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I didn't read the whole article, but from the introduction, it seemed she failed the test because she wasn't used to studying hard in high school. Richer studen

by pnt12 12y ago

I didn't read the whole article, but from the introduction, it seemed she failed the test because she wasn't used to studying hard in high school. Richer students do have more resources but I can't figure why money was a relevant factor in this case.

jmz92 12y ago
The point isn't that she didn't learn to study. If you had read just a little bit farther, you would have seen the real reason: at the first minor setback she met, she began to question whether she really belonged at a prestigious four-year school. That's a pretty understandable reaction given the culture shock she experienced in going to UT. Rich people with educated parents get to feel like they belong at colleges; poor and working class people don't.
Tyr42 12y ago
The larger difference is what happens after a test is failed and a student is feeling down. It seems that the more affluent group has more "identity formation" in that they know that they belong at college, whereas the more at risk groups (like students with parents that aren't college educated) sometimes panic, and feel like they don't belong at college, after a mistake of similar size. And that feeling is what causes them to drop out, more than X number of failed tests.
jotux 12y ago
I heard a good article on NPR a while back (that I can't find now) that talked about the difference between rich and poor college students. A big factor that helped students from affluent homes is the fact that their college-graduate parents were familiar with college campus services and how to navigate them. So when their children failed tests and called home upset they would tell them to go to a tutoring center, or encourage them to go to office hours and ask for help. Students from poor homes, with parents that never went to college, didn't understand the resources available to them and were more likely to drop out because of that. If anyone can find a link to the article, it would be appreciated.
ceras 12y ago
I'm sorry, but it's not very useful to the community to comment when you haven't read the article. It was written precisely to address your skepticism. I recommend reading it if you're curious about the issue.

by pnt12 12y ago

jmz92 12y ago

The point isn't that she didn't learn to study. If you had read just a little bit farther, you would have seen the real reason: at the first minor setback she met, she began to question whether she really belonged at a prestigious four-year school. That's a pretty understandable reaction given the culture shock she experienced in going to UT. Rich people with educated parents get to feel like they belong at colleges; poor and working class people don't.

Tyr42 12y ago

The larger difference is what happens after a test is failed and a student is feeling down. It seems that the more affluent group has more "identity formation" in that they know that they belong at college, whereas the more at risk groups (like students with parents that aren't college educated) sometimes panic, and feel like they don't belong at college, after a mistake of similar size. And that feeling is what causes them to drop out, more than X number of failed tests.

jotux 12y ago

I heard a good article on NPR a while back (that I can't find now) that talked about the difference between rich and poor college students. A big factor that helped students from affluent homes is the fact that their college-graduate parents were familiar with college campus services and how to navigate them. So when their children failed tests and called home upset they would tell them to go to a tutoring center, or encourage them to go to office hours and ask for help. Students from poor homes, with parents that never went to college, didn't understand the resources available to them and were more likely to drop out because of that. If anyone can find a link to the article, it would be appreciated.

ceras 12y ago

I'm sorry, but it's not very useful to the community to comment when you haven't read the article. It was written precisely to address your skepticism. I recommend reading it if you're curious about the issue.