Higher Education Challenges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Higher Education Challenges - Essay Example long-standing problems such as racial inequity in education, new challenges like economic recession and falling value of dollar have only made the problem worse to such an extent that it is feared that US needs urgently to reform its higher education system or it will lose its unique position of strength and competitiveness.   (Blue Ribbon Commission) The Blue Ribbon Commission on Higher education further observes: â€Å"Out of every ten 9th graders nationally, only three will obtain an associate’s or bachelor’s degree on time. These results simply are not good enough. We need more people attending and finishing college with a certificate or degree in order to keep up and move up in the global economy.†Ã‚  (Blue Ribbon Commission)    In order to maintain its global competitiveness, the US society should not afford to underestimate the importance of its human resource.   This is even more so important in this new knowledge-based economy where knowledge is its main capital.   Proportion of public funding on higher education has declined over the years in many states.   For example, the state of Connecticut in 1989 received 6.6 percent of the state’s budget.   It declined to 3.9 percent in 1997 and then rose slowly to a peak of 4.5 percent in 2001.   It is again estimated to be 3.9 percent for 2010 budget, matching 1997 low of 3.9 percent.   The trend of reduction in proportional funding within the higher education over the period of 1990s was typical for many states.   This led to the rise in tuition fees for several students.   (Connecticut Public Higher Education)   Such rising costs did not serve the cause of already reeling Blacks and other economically disadvantaged class.   (Johnson)   In the meantime, US has been reduced to only two nations where young population (25-34 years old) is less educated than its older population (35-44 years old)   (Blue Ribbon Commission). This reflects how terrific the situation is, when it comes to higher education.   Over

Colonial Salem, Witch Trials as a quest for power Essay

Colonial Salem, Witch Trials as a quest for power - Essay Example In fact, religion, witches, and Satan may have had less to do with the outcome of the Salem trials than the male/female conflict that permeated the town and the era. Gender attitudes were prescribed by the fundamentalist religion of the time, and religious figures may have had a fear of the women expressing themselves, and a hostility towards their feminist demands. Gender roles and sexism played a key part in the Salem Witch Trials, as the events of 1692 became another chapter in the ongoing struggle that women have confronted in their quest for status, fairness, and justice. Witchcraft has traditionally been stereotyped as the domain of the female gender, as well as being a social construct perpetuated by the dominant male power structure. Witnesses who testified against the witches seemed to "acquiesce in and reinforce theories of witchcraft, developed by theologians and lawyers, which emphasize female weakness—the greater susceptibility of women to temptation; their greater sensual depravity" (Holmes 45). These theories were simply prejudicial stereotypes that had no basis in scientific or social fact. Feminism and gender roles are central to the Salem Witch Trials as they recognize and address the "systems of power and oppression" that existed at the time (Gasser 27). In 1692 Salem, men controlled the political spectrum, only men could vote and hold public office, they were the leaders in the Puritan religion, and owned most of the personal property (Demos 63). These factors would create an environment where women would have few opportunities except to keep their place, not speak out, and acquiesce to male demands. In addition, clinical hysteria was common in the 17th and 18th century when women were denied self-expression and limited in power and status (Hill 22). The charges of witchcraft in 17th century Salem were a manifestation of the womens struggle, and defined as witchcraft only by the male power structure. As the hysteria