NPR: A growing number of Americans are questioning the value of going to college

[Wahoo Redux]

And the news gets better and better.

A growing number of Americans are questioning the value of going to college

I think this is a duplicate of the other story but to a much wider audience.

[Parasaurolophus]

A new question on this year's survey asked respondents about the minimum level of education they believe their immediate or close family members should receive in order to be financially secure. While nearly three-quarters of respondents agree some sort of postsecondary education is required for their child or close family member to achieve financial security, there are partisan divides. Only a quarter of Democrats say that a high school diploma or GED is sufficient to achieve economic security, compared to 39% of Republicans who say so.

I don't know if this is a problem with the study or with the reporting, but what should be necessary and what is are two very different criteria.

If you ask me what should be necessary, I'll reply: zero formal education.

If you ask me what is necessary, I'll reply: an MD.

[marshwiggle]

A new question on this year's survey asked respondents about the minimum level of education they believe their immediate or close family members should receive in order to be financially secure. While nearly three-quarters of respondents agree some sort of postsecondary education is required for their child or close family member to achieve financial security, there are partisan divides. Only a quarter of Democrats say that a high school diploma or GED is sufficient to achieve economic security, compared to 39% of Republicans who say so.

I don't know if this is a problem with the study or with the reporting, but what should be necessary and what is are two very different criteria.

If you ask me what should be necessary, I'll reply: zero formal education.

If you ask me what is necessary, I'll reply: an MD.

Without making any distinction whatsoever in what people study, the question is extremely vague and not very useful.

[Wahoo Redux]

A new question on this year's survey asked respondents about the minimum level of education they believe their immediate or close family members should receive in order to be financially secure. While nearly three-quarters of respondents agree some sort of postsecondary education is required for their child or close family member to achieve financial security, there are partisan divides. Only a quarter of Democrats say that a high school diploma or GED is sufficient to achieve economic security, compared to 39% of Republicans who say so.

I don't know if this is a problem with the study or with the reporting, but what should be necessary and what is are two very different criteria.

Well, they were measuring people's attitudes.

Fact-based data on economic outcomes of educational achievement, on the other hand, is a different thing.

[Parasaurolophus]

Sure. But that excerpt makes it sound like they co flated two different things. Are they measuring perceptijns of one of those things, or both?

In other words, which one of those was the survey question? Because it looks like either incompetent reporting, or incompetent design. The former seems more likely, but you never know.