A recent study conducted by Pew Research says that nearly 6 out of 10 people believe that higher education is going in the wrong direction. While a clear majority think that, Republicans and Democrats differ on the root causes.
The study suggests, “About three-quarters (73%) of Republicans and those who lean to the Republican Party say higher education is headed in the wrong direction. Democrats and Democratic leaners are more evenly split – 52% say higher education is going in the wrong direction and 46% say it’s going in the right direction.”
While many people claim that leftist professors are a cause for the current direction, more people tend to claim that higher tuition prices are causing the downfall of higher education. The ever-growing rise of student loan debt is holding back millions of millennials. While students do take these massive loans out, some quickly found out that its near impossible to land a steady income to pay them back.
Pew further suggests, “Among Americans who say the country’s higher education system is going in the wrong direction, 84% cite high tuition costs as a major reason why they think this is the case. About two-thirds (65%) say students not getting the skills they need in the workplace is a major reason, while roughly half cite colleges and universities being too concerned about protecting students from views they might find offensive (54%) or professors bringing their political and social views into the classroom (50%).”
Another reason many people believe college is heading in the wrong direction is the thought that colleges, the institutions themselves, have failed. According to Inside Higher Ed, Gallup Polls conducted a similar study that claims more people have more faith in higher education than higher education institutions. While perception of higher education is higher, you can’t fail to realize people have an ever-growing doubt about college as an institution.
The Gallup Poll study explains, “The term colleges and universities in a comparative sense evokes more negative reactions than the broader terms higher education or postsecondary education. Thirty-six percent of Americans have a great deal of confidence in higher education, compared with 29% who have a great deal of confidence in postsecondary education and 23% who have a great deal of confidence in colleges and universities.”
Pew Research further explains that both older Republicans and Democrats are more likely to believe professors bringing their politics into is another root cause of why college campuses are heading down a dark path. College professors are overwhelmingly left wing. It’s dangerous to have the vast majority of professors thinking the same way, as is true of a student body.
Especially in a time where free speech is under attack, freedom of speech and expressions is vital to any college campus. Pew Research explains, “A large majority of adults (87%) say it’s more important to allow people to speak their minds freely, even if some students find their views upsetting or offensive, than it is to ensure that students aren’t exposed to views they find upsetting or offensive, even if that limits what people are allowed to say (11% chose this response).”
While there’s a divide over what’s causing this sentiment, it is clear that many are starting to finally wake up and realize that college campuses are failing at a alarming rate.
Mason McKie is a student at Texas State University, studying political science with minors in geography and history.
