education. Through education, individuals experience moral fulfillment, social and physical well-being which is directly related through Veidt’s idea of increased confidence. As well as increased confidence, education results in a better general knowledge about the human lifestyle which leads to both better performances in an individual’s job or workplace and by improving their overall health (Veidt’s promise of a better body and advanced mental techniques.) Finally, with increased confidence, a healthier physique, and more conventional knowledge, individuals in society would promote active citizenship and contain violence. In the Netherlands, education is free. In the United states the average cost for the 2013-2014 year in-state, public college tuition was $23,000.
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) ranked the education Netherlands as the 9th best in the world, compared to the United State’s 22nd best in the world. This means that not only is the education in the Netherlands is cheaper, but also is a better quality of education. Recently, as of 2013, the Dutch justice ministry has announced there are 19 prisons scheduled to be closed caused by a continued decline in crime rates. The reason why I have thrown these statistics and articles at you is to provide evidence of why having an educated society is so important. With such a high quality of education that is basically available to all Dutch citizens, it is not surprising that the Netherlands also has one of the lowest crime rates making it one of the safest countries in the world to live in. Although there may never be any real direct and solid evidence of why education is so essential of why it makes the world a better place, it is obvious to me that it is a very important part of life.
Hopefully for most people including myself, wish for an educated human population in the future where everyone can live their lives vicariously without hostility, so that our next generation can be as fortunate as ourselves. After all, knowledge is power!
