Philosophy and Debate in School
Gaston Collins
Verrado High School
English IV
In your lifetime, it is destined that you will meet someone so convicted in their own ideals, they will fight you, science, and all manner of fact and logic to further push their own understanding upon others. This behavior is unacceptable in any regard and the role of teaching individuals how to formulate opinions and use reasoning to defend them must be filled. Philosophy and debate should be taught as a requirement to graduate high school because it offers improvements to language, introspection, critical thinking, and prepares students for a career or college.
High School graduates today are not ready for life after school, particularly in regards to college
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The course would entail students learning about philosophy and its many components as well as students learning the proper methods of convincing others, and formulating opinions and arguments. The University of Washington Department of Philosophy has recorded several students who have made compelling statements in favor of the class saying that it has helped them with critical thinking, asserting themselves, understanding others, evaluating information, and writing skills in general (Why Study Philosophy, ND). This course is celebrated by its students because of its benefits and opportunity for improvement of the self, what is ultimately needed in a …show more content…
Without the implementation of this course, students may never make use of the advantages shown by similar courses. For instance, the University of Washington Department of Philosophy makes the following statement encompassing philosophy; “Philosophy uses the tools of logic and reason to analyze the ways in which humans experience the world. It teaches critical thinking, close reading, clear writing, and logical analysis; it uses these to understand the language we use to describe the world, and our place within it.” (Why Study Philosophy, ND). These things may be taught in a philosophy class, but making the course mandatory for seniors to graduate would ensure they obtain the knowledge that could positively impact them. Moreover, debate would make up the second part of the course as it too offers unique lessons and skills available for students to learn; “According to Dr. Shelly Johnson, author of Everyday Debate, “developing a debater’s mind will help [individuals] think more critically about the world around,” while also “enabling [individuals] to cut through all of the facts and words to find the truth or error in people’s arguments.” (Holmquist, 2016). With the conjunction of these, two concept into one mandatory class, students will stand to gain so much by means of readiness for their
The average age of high school graduates is 18 which constitutes them as adults. Many students believe they can survive on their own right out of high school because they are legally considered
The main point to Caroline Bird’s article is that college has never been able to work its magic for everyone (15). I totally agree with this statement. Many of the high school graduates today are not mature enough to attend college immediately out of high school. Since they have been in school for thirteen years, students are thinking of some “me” time after graduation. They are not ready to settle down in a serious academic environment. My oldest daughter graduated from high school in the spring of 2009 then attended her first semester of college the following fall. She dropped out after her first semester because college was harder than she thought. She was working part-time in addition to going to school full time. There was always an outside distraction to keep her from her studies. Her grades were positive proof that students must be serious about college to gain something from attending to college.
As the economy evolves and the job market continues to get more competitive, it’s becoming harder to have a successful career without some kind of college degree. This creates a belief in many young students that college actually is a commodity, something they must have in order to have a good life. There’s many different factors that influence this mindset, high schools must push the importance of the student’s willingness and drive to further their education. College isn’t just a gateway to jobs, but it is an opportunity to increase knowledge and stretch and challenge the student which in return makes them a more rounded adult and provides them with skills they might lack prior to
Life is never easy, no matter how hard we try to short cut and escape the inevitable difficulties. After college is when life sets in, when work becomes a necessity and we all begin to find a place to settle down. People respond differently to different situations. Some of us embrace the freedom and the ability to earn money and spend money indiscriminately. Others crumple under the social pressures placed on us.
Imagine a cardiovascular surgeon about to crack the sternum of a dying patient; tension is high while the clock of life ticks desperately slower and softer for the poor soul on the cold steel table that saw death the hour before. Is it logical that at that moment the purveyor of life is contemplating whether his freshmen philosophy class back at SMU has thoroughly prepared him for what he is about to do? Not likely. In higher learning institutions, liberal art classes like philosophy are not meant to be directly applied to one’s life or career; however, they are structured and devised to be a strong base that the individual can expand upon through scientific learning and experience. This is precisely the reason colleges and universities require and place much emphasis on these classes; nevertheless, there has been a shift away from the liberal arts towards the direction of highly specialized areas of science and business because of their growing integration in everyday life. Although people need a limited number of liberal arts classes to attain a basic understanding of ourselves and our evolution, state universities are aptly moving towards technical education, because, in this fast paced world, many people don’t have the time or money to spend studying the humanities alone.
In short, what's gained from studying philosophy is not so much the material as the method: developing an ability to discuss and to understand things to a greater degree and in a greater context.
It would create a stronger future for our children, helps teach quality, and helps the parents that do not have the time to teach their children these things. Visualization: Imagine being able to leave high school with a better knowledge of how to balance a textbook, create a simple meal, pay taxes, or buy a house. We would all be more motivated to have an even more successful future.
It seems as though the majority of college students these days aren’t looking to further their education because it’s what they really want, they do it to please their parents, to be accepted by society, or because there’s nothing else for them to do (Bird, 372). These expectations have led to students being unhappy and stressed, and have pushed them into a school or a job that they don’t particularly care for.
As students near the end of the academic year, they are constantly faced with some of the same choices the generations before them have been presented with too. The biggest question a lot of seniors in high school have to answer is if they are going to be attending college or not. There are a lot of legitimate reasons as to why a person might not attend a college, but I personally feel like everybody should have a higher education if they have the opportunity to do so. One of the biggest reasons that people do not have the opportunity to pursue higher levels of school is the fact that they do not have enough money to pay for it. With the staggering amount of debt, the majority of students incur in college, it is becoming a
First of all, many high school graduates cannot handle college. Isabel V. Sawhill and Stephanie Owen describe college as a place, “one can obtain a traditional four-year bachelor’s degree”. The work load outside of the classroom could be compared to working a full time job. For example, if a student is enrolled in four college courses and is in class a minimum of four hours the student should spend at least four to six hours of studying. This may be extremely agitating and stressful to a student that is not good at studying. The new college student may realize that the schoolwork is too much for him to handle and instead drop out. In Pharinet’s blog post, Is College for Everyone? He states that “…it is estimated that in the U.S., approximately 50% of students who begin college never graduate. There exist students who are not yet ready for the academic and financial challenges of college. There exist students who do not have the desire for college or learning.” This statement is important because if 50% of students that begin college never gradua...
The completion of high school is the beginning of adult life. Entitlement to public education ends, and young people and their families are faced with many options and decisions about the future. The most common choices for the future are pursuing vocational training or further academic education, getting a job, and living independently.
When someone is younger they look forward to the milestones in their life in which they hope to see. A couple of them will be the beginning High school and then College. Those two events are two different jumps most people will take in their life. At first the student may begin to become intimidated by the fact they will be entering college. When a students begins their high school career they will immediately begin to start looking forward to college, and the freedoms in which it brings. Once the student graduates and starts their college career they realize there are a lot of things in college that high schools have in common, as well as many differences in which they did not expect.
Situations that philosophy would be useful in my life are to do with important decisions that informing an opinion about would be very helpful such as career options, place to live, and motivational use. To form a philosophy would be very helpful for me when deciding a career because without a preference I would have the same path in life as everyone else or none at all. In deciding on a place to live when I’m older a philosophy will be crucial in deciding what I find is ideal in a living space and location. To gather motivation you have to have goals and to have a philosophy such as ‘you should do what you have to do now, to do what you want later.’ Philosophy is probably the most important in the times for me to make the most important decisions in your life. It will separate me from the rest, and define my originality.
Individuals in my generation that decide to go away for college may graduate with a degree but they also graduate with debt and have a hard time finding work in their area of study. College graduates are young and many may not have much experience in their field. It is a bittersweet option to go to college and further your education, I am all for it, but I am not for getting yourself in tons of debt, that will cause you to live your whole life paying off student loans and such. Which is one of the reasons why I chose to stay at home and go to community college, I’m saving money while still getting a great education. In earlier generations, people may not have felt that college was important because they needed a job to support themselves and their families. That is understandable because in the early years becoming an adult meant turning of age, 18, getting a job, moving out and starting your own family, but now turning 18 doesn’t mean you automatically are an adult and can move out and start your own life, I have friends that went to college, have a job but still are not able to move out on their own even in their
Not only is it an opportunity to understand ourselves, but we can also learn about teachings form different philosophers that we can apply to other people and in real world. Additionally, philosophy can teaches us the we are not as aware as we think we are. From all the concepts, theories, and teachings from different philosophers that I have been introduced to, I feel as if I still fetus that has yet to be introduced into the actual world. However, I am delighted that I had the opportunity to take a philosophy class and to gain a better understanding of how this world actually works. If it was not for this class, my perspective on how I view the world now would forever be lost in my unimpeded