Project 3: Part A

Dominic Ramos
April 23, 2014
English 220
Education and the American dream
INTRODUCTION
There is no question that education in America is taken for granted. For most, we see
education as something that is as natural as waking up in the morning. It is only when our
education is compared to cultures and minorities that have no education that we really see what a
privilege it is to be educated. What learning means to cultures deprived of education is power. To
be educated is to be a step closer to equality for a woman or a way out of poverty for a family.
To me, education is a step closer to everything I want in life. In this paper I will discuss how
education can get me a step closer to that iconic American dream and dissect our current
educational system in the same way.
ANALYSIS
When I dream of a perfect education it involves tailoring school to the career field I want
to work in. This shouldnt just be available in college but high school as well. One of the biggest
problems I see with our school systems today is that it is too standardized. Every day through 9
th

to 12
th
grade every student wakes up at the same time, takes the same classes, and takes the same
test. This continues through college except they label it as pre-requisites. This would be fine if
everyone was the same. However, the one thing that people can agree on whether they are
religious or an atheist is that everyone is different. So why cant our education system treat
people as individuals and not as robots being assembled in a factory. A study conducted by Joe
Boaler compared students gain in mathematics compared to other high schools simply by
applying un-standardized ways of teaching and learning. In the study, the math department
implemented new ways of teaching such as having students work out problems in groups. The
students responded by having a greater appreciation for math and testing higher in math than the
other schools in their district (Boaler). This study showed that when students learn in an
environment that is tailored to the students themselves, we see a positive correlation to learning.
This is the complete opposite of a normal high school in which students are subjected to a system
that still faces a high dropout rate among freshman. The students that were studied in Boelers
tests were later subjected scrutiny because they scored poorly on the SAT. Boaler goes on to say
that there are many problems with the SAT that confuse students. For example, Boaler states that
the SAT does not give credit to students that get a problem with multiple answers right. Instead,
the SAT gives only one correct answer to each question.
INTERPRETATION
From my experience in high school, education wise, two things come to mind. First, I
remember my freshman and sophomore year as being a mix of do what youre told, take these
classes, and dont mess up. Second, I remember my junior and senior year as do what you
want, score high on your ACT/SAT, and dont mess up. I can still hear my parents and advisors
nagging me about scoring high on a test that I was under prepared for. Even some of my teachers
at the time would tell us that there was just not enough classes to cover everything on the test. It
seemed that even my teachers knew we were being set up for failure. I felt like everyone was
going through the motions especially the staff. Other than the occasional rough draft paper
handed out asking what we want to be, as if we were doing a homework assignment for our 4
th

grade English class, no one really implemented ways to help you pursue your dreams in high
school. Like I stated before, we might as well just of stood on an assembly line while teachers
shout lessons and lectures at us. The result will be the same and just like it is currently the ones
who cant take it will drop out. People will forget about those dropouts and they will fall into the
service industry. The ones who graduate will go to college with four years of practicing how to
solve an equilateral triangle and no idea of how to do taxes, apply for jobs, or any other life skills
that actually pertain to living. This graph shows a small sample size of dropout rates from 2005-
2010 from a district in Boston Massachusetts. As we can see, dropout rates average out to about
12%. Even though rates fluctuate over the years, we still see the highest rates in minority groups.
Minorities have the highest dropout rates because minority groups tend to live in the inner city
ghettos and dont view education as a necessity. Minority groups seem to value family more than
they do education.

ANALYSIS
So what is the American dream? How does our educational system help us achieve it?
America tells us that we can be whoever/whatever we want as long as we go through school, get
a degree, and work hard to get where we want to be. It is clear that we perceive our dreams as
attainable through the sweat off our brow and the ache in our back. In other words, through
education, we can achieve that iconic white picket fence, double car garage, and pure breed
golden retriever. Or maybe the American dream is a lie. The real American dream might consist
of anti-depressants, McDonalds hamburgers, and an eternity of debt from school loans to house
loans etc. The truth is that the dream might depend more on your parents income than your
drive. Steve Hargreaves of CNN Money states that 47% of Americans will end up in the same
social class as their parents. Hargreaves argues one reason is that America has a greater current
equality than other countries The more unequal a society is currently, the greater the chance that
the children will be stuck in the same sphere. This is because wealthy families are able to provide
things like tutors and extracurricular activities (Hargreaves). I find this ironic in that we are a
country that both promotes individualism and a promise of the American dream, yet, these two
principles conflict each other. Its simple, kids that have access to a higher education and who
can afford it have a better chance at living a life with financial security.
Whatever the American dream may be, it still gives me one thing, hope. If anything, the
possibility of a dream in which I can have a family, own a house with some land, have a couple
cars in the garage and ultimately retire at a decent age drives me. It is unfortunate that the odds
are against those citizens that are born into a family with low income. However, I am very
fortunate to live in a family that makes over $150,000 (combined) a year. I have been blessed to
have privileges that others did not have. According to Steve Hargreaves I have a better chance
than most to achieve the American dream. I also am fortunate to have seen both sides of the
spectrum. I have attended both public school and private school. Even though my parents can
afford to send me to college there is still no guarantee that I will achieve success. In fact, the
only dropout rate amongst freshman in high school is of that in college.
INTERPRETATION
We have to ask ourselves what drives us to stay in school and continue our education. In
Platos Allegory of the cave he uses the imagery of the cave to state that education is something
that you have to pursue on your own. But our argument indicates that the power of learning
inheres to every ones soul, Its as if we couldnt turn our eye from the dark to the bright without
turning our whole body (The Republic) this asks the question of what turns our body? What
forces us to turn our whole body rather than take a peeking glance back is something that moves
us. To simplify, I want a career in fitness, I might take a glance back at calculus because its
something that I have to complete for my major and otherwise have no interest in. Taking classes
that are going to help me be a better business manager might even bore me but it is still essential
to learn. What makes me turn my whole body towards education is the dream. That I can be in
control of my own establishment. A dream in which I can be a successful entrepreneur and be I
upper middle to high class citizen. This is what gets me up at 7am every morning to shove off to
a school in which I have to pay thousands of dollars to attend. Its high risk high reward.
I think of Malala and the struggles she had to endure to get a basic education. Education
might be routine in America but where Malala lives she fights for equal education for women
every day. My favorite quote from Malalas interview at Oxford gives an example of the power
of education. Later on when I saw terrorists and they were speaking against education and
especially the education of girls, I realized at that time that this education, these books, these
pens are something really important and they were afraid (Malala). Malala shows us that
education is taken for granted in America. All over the world people fight for the right to learn. I
am thankful for education because I know what it means to someone who doesnt have it or had
to fight for it like Malala. I also know that my education could be so much better.
When thinking about my personal education I keep people like Malala in mind. I hope
that one day my education can get me to a place where I can help people in the fight for equal
education. Since our higher education costs so much both physically and financially, my
education should entail things that I want. When looking at my college education here are some
dreams that my education should fulfill. I want my education to be a tree with a sturdy trunk that
covers the essentials. Out of this trunk are many branches leading off to different paths and
career choices. I want my education to have a safety net if I fall. If I fall I want a second chance.
Most of all I want to be challenged, intrigued, and enlightened on the things that interest me. I
dont want my education to be something I go through the motions with. I dont want to take
standardized tests and I dont want to be cast aside in the general population.
When I say that I want my education to be like a tree with a sturdy trunk Im saying that
my education should have some standardization. The right standardization though, one that
shows students how to deal with problems in everyday life such as taxes or applying for jobs. A
tree with a sturdy trunk can have a long life and support many branches. Mostly, I want my
education to have many paths I can go on, sturdy branches that I can jump from one to another if
I choose too. The career fields that Im interested in might change over the course of four years
and if I choose to switch I dont want to start over again taking more pre-requisites to continue in
that field. Its a far climb up this tree and a fall could ruin me. I want my education to have a
safety net. If I fall below my GPA required to keep my lottery scholarship, I should be able to
keep it if the next year I receive the required GPA or higher. My college education should
challenge me. Just like a sporting event I want to have educational coaches that push me to be
my best. I want to be conflicted because overcoming adversity is a part of life and my education
should prepare me for that. Through overcoming hardship I can grow as a person and as a
student. I want my education to be fun as well. I want to participate in experiments, voice my
opinions, compare and contrast views, and debate topics with professors and classmates. Classes
should be based on student feedback on how we want to learn and what works best for us. I
believe that all of the ideas stated should be available because college is so expensive.
CollegeData.com is a statistical site that averages out how much it costs to attend college.
The cost for one year of tuition and fees varies widely among colleges. According to the
College Board, the average cost of tuition and fees for the 20132014 school year was
$30,094 at private colleges, $8,893 for state residents at public colleges, and $22,203 for
out-of-state residents attending public universities (CollegeData).
Thousands of dollars that we have to pay to get a good education means that we as the students
should have a major say in how are education is conducted.
CONCLUSION
There are many good things that our education system provides. Even though it is an
expensive pursuit it is vital to have a basic education. It gives us the tools to live and opens doors
that we can walk through. For some its a drug, a lifelong pursuit to explore, discover, and learn
the world around us. Education is important for advances in science, technology, and medicine.
Education is what society deems mandatory for every American citizen to have. I view education
in a different way. Education is what gets me closer to my simple American dream. A good job
where I can support a family, own a house, and have luxuries like cars and pets. All the pursuit to
give my kids a head start on their education as my parents have done for me. One of my favorite
quotes growing up is from John Lennon. When asked in school what he wanted to be when he
grew up he said happy. His teacher responded in stating that he did not understand the
assignment. In which he replied you dont understand life. I relate to this because my
American dream is simply to be happy. Education is my bridge.

















Work Cited
Joe Boaler. "When Learning no Longer Matters standardized testing and the creation of
inequality." Phi Delta Kappan. (2003): 502-506. Stanford University.

Larson, Raymond. The Republic Plato. AHM Publishing Corporation, 1979. Harvard University.

Hargreaves, Steve. "The Myth of the American Dream." money.cnn.com. 18 Dec. 2013.

Yousafzai, Malala. "Malala Yousafzai | Education for All | Oxford Union." Online video clip.
YouTube. YouTube, Dec. 13, 2013

https://www.collegedata.com/cs/content/content_payarticle_tmpl.jhtml?articleId=10064