cneajna Loc: Port Angeles, WA

How did this turn into lazy people? Lazy people don't go to college. Give it a break.

yhtomit Loc: Port Land. Oregon

If everybody goes to college,it will diminish the value of being college educated.Just more free stuff from the government to get votes from lazy underachievers.

cneajna Loc: Port Angeles, WA

I surely hope that's sarcasm.

macc Loc: Ventura, Ca.

Precisely.. In Europe, and in the early history of the US, those that were not inclined to go to College were put into the Guild system, where the trades were taught. You learned and worked at the same time, and by the time you were 20 or 21, you were a full Journeyman, with skills and commensurate income to hang out a shingle and support a family. Then came along the idea that everyone would go to college. Less than 30% went to college. In Japan, you must pass very tough exams in order to advance , as with Sweden, Finland etc. In my opinion, (Along with others), when the Government got involved and took over student loans to Universities, that guaranteed that funds would be there. A fellow tried to bring an Anti -Trust suit against the Ivy League schools, as he demonstrated that each had raised their tuition in lock-step, over 15-20 years. Harvard has over 40 BILLION in it's various endowment funds, enough so , that the interest alone would pay for all of the tuition for it's students. Instead, they build more buildings. BTW.. Conservative vs. Liberal thing. Get the Government out of funding that goes to these colleges and Unis. Let the States come up with it. The Profs vote 97% Liberal, and this is where the basis of the Socialist ideas proffered in this country are born. (Occupy whatever..).. Get rid of Tenure too, and the "Publish or Perish" concept, and let these guys either teach or pack it up. If they are not needed to teach, then we shouldn't be paying them. I could go on….

cneajna Loc: Port Angeles, WA

While I expected us to wander off-topic a bit... the original article is about what Germany is doing. And while it may be too late for the US to offer free education, they could certainly do SOMETHING to help students above and beyond what they do now (which is pretty much nothing other than to saddle them with horrendous debt).

YoungEsqr Loc: Minnesota

Never mind. You're in TX and it would be a waste of time arguing or discussing anything with you.

erickter Loc: Dallas,TX

This isn't about left and right. It's about greedy college administrators, corrupt unions, and arrogant, entitled, and incompetent boards of regents raising tution and book costs at unsustainable yearly rates.
They want buildings and pensions.

And stop blaming reagon as the boogie man. It s shallow thinking. He did both good and bad in many ways. But California's CC, state, and UC system has been screwed up quite well by the above culprits for the past 30 years without the help of Reagan, or any governor. The problem resides in the state senate and legislatures, which is bribed by corrupt union and corporate pay offs.

YoungEsqr Loc: Minnesota

I agree with part of what you say about most of 18 year olds don't have a clue. I'd like to see every 18 year old go through some form of Basic Training to get what they've missed getting at home. There are also "avenues" to get a college education without incurring a mountain of debt and without joining the military, also.
That is not what you implied or said in your original post, though.

cneajna Loc: Port Angeles, WA

Not all of us in Texas view things that way. :) We still have a handful of sane people. ;)

YoungEsqr Loc: Minnesota

Whew! Sorry about that. I lived in Dallas for 5 years and I can't tell you how many times I was told, "If you don't like it here, why don't you just leave." I'd always say, "I didn't ask for an invite from you to come to TX, so why would I rely on an invite for you to leave?"

The other thing that would drive me crazy was most Texans would say Texas is the best place in the world. I would ask, "where have you been?" They would say, "nowhere. But I know it's the best." I'd leave, shaking my head. :-)

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

Then they don't offer enough. If you go to college in Germany and you are a German, college is not only free, but they pay you (as you are not able to work at that time). But it is not a whole lot, they pay your rent where ever you live and the pay on top is around a thousand bucks, so not a lot of money, but a lot better than paying for it! (but that's also one of the reason they have so many "life-time-students" (people just living of the system)!

FRENCHY Loc: Stone Mountain , Ga

Yeah ! Reagan was the devil incarnated ,like Bush he was something, compare to the clown we have now

stephgc Loc: Texas

Simple the people that control the money will not allow it,bankers and the such.

RichardQ Loc: Colorado

I'd like to clarify how the German public school system works to winnow the academically inclined from those more interested in learning a trade. All classes are in German, of course, except in international schools.

Kindergarten is optional for ages three through six. School is compulsory for nine or ten years, with the same classes (depending on the federal state involved) for all students from grades one through four. Then, after the fourth grade,the students are separated according to their academic ability and the wishes of their parents. They diverge into one of three school types: a Hauptschule, grades 5-9, which teaches at a slower pace and gradually leads to a vocational school and apprenticeship training until age 18; a Realschule, grades 5-10, leading to part-time vocational schools and the possibility of switching to the more academic school level on graduation, if grades show appropriate abilities; and, the Gymnasium, grades 5-12 (or 13 in some states) which grants a diploma called the Abitur, preparing the student for university study (or for a dual academic and vocational credential) in classical or modern language, mathematics, and natural science. All classes are taught in German.

This system improves the ability of the teachers to move the instruction pace faster in a class comprised of more academically inclined students. Any American university student transferring into a German "Uni" had better be up to snuff in German to compete with German students in this environment, and they might be surprised at the amount of homework.

fbluhm Loc: San Antonio, TX

They're educational priorities are different. They're more interested in educating future leaders of their country. U.S schools are more interested in investing in athletic programs and new stadiums, which make more money for them. Major universities have chosen to become businesses instead of educational institutions. Coaches are fired if they don't make their schools an extra $million in TV money because they didn't go to a bowl game.

Teachers in Germany are among the highest paid in the world; our's are among the lowest. Priorities.