Argument180 第一次限时~

kitty_yyUID: 2292666

TOPIC: ARGUMENT180 - The following is a recommendation from the personnel director to the president of Acme Publishing Company.

"Many other companies have recently stated that having their employees take the Easy Read Speed-Reading Course has greatly improved productivity. One graduate of the course was able to read a five-hundred-page report in only two hours; another graduate rose from an assistant manager to vice president of the company in under a year. Obviously, the faster you can read, the more information you can absorb in a single workday. Moreover, Easy Read costs only $500 per employee-a small price to pay when you consider the benefits to Acme. Included in this fee is a three-week seminar in Spruce City and a lifelong subscription to the Easy Read newsletter. Clearly, Acme would benefit greatly by requiring all of our employees to take the Easy Read course."
WORDS: 502          TIME: 0:30:00          DATE: 2007-2-14

Do all the employees of Acme Publishing Company need to take the Easy Read Speed-Reading Course, as the personnel director recommends? After careful scrutiny of the recommendation, I find that there are many flaws which make the recommendation incredible.

First of all, there is not enough evidence to prove that the course can really improve the ability of reading. As the director says, one graduate was able to read a five-hundred-page report in two hours. However, the recommendation does not include the situation of the graduate before taking the course. It is entirely possible that he could attain this speed before and had no improvement after taking the course. If it is the case, the course may not improve the ability of reading. Meanwhile, the quality of his reading should also be concerned with to the conclusion. If he could not remember most of the content of the report, the rapid speed of reading is useless. Yet since it is not mentioned in the recommendation, which render the recommendation doubtful as well.

As to the other example which the director used to prove the quality of the course, there are some flaws as well. There is no information of the reason for the assistant manager to work as vice president. It is entirely possible that he attained it by his endeavor and ability of doing business or communicating with customers, which is of little relation with the ability of reading. If so, the quality of the course is not credible.

Even if the Speed-Reading Course can really improve the ability of reading, it does not mean that it can bring benefits to the Acme Publish Company as well. The director points out that many other companies have report the productivity is improved after the course. However, there is no evidence that the improvement is based on the speed of their employees. Even if it is so, it does not mean that the Acme Publish Company will be benefited as well. There is no information about the condition and kind of Acme Publish Company and other companies. We do not know whether Acme Publish Company need employees with rapid reading speed or not.

Although the productivity of Acme Publish Company will be improved as a result of employees with ability of rapid reading, it does not mean that Acme Publish Company should have all the employees to take the course. It is entirely possible that only a small quantity of employees with rapid reading speed is enough. Some other employees, who need to contact little information from books or newspaper, are unnecessary to take the course, which will charge much money from the company.

In sum, the recommendation by the personnel director is of little credibility. To support the recommendation, the director should provide credible evidence to prove that the course can really improve the speed of reading, and it has direct relation with productivity of a company like Acme Publish Company. At last, whether all the employees need the course is need to consider.