HIGHER (PRICED) EDUCATION: Considering How to Counteract the Rising Price of College Tuition

November 10, 2003

HIGHER (PRICED) EDUCATION:
Considering How to Counteract the Rising Price of College Tuition

Grades: 6-8, 9-12

Subjects: Civics, Economics, Language Arts, Social Studies

Related New York Times Article
"Five Truths About Tuition, By CHRISTOPHER SHEA", November 10, 2003

Overview of Lesson Plan:: In this lesson, students learn about the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act. They then synthesize their knowledge by acting as lobbyists representing different special interest groups with opposing perspectives on the proposed bill.

SUGGESTED TIME ALLOWANCE:
45 minutes - 1 hour

OBJECTIVES:
Students will:

Speculate about the annual expenditures of a student attending a public institution of higher education; learn about the annual expenditures of one University of Maryland student.
Examine different perspectives on rising college tuitions by reading and discussing "Five Truths About Tuition."
Research a particular group's perspective regarding the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act.
Synthesize their understanding of the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act by presenting their point of view at a mock hearing for legislators.

RESOURCES / MATERIALS:

pens/pencils
paper (enough for all groups)
classroom blackboard
copies of "Five Truths About Tuition" (one per student)
five slips of paper or index cards, each containing the name of a group interested in the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act (Representative McKeon's supporters, public colleges and universities, public college and university students, adjuncts and professors of public colleges and universities, private colleges and universities)
resources for researching higher education and the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act (college guides, books on financial aid, computers with Internet access)

ACTIVITIES / PROCEDURES:

WARM-UP/DO NOW: Prior to class, arrange desks in groups of four or five. Upon entering class, each group follows these instructions (written on the board prior to class): "Estimate the total annual expenditures for a student attending a public college or university in the United States. Besides tuition (your guess of the average cost), include other expenditures such as textbooks, rent or board, utilities, groceries or a dining hall meal plan, eating out, cellphone, entertainment, transportation, and medical coverage."
After a few minutes, ask each group to share the total amount of their hypothetical student's annual expenditures. Then reveal the breakdown of University of Maryland student Timothy Daly's $34,000 worth of annual expenditures that appear in the New York Times article "Kill Bills: The Cost of Living" (tuition and fees-$16,242; textbooks-$800; rent-$4500; utilities-$1200; groceries-$1950; eating out-$1170; cellphone-$1440; entertainment-$1800; transportation-$2680; medical coverage-$2500). How did students' estimates compare to Daly's actual figures? How would Daly's expenditures differ if he attended a private college or university? Daly is financing his education through "loans and credit cards." How do most students finance their college educations? How can governmental policies affect how students finance their higher education?
As a class, read and discuss "Five Truths About Tuition," focusing on the following questions:
1. What is the "occasion" for the recent defensive nature of the higher-education establishment in Washington D.C.?
2. According to the article, what is the trend responsible for making federal aid for higher education so expensive?
3. Why did Mr. McKeon introduce a bill in October pertaining to higher education?
4. According to the article, why has a "large swath of academia" objected to McKeon's proposed legislation?
5. What is Representative Phil Gingrey's perspective on the current college tuition crisis?
6. How has the cost of private education changed in comparison to the rate of inflation?
7. How do the public's perceptions of college tuition compare to the actual cost?
8. How do different areas of the United States vary their tuition formulas for different sets of students?
9. What is Mr. Alexander's, the president of Murray State University, objection to McKeon's proposed legislation?
10. According to the article, why is the quality of public education suffering?
11. What did the business analysts at Bain & Company find when they investigated the higher-education system of Massachusetts?
12. How has the proportion of tuition covered by Pell grants changed over the last two decades?
13. According to the article, what are some "radical ideas" that may reduce the costs of running colleges and universities?
Explain to students that today they will be preparing to act as lobbyists representing different "special interest" groups that have opposing perspectives on Representative Howard McKeon's proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act. Supply the class with the explanation of a lobbyist's role as stated by the American League of Lobbyists (http://www.alldc.org/resources.htm): "Simply put, lobbying is advocacy of a point of view, either by groups or individuals. A special interest is nothing more than an identified group expressing a point of view -- be it colleges and universities, churches, charities, public interest or environmental groups, senior citizens organizations, even state, local or foreign governments. While most people think of lobbyists only as paid professionals, there are also many independent, volunteer lobbyists -- all of whom are protected by the same First Amendment."
Divide the class into five groups and have each group select a slip of paper or index card with the name of a group interested in the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act (Representative McKeon's supporters, public colleges and universities, public college and university students, adjuncts and professors of public colleges and universities, private colleges and universities). Using all available resources, each group answers the following questions through their research:
- How would the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act affect your group?
- Based on your answer to the previous question, how do you hope legislators will vote on this bill?
- How can you effectively persuade undecided legislators to vote in favor of your opinion?
- What kind of supporting evidence can you find to graphically display your findings? (For example: charts, statistics, graphs, etc. You may want to consult some of the graphic displays featured in the rest of the "Education Life" section of The New York Times on November 9, 2003 ( http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/09/edlife/1109WIT.html).
- How can you affect public opinion regarding this matter?
After students have answered the above research questions, they should decide who will present each aspect of their group's findings at the upcoming mock hearing regarding the Affordability in Higher Education Act.
WRAP-UP/HOMEWORK: Each student prepares a different aspect of his or her group's upcoming presentation for homework. For example, one student may design a graphic display to show statistics regarding their group's economic profile or how McKeon's Act would economically affect their group, while another student may choose to write a persuasive speech to sway undecided legislators to agree with their group. In a later class, groups will present their findings to the class. The student audience will represent members of the House or Senate who remain undecided on the Affordability in Higher Education Act and will ask the presenting group questions regarding their stance.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

How do rising tuition costs affect institutions' admissions policies?
How do scaled-down budgets at state colleges and universities affect academic research at these institutions?
How do college students finance their educations?
How do rising tuition costs affect college drop-out rates?
What are the differences between private and public institutions of higher learning?

EVALUATION / ASSESSMENT:
Students will be evaluated based on their participation in group discussions, class discussions, group research and their presentations at the mock hearing on the Affordability in Higher Education Act.

VOCABULARY:
testy, academia, bristling, nuanced, blistering, emphatically, culled, indignation, gutting, precipitously, consensus, sustaining, hypocrisy, diplomatic, grappling, erratic, surmountable, incongruous, adjuncts, imperative, unwittingly, lament, paradoxically, wrath, galvanize

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES:

Contact a local college or university (or search online) to receive a copy of their school's financial aid form. Act as if you are attending the school and try to fill out the form. Interview a financial aid officer at the school about what factors are taken into account to determine financial aid eligibility. After you have conducted your research, write a manual that could help prospective college students understand the process of applying for financial aid.
Research how admissions policies like affirmative action and need-blind admissions might be affected by rising tuition costs and by the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act. Then, write an editorial or a research paper on these issues.
Visit the New York Times' Web site ( http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/09/edlife/1109WIT.html) to see the annual expenditures for the University of Maryland. Then use the Maryland budget as a model to analyze your high school's annual budget. Create a comparative chart to show where the largest and smallest percentages of each budget are being spent.
Research Representative Howard "Buck" McKeon's Affordability in Higher Education Act by visiting McKeon's official Web site (http://mckeon.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=1657). After reading the actual act on the Web site, e-mail "Buck, " or your Congressional Representative ( http://www.house.gov/writerep/) your opinion regarding the proposed legislation.

INTERDISCIPLINARY CONNECTIONS:
Global Studies- Research how students in countries around the world finance their higher education costs. Create a chart that highlights a variety of economically comparable nations' policies regarding higher education and then compare their policies to the policies of the United States.

Journalism- Some students have participated in medical experiments or sold sperm or eggs to fertility clinics to help pay their way through college. Write an expose on the drastic measures some students have taken in order to pay their college tuition costs.

Mathematics- Create a hypothetical economic profile for a student and calculate if he or she is eligible for receiving a federally funded Pell Grant according to the current formula of eligibility. Visit the government's Web site to research the Pell Grant and its formula of eligibility (http://www.ed.gov/prog_info/SFA/StudentGuide/2000-1/pell.html).

Media Studies- Create a persuasive means to sway public opinion regarding the proposed Affordability in Higher Education Act. You could create a commercial, a flier, a protest poster, a campaign slogan, a jingle, etc. to convince the public of your opinion regarding McKeon's bill.