【argue197 gter三月机考小组090117第一次作业】

slipingUID: 2584903

197. The following appeared as part of a recommendation made by a faculty member to the president of a large university.


"Never once in our 150-year history as a university have we clarified our objectives. How, then, can we hope to adapt as an institution to the new challenges facing higher education. As a first step in this evolutionary process, therefore, we should send out questionnaires asking faculty members why they teach, asking students what they want from this university, and asking former students what they gained from their own education here. When the replies come in, we can tabulate them and formulate an official statement of our educational mission. This will surely result in improved programs at our university

In this recommendation, the faculty asserts that we can surely improve programs at our university if only we can clarify our objectives so that the university is able to adapt as an institution to the new challenges facing higher education. To bolster this recommendation, the faculty suggests to send out questionnaires asking faculty members why teach, asking students what they want from this university and the former students what they have gained during their college education. And then tabulating them and obtaining our educational mission. Although at first glance the suggestions seem reasonable, further scrutiny of each of the suggestions, however, it renders the suggestions unconvincing as it stands.

First of all, the faculty fails to provide the reasonable information of the respondents. We have good reasons to doubt if the sample is enough to reflect the general opinions. If the questionnaires are given only a small portion of the faculty and the students as well as the former students, it is impossible to come to the conclusion, for we cannot pinpoint a worldwide theory based on only a specific group. In addition, there is no evidence that the faculty and students come from variety of majors, but as all we know, it is clear that different fields and different opinions of what they want to. In short, the sample of research is unwarranted.

Secondly, there is no direct relationship between the result of the questionnaires and the improving programs. These is little evidence show that the respondents treat the research seriously. Perhaps they just complete it as an assignment but not express their true opinions. Even if they did it carefully, maybe the results are useless to draw the conclusion. For most of the answers on why the teach is that they want to hand down their knowledge to the students. What a student want to gain and a former student has got cannot equal as the improve program

Finally, it is unwarranted to assert that as long as we can tabulate the questionnaires and formulate an official statement of our educational mission that the programs at our university will be improved. Since we are not be informed what the result of the research is, perhaps the result has little things to do with the improving the program. Even if it is useful to improve the program, it is doubtful if the university will take some effective measures to make the result of the questionnaires good used. So the faculty draws a hast conclusion which based on inadequate evidence about.

From what have mentioned above, we can learn that faculty made some logical mistakes in the recommendation so that it become less cogent. To strength the recommendation, much more clearly information about the questionnaire is needed, and what measures should be taken after the research.
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