The Pros of Free Tuition For BC Students {Assignments}
Mitchell
February 16, 2020
In British Columbia an undergraduate can owe up to
$28,000 in student loan debt including
federal and provincial loans, and while all B.C.
student loans stopped accumulating interest since
last year that’s still a hefty price to pay. But what
if we didn’t have to?
Nearly two years ago, President Barack Obama introduced
a plan to deliver free community
college for American students. It may not have become
a reality, but I think free tuition would be
beneficial because it could allow people who aren’t
able to afford schooling access to an
education. Not only could this greatly reduce the
amount of student debt, it could also help
reduce poverty by allowing more individuals to find
work that pays more and includes health
and benefit plans.
With a reported 39% increase of student debt between 2011
and 2015 reaching $1.3 trillion, It’s
no wonder why many avoid post education altogether. By removing tuition costs individuals
could attend the programs in their desired field without
penalty, provided they received adequate
grades for prerequisites. This could in turn also
incentivise others who may have dropped out of
school or scored poorly to return to meet the
requirements, leading graduates to pursue their
passions without being forced to just work to pay off their debts.
The connection between poverty and education has long
been established as a breaking point for
some people. In 2018, Nigerian refugee Joy Chukwura from
Surrey (who worked for $18.50 an
hour cleaning hotel rooms) struggled to improve her English
after a new education fee of $1000
for a 3-month basic literacy course prevented her from
continuing her education. Twenty percent
of enrolled students ended up dropping out in the
first two years since this fee was introduced
because they also couldn’t afford the new tuition
implemented. By removing this, people living
in poverty like Joy can gain their education and find
work that can help support them and their
families.
Ultimately a fully accessible education opens the
doors for many new possibilities. By doing so
we’re removing the $28,000 debt forced upon students
from the equation, giving more people
access to education and incentivising people to follow
their passions. With this extra accessibility
comes the opportunity to lower the poverty count in BC
granting graduates a better chance of
finding work that will help them support their
families and live healthier lives. Overall this could
be a great change for Canadian’s and might one day
lead other provinces and territories to make
similar changes for future students.
Sources:
I definitely agree that an education is an important part of becoming an adult and finding oneself. Not only would free tuition alleviate the weight of student dept, it would encourage more people to pursue their goals and life long dreams. Many young people want to go to school and learn but the cost of post-secondary limits a lot of people's options. If BC made this change there is a larger possibility that other provinces would follow along and this could start a movement that would benefit many generations to come.
ReplyDeleteI like the fact that you personalized the story to make it more emotional. Many people do not take into consideration the fact that education is not accessible to many people which is so sad. The fact that Joy had to stop learning english because it cost too much is a factor in so many students lives. Education in Canada is more of a privilege than a right for so many and it is sad that many individuals who gain the privilege to attend school do not take it seriously while other more deserving students would.
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