Re: direct instruction/ Applebee's curriculum

smagor who-is-at aardvark.ucs.uoknor.edu
Sat, 27 Apr 96 09:46:23 -0500

At 09:00 PM 4/26/96 -0400, you wrote:
I think that many students who are not college bound could be if
>they saw some reason, purpose, relevance in doing academic work.

I don't think we can separate academic goals from economic contraints. For
many people it's a choice of how to invest their money, and the
cost/benefits ratio of higher education does not fit with their
resources/goals. At Oklahoma the average undergrad student is 27 years old
and takes 7 years to complete a degree--a consequence usually of economics.
I can understand the plight of the student who chose a course based on its
availability given her graduation timetable--delaying entry into the
workforce for a year costs many thousands of dollars. I really don't see
how we can ignore this reality for students, for whom a college education is
a huge financial commitment and often burden.

Peter

Peter Smagorinsky
University of Oklahoma
College of Education
Department of Instructional Leadership and Academic Curriculum
820 Van Vleet Oval
Norman, OK 73019-0260
(405)325-3533
fax: (405)325-4061
smagor who-is-at aardvark.ucs.uoknor.edu
psmagorinsky who-is-at uoknor.edu