EDU 508 Assignment Four

Jasmin Brown

Strayer University

Dr. Jewell Winn

EDU 508

May 7, 2018

Dynamics of Higher education and Low-income Students

Introduction to the topic

The higher-education in the recent times due to high demand for workers with quality skills have become an absolute necessity. As a matter of reality, employers seek for employees who have the best skills and knowledge, and all these are obtained through higher-education learning. On realization of this, the higher education sector has been on the front line to improve the quality of education to make the students who pursue high-education course competent and eligible for available employment opportunities. It is a reality that the world today due to advanced technology has also diversified in areas of specialization, and this has also made the higher education section to be dynamic as well. The dynamic nature of high education has made the higher-education demanding and costly to the extent that a majority of students from low-income class cannot manage to afford. It is for this reason that other higher-education learning institutions have been established that offers the same course for a much lower cost. Nevertheless, issues have been raised that higher-education institutions charging less do not provide the same quality of education as those offering the same courses for a higher price.

Purpose of research

According to a research conducted by Bastedo & Jaquette, (2011); it was proved that wealthy student's number in different higher-education institutions have been on the rise something that was said to affect the socioeconomic effect of students from low-income class. The reason is that the quality of education is different between institutions that can be afforded by wealthy students and institutions for low-income students. Again, the research proved that between 1972 and 2004, the qualities of education on low-income students institutions have improved, but still equality between the two institutions have not been attained. The findings of the research were that if inequality is reduced between wealthy and low-income students' the low-income communities and the society at large would benefit. The purpose of the research is to determine the inequalities that exist between wealthy students' higher-education institutions and low-income students institutions. Also, the research strives to investigate, how the present inequality can be reduced hence making the quality of education to be the same in the dynamic learning institutions.

Problem statement

Higher-education learning institutions have established the quality of the education that they provide to the students based on the charges being levied upon students. Institutions for the wealthy students have a higher quality education as compared to institutions for the low-income students (Bastedo & Jaquette, 2011). The main challenge is that providing low-income students with a lesser quality education contributes to the continued non-development and reduced levels of personal growth. This is a situation that also affects the societies that low-income students come from and the nation as well because the inequality makes the employer classify the two types of students differently.

Literature summary

The issue of inequality in the higher-education sector has been a bone of contention issue for a long time. Many scholars and authors have researched extensively on the issue because of the massive clear difference between wealthy student’s higher learning institutions and the low-income institutions. According to Astin, & Oseguera, (2004); in America, there has been a case of declining equality in higher education where low-income students do not get a quality education, and hence they exit learning institutions without ample knowledge and skills as compared to wealthy students. According to Bielby et al., (2011); inequality in higher learning institutions is evident, and the impact is severe on students of the female gender from the low-income economic status. In this article, the authors claim that the failure to empower students equally because of their socioeconomic status difference is an issue that affects the individual students, their parents and families, society, and the entire nation. The reason is that these people continue being dependent on survival basis.

Jerrim, Chmielewski, & Parker, (2015); in their article claims that the high-education institutions access requirements set are the determinants that hinder students from low-income class to obtain admission. The reason is that in most institutions, the requirements are costly and this is the point where inequality is commenced and extended to the quality of education. According to Posselt et al., (2012); a majority of low-income students are from minority races in the US, and this can be said to be the reason why they never get to the same level regarding career progression as their white, wealthy students counterparts. In support of this claim, Alon, (2009); states that when a student is empowered with high-quality education, he/she becomes competitive in the labor market because the student has the right knowledge, skills, and attitude to approach a highly competitive market.

Gaps in the literature

It is a good thing that the selected literature have all focused on one point which is the dynamics of higher education and the low-income students. However, some gaps exist between the opinions, ideas, and research findings of the different kinds of literature used. One of the gaps is that some literature differs in the contributing factor to higher education dynamics and how the low-income students are affected by low-quality education. For instance, some pieces of the literature base their arguments on gender, others on ethnicity and race, and others on education sector policies.

Another gap is on the development being realized from the present inequality in the quality of education. The latter is in the sense that some works of literature claim that the issue of inequality is being addressed and remarkable improvement had been recorded. On the other hand, there is literature that claims that there is no progress being recorded and that the reality is different where the situation is becoming worse.

Research hypotheses or question

What are the effective measures that can be out in place to promote equality in the high education sector to ensure both the wealthy and low-income students access the same quality of education?

Research proposed theory

Different factors over the years have contributed to changes in lifestyles and cost of living and the impact have been pushed to the education sector as well. Over the years, the cost of education has tremendously increased, and this has left the government through the education sector to increase the cost of education. Sadly, the people from low-income class because they are not empowered in any way are left in the same position despite the changes around them. Again, the fact that even the people from low-income class want to get educated than have to be given an education that they can afford which definitely cannot equal to the quality of education that the wealthy can afford to access. Hence, it is only through the government establishing strategies through which the low-income students can be supported either through sponsorship or government grants to help them access same quality education as the wealthy students. With quality education, students from low-income class will be empowered to promote the society that they come from and also extend a hand of help to institutions offering low-quality education hence reducing the dynamics and levels of inequality.

References

Alon, S. (2009). The evolution of class inequality in higher education: Competition, exclusion, and adaptation. American Sociological Review, 74(5), 731-755.

Astin, A. W., & Oseguera, L. (2004). The declining" equity" of American higher education. The Review of Higher Education, 27(3), 321-341.