Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!caip!sri-spam!nike!cit-vax!amdahl!bnrmtv!timlee
From: timlee@bnrmtv.UUCP (Timothy Lee)
Newsgroups: net.sci,net.politics
Subject: Re: privatization of education
Message-ID: <576@bnrmtv.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 4-Aug-86 11:37:47 EDT
Article-I.D.: bnrmtv.576
Posted: Mon Aug  4 11:37:47 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 7-Aug-86 06:01:24 EDT
References: <3719@decwrl.DEC.COM> <136@cci632.UUCP> <1314@psivax.UUCP> <2413@brl-smoke.ARPA> <2777@sdcc6.ucsd.EDU> <963@kontron.UUCP>
Organization: Bell Northern Research, Mtn. View, CA
Lines: 25
Xref: watmath net.sci:1460 net.politics:18052

>                                                             Yes, there
> are kids from working class backgrounds attending University of California,
> but the majority are from families that could afford to pay their own
> way.  

Not true.  The majority of UC students receive financial aid.
You do mean `lower economic class' when you say `working class', don't you?
But note that most `middle class' ($15K-30K / year) people must work to
maintain their current life style.  So `working class' is not an entirely
accurate term to describe to lower class.  The `non-working class', ie
that which does not work, composes of the welfare class and the richest.

> 
> Second, remember that the requirements of UC (and most other good
> schools) make it unlikely that kids from economically deprived back-
> grounds will be able to enter.  Even if allowed in under special
> admission policies, many, if not most, are inadequately prepared for
> UC, and drop out within the first year.  THEIR INADEQUATE PREPARATION
> IS PARTLY EARLIER EDUCATION, AND PARTLY THE CULTURAL DEPRIVATION OF
> GROWING UP POOR.

That means that one should try to remedy those problems.  Politicians are
reluctant to address those problems since the payoff will come about 12
years later, when a successor can claim credit for what the original
politician did.