As thousands of students all across Ontario look for post-secondary education a daunting obstacle stands in their way. Tuition prices are increasing each year and it seems that the cries of students are falling on deaf ears. With the average tuition cost of $5, 381 many students cannot afford to get a university education.
To be perfectly honest, the reason many young Ontarians cannot get an education due to the price disturbs me. Universities have become institutions of profit and capital instead of learning and furthering ones' education. In many countries around the world, the price of going to University is free. The Ontario government is failing its youth by forcing them to pay atrocious amounts of money and in almost all cases going into extreme debt before a student even finishes their first semester.
The Ontario government can do one of two things. They can continue this cycle of bankrupting students so that the average student will graduate with thousands and thousands of dollars in debt. Or, they can centralize universities. If the provincial government took control of the Universities instead of independent bodies, it would be able to control and further subsidize the price of tuition and lower it to a level more suitable for youth. If this was to be done there would be many positive things that would occur. One of many would be that more youth would be going for a post-secondary education which in turn would bring more diverse people into the work force. Due to the extremely high tuition costs today, some students are unable to get the education needed for many jobs. This is letting down both the economy and students. By not allowing more diverse and educated people into the workforce the economy is not refreshing itself. Furthermore, people with very diverse and different ideas are forced to take other options in attempts to get an education.
The fact of the matter is that the Ontario government is failing its students. You would think that in times of economic hardship the Ontario government would realize that allowing more people to get educated would provide better ideas on ways of economic development. With MPP Kevin Flynn as the new Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, it gives us hope that we will see some progress towards change. With MPP Kevin Flynn as the new Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, it is gives us hope that we will see some progress towards change. A province-wide consensus is needed to force the Ontario government to change. Students need to show the Provincial government that they have had enough. The problem is that University life is tough and with exams, essays and assignments students really do not have the time to protest the outrageous cost of University. However, politicians are also to blame for why this issue has not been addressed. Because students don’t make a big fuss about tuition costs the problem does not show up on politicians' radar. Nevertheless, this issue MUST not be ignored!
I'd like to think that one cannot put a price on another's education, but the story in Ontario is that if you want education, prepare to dive into debt!
You're right, the cost of university is pretty steep, but I also think that we are very lucky! Consider American students who pay around $30,000 per year in tuition rates!! The government is slowly moving towards helping us out, however they seem much more concerned about building research centers than helping to pay for the students to actually get to those centers. As of today I can't complain, the textbook and technology grant just came in the mail and I' happy! :)
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