The Value Assigned to a College Education - Essay Example

Henry is implying that college is no longer a source of education. This is especially true when he added that “college education is these days a mere rite of passage, a capstone to adolescent party time”.  In effect, Henry is saying that going to college is a mere excuse to party where students do not learn anything except to have fun.  College is reduced to a mere rite of passage and not a way where can be enlightened or educated.   When Henry mentioned that college is a mere rite of passage, it was a statement of condescension if not derision because college is no longer a source of education where one can learn and get better but something that a person has to go through just like a ritual.  And one does not necessarily learn anything when he passed through a ritual.  When it is reduced to a mere rite of passage, it is like comparing college to male circumcision which is a rite of passage among males in certain societies to become “certified adult”.

PROMPT: “College graduates are winners in part because colleges attract people who are already n that could certify somebody as educated that would separate him or her from the rest of the crowd.    

            I do not necessarily agree with Henry that college is a mere rite of passage because people who go there have actual cognitive intelligence to overcome the academic rigors of college. Their mere act of going there and going through the entrance tests is already enough justification that people who go to college are educated and have the right attitude to succeed in life because of their effort to be better through an academic institution.  Even assuming for the sake of argument, people who go to college are generally educated even without formal credentialing compared to those who did not go to college.  This attests that college is not a mere rite of passage but rather an actual learning process where students study to be better.

Read More