The Neoliberal Arts Versus When Public Goes Private

Introduction

Over the years, modern challenges, along with a revolution in the dynamics of problems in communities around the world, have seen major changes made to many of the curriculum programs to align with the different adaptations that need to take place.

Exploring Education Provision in the USA

In particular, the US has been dealing with questions of importance to the old school system and the manner in which education issues have been dealt with at different stages. Apparently, no universal solution can come to address all the root problems.

Expert Perspectives and Interest Groups

Many experts in the field of education appear to give diverse perspectives about the path ahead when it comes to learning at various stages. Political and business interest groups have also entered the debate with each side seeking to front its argument in the hope benefitting from the implementation of policies that take their interests into consideration.

Comparing Texts

This paper looks at the articles “The Neoliberal Arts Versus When Public Goes Private” by William Deresiewicz and Diane Ravitch respectively that delve into the issue education provision exploring some of the developments in the provision of education in the USA, and compares the two texts.

Similarities

Some similarities are also clear from the two articles. Both articles explore the problems in the education sector that impact on their outcome. A focus on the marketability of the courses is seen as a factor that greatly influences the direction of university courses, a desire to improve the performance of students at public schools is the argument at the center of the initiatives to privatize them. The text by William captures the views of some pundits and finds the fault in their arguments and then disputes the views that it sees as not being in line with the desires of a good education system. Daine Ravitch also applies a similar approach in her work. She explores the views of the two opposing schools of thought but then settles for the one she feels presents a more competent argument that is in line with her thoughts on the subject matter. In addition, the position of the two authors on education borders on the betterment of educational outcomes. Both William and Diane are keen finding solutions to the mess in the education sector by offering alternatives that they believe will result in genuinely positive outcomes for the affected students.

Differences

There are several differences between the two articles. Even though both address issues bedeviling the delivery of education in the US, the first article, “The Neoliberal Arts” focuses on the education at the tertiary level exploring the ills problems with college education while the second one, “When Public Goes Private” looks at issues at the primary level. Second is that the first author has taken issue with apparent changes in the content aim of education while the second author raises concerns on the trend catching up intent on seeing increased privatization of public schools under the pretense of bettering them and improving their performance with their real motive being making huge profits. William uses summaries on the sides of each section of his text that offer an insight into what the sections are all about giving the reader an easy time when scheming through looking for specific information. The strategy is commendable at it encourages those who may not in the mood to go through the whole to text to at least check out some of the sections that are of greatest to them. Diane’s article fails to offer readers such an opportunity, a situation that may result in less interest among poor readers who may find going through the text tiresome.

Variations in Presentation

Other variations in the two texts are in relation to the way the authors present their work. William in his article has shown great organization. He presents his work in a way that is attractive to the reader often positioning different sections differently while also ensuring that each paragraph looks different from the other. With such kind of presentation, it can appeal to the young readers most of whom tend to perceive attractive presentation of work as being representative of captivating content. Diane, on the other hand, is more interested in her writing than the appearance. She uses fewer images compared to William while also having almost identical paragraphs in terms of appearance.

Conclusion

Clearly, the two texts “The Neoliberal Arts Versus When Public Goes Private” by William Deresiewicz and Diane Ravitch respectively address issues related to education but at different levels with some variations in the way they present their work. The texts explore the ills that lead to inefficiency in the education sector. Both authors acknowledge the views of proponents of the different approaches to education but then settle on their positions that make them appear decisive. However, there are also differences in the two authors’ texts. While William’s focus is on college education and its quality, Diane’s focus is on the primary education exploring the issue of privatization of public schools. There are also differences in the pictorial presentation of the work that may affect the reader’s interest in each of the texts.

Works Cited

Ravitch, Diane. “When Public Goes Private, As Trump Wants: What Happens?”. The New York Review of Books, 2016, http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2016/12/08/when-public-goes-private-as-trump-wants-what-happens/.

Deresiewicz, William. ”[Essay] | The Neoliberal Arts, By William Deresiewicz | Harper’s Magazine”. Harper’s magazine. N.p., 2015. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2016/12/08/when-public-goes-private-as-trump-wants-what-happens/ [Accessed 13 Mar. 2017].