Paul Krugman's Chapter 'Confronting Inequality'
Krista LaMainaEnglish 1000
Professor Coogan25 September, 2014
Inequality in Education
In Paul Krugman’s chapter “Confronting Inequality”, he discusses the crisis of radical income inequality in the U.S over the past several years. Krugman is particularly concerned with the social and human costs of this problem. He explains K-12 education in some detail because, as he shows, young people are far more likely to succeed at college if they have a high-quality preparation. Many wonder why Krugman focuses his attention on education; Middle-class parents who understand the connection between high-income school districts and high quality educational often take out loans to finance good schooling for their children. It is believed that Krugman points to a serious problem for these middle-class Americans. Many involved in this situation become so indebted that they are trapped for years in loan repayments. He shows that the quality of education in a person’s youth is determined primarily by his or her parents’ income. …show more content…
For example, according to Table 1 parents who are in the bottom quartile have a smaller percentage of eighth graders finishing college than those with parents in the top quartile. What this means is that the parents annual income is certainly not enough to afford to send their children to college. Therefore leaving these children with two options. Option one is to take on a blue collar job working as electricians, plumbers, mechanics etc. Or the other option is to take out loans and attend universities or colleges. The only problem with option two is the child must have the proper
Professor Coogan25 September, 2014
Inequality in Education
In Paul Krugman’s chapter “Confronting Inequality”, he discusses the crisis of radical income inequality in the U.S over the past several years. Krugman is particularly concerned with the social and human costs of this problem. He explains K-12 education in some detail because, as he shows, young people are far more likely to succeed at college if they have a high-quality preparation. Many wonder why Krugman focuses his attention on education; Middle-class parents who understand the connection between high-income school districts and high quality educational often take out loans to finance good schooling for their children. It is believed that Krugman points to a serious problem for these middle-class Americans. Many involved in this situation become so indebted that they are trapped for years in loan repayments. He shows that the quality of education in a person’s youth is determined primarily by his or her parents’ income. …show more content…
For example, according to Table 1 parents who are in the bottom quartile have a smaller percentage of eighth graders finishing college than those with parents in the top quartile. What this means is that the parents annual income is certainly not enough to afford to send their children to college. Therefore leaving these children with two options. Option one is to take on a blue collar job working as electricians, plumbers, mechanics etc. Or the other option is to take out loans and attend universities or colleges. The only problem with option two is the child must have the proper