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[Trojita]

http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/07/us/ncaa-athletes-reading-scores/index.html?iref=allsearch

Early in her career as a learning specialist, Mary Willingham was in her office when a basketball player at the University of North Carolina walked in looking for help with his classwork.

He couldn't read or write.

"And I kind of panicked. What do you do with that?" she said, recalling the meeting.

Willingham's job was to help athletes who weren't quite ready academically for the work required at UNC at Chapel Hill, one of the country's top public universities.

But she was shocked that one couldn't read. And then she found he was not an anomaly.

Soon, she'd meet a student-athlete who couldn't read multisyllabic words. She had to teach him to sound out Wis-con-sin, as kids do in elementary school.

And then another came with this request: "If I could teach him to read well enough so he could read about himself in the news, because that was something really important to him," Willingham said.

Student-athletes who can't read well, but play in the money-making collegiate sports of football and basketball, are not a new phenomenon, and they certainly aren't found only at UNC-Chapel Hill.

A CNN investigation found public universities across the country where many students in the basketball and football programs could read only up to an eighth-grade level. The data obtained through open records requests also showed a staggering achievement gap between college athletes and their peers at the same institution.

This is not an exhaustive survey of all universities with major sports programs; CNN chose a sampling of public universities where open records laws apply. We sought data from a total of 37 institutions, of which 21 schools responded. The others denied our request for entrance exam or aptitude test scores, some saying the information did not exist and others citing privacy rules. Some simply did not provide it in time.

As a graduate student at UNC-Greensboro, Willingham researched the reading levels of 183 UNC-Chapel Hill athletes who played football or basketball from 2004 to 2012. She found that 60% read between fourth- and eighth-grade levels. Between 8% and 10% read below a third-grade level.

"So what are the classes they are going to take to get a degree here? You cannot come here with a third-, fourth- or fifth-grade education and get a degree here," she told CNN.

The issue was highlighted at UNC two years ago with the exposure of a scandal where students, many of them athletes, were given grades for classes they didn't attend, and where they did nothing more than turn in a single paper. Last month, a North Carolina grand jury indicted a professor at the center of the scandal on fraud charges. He's accused of being paid $12,000 for a class he didn't teach.

 

[Trojita]

Damn too many Trojitas can't tell they are posting in the wrong section.

 

[RedAssedApe]

wow

 

[Mpl90]

Damn too many Trojitas can't tell they are posting in the wrong section.

You're surely a great college athlete, then!

 

[Zabant]

The same could be said about the denizens of this board.

 

[Dennis]

American college athletes are a joke and should all be kicked out of university.

University sports should be for actual academically inclined students.

It is not a university duty to prepare people for a career in professional sports. It takes resources away from the actual purpose of universities: to provide tertiary-level education for those who can hack it.

 

[LQX]

Sad and pathetic. You would think as much money as they make off these kids they would at least insure they are learning something other than just sports.

 

[HoosTrax]

Thought this was going to be another article re: the Jameis Winston interview after the BCS game last night...

 

[Ilúvatar]

University sports should be for actual academically inclined students.

Too much money involved. I'd be happy if people just gave up the pretense that these kids are students.

 

[fvng]

keep lowerin dat bar 'merica

 

[Trojita]

You're surely a great college athlete, then!

It would be awesome if I was fit enough to play college sports.

Also I don't think I'd have been able to read ASOIAF if this was true.

 

[Stronty]

Simple solution, just give athletes degrees in football, baseball or whatever sport they are playing. How can you play your best on the football team if you are studying for a chemistry test?

 

[Nemo]

The terrifying thought is, how many of them are getting given passes just to keep them on the team when they are clearly incapable academically.

And I want it in 1080p.

Thats not going to change anytime soon unfortunately

 

[Rodney McKay]

SHOCKING! Many [people] read and write at elementary school levels.

As someone who does technical writing for a living, it can be pretty funny to see the stuff that engineers, software developers, and project managers write in emails and documents. Maybe not as low as elementary school, but definitely no higher than basic high school.

Kinda shocking to read about the guy who couldn't even read or write, but at least he's getting the opportunity to do so now

 

[Aeriscloud]

I was already self deprecating. No need to go there.

Also I'm a dog posting threads on the internet. Isn't that enough?

Truly mans best friend.

 

[ActStriker]

American college athletes are a joke and should all be kicked out of university.

University sports should be for actual academically inclined students.

It is not a university duty to prepare people for a career in professional sports. It takes resources away from the actual purpose of universities: to provide tertiary-level education for those who can hack it.

College athletics are more then just the football and basketball you see on TV every day, btw

 

[Damaniel]

(In the expectation that this thread will be punted to the right side of the forum shortly...)

All the more reason that educational institutions and athletic institutions shouldn't be so closely tied together. I understand that athletic scholarships help people who may not be able to afford school otherwise get into college, but you can't have a successful college where a non-zero number of students enter illiterate.

I'd say that all students (academic or athletic) should be able to demonstrate at least some level of academic aptitude (not 'honors class' level, but certainly at least to the 'can read and write' level) as a condition of enrollment. But this would piss off all the college football fans who would see the quality of their players drop once stricter academic standards are enforced. And in most parts of the country, football is way more important than the underlying academic institutions.

 

[Clydefrog]

SHOCKING! Many [people] read and write at elementary school levels.

As someone who does technical writing for a living, it can be pretty funny to see the stuff that engineers, software developers, and project managers write in emails and documents. Maybe not as low as elementary school, but definitely no higher than basic high school.

what you speak about? we english is fine around here.

 

[unholyrevenger72]

Yeah well those Meathead athletes sell tickets.

 

[Trojita]

what you speak about? we english is fine around here.

Clyde

what the fuck

You are a frog

What is a human face doing on your avatar

 

[Clydefrog]

Clyde

what the fuck

You are a frog

What is a human face doing on your avatar

uh-oh

 

[SteveWinwood]

truly shocking

SHOCKING! Many [people] read and write at elementary school levels.

As someone who does technical writing for a living, it can be pretty funny to see the stuff that engineers, software developers, and project managers write in emails and documents. Maybe not as low as elementary school, but definitely no higher than basic high school.

Kinda shocking to read about the guy who couldn't even read or write, but at least he's getting the opportunity to do so now

You definitely lose some of it over time. My father's email's are pathetic ("mom wants know when your coming home next month") and yet he's incredibly well read. He just never has to actually write anything anymore, and hasn't had to for many years now. Or he just gives absolutely no shits. I can't tell anymore.

 

[PAULINK]

Spoiler

I know he's not in college

 

[BurnOutBrighter]

Remember, the jack of all trades is a master of none.

Any time spent on making these athletes more literate is a waste, when it could be on improving their ball skills.

 

[massoluk]

Still performing better than national average, amirite?

 

[Trojita]

Remember, the jack of all trades is a master of none.

Any time spent on making these athletes more literate is a waste, when it could be on improving their ball skills.

Oh god.

 

[ivysaur12]

System is fundamentally flawed. College sports are breeding grounds for NFL/NBA at no cost to them. Tying this to education is pointless, yet without the fan bases from the schools no one would watch.

 

[Rentahamster]

Clyde

what the fuck

You are a frog

What is a human face doing on your avatar

All dem fake aminals masqueradin' as humans...pfft, I say!

 

[SummitAve]

Who needs to learn how to read and write when they're being bombarded with empty promises and assurances that they'll make it to the professional level by recruiters.

 

[Future Foundation]

American college athletes are a joke and should all be kicked out of university.

University sports should be for actual academically inclined students.

Ha, my research partner would like to have a word with you, several actually.

You do realize that there is more to college sports than just football and basketball and baseball, right? There are plenty of "academically inclined" students on academic scholarships that don't involve primetime games on ESPN.

 

[Rodney McKay]

You definitely lose some of it over time. My father's email's are pathetic ("mom wants know when your coming home next month") and yet he's incredibly well read. He just never has to actually write anything anymore, and hasn't had to for many years now. Or he just gives absolutely no shits. I can't tell anymore.

Absolutely, a lot of writing skills just comes with practice and having peers edit your work. It took me about a year after college to get a job doing technical writing and I was already a little shocked at how much stuff (technical grammar stuff, syntax, etc.) I had forgotten. My friend is in the camp of "not giving no shits," haha. He would write papers in his writing classes about how pointless liberal arts were!

But then again, different places do have different guidelines (Microsoft styles/Chicago Manual of Style/etc.) so practice and repetition is about the only way to keep up. But a lot of basic poor writing just comes from not rereading what you write (I know I'm guilty of it). Spell check doesn't get everything!

 

[ab.aeterno]

Absolutely, a lot of writing skills just comes with practice and having peers edit your work. It took me about a year after college to get a job doing technical writing and I was already a little shocked at how much stuff (technical grammar stuff, syntax, etc.) I had forgotten.

If you don't mind my asking, what sort of things did you forget?

 

[Dude Abides]

.

 

[studyguy]

That seems incredibly sad, to be pushed through the system, churned out and then at the end of that college basketball/football run, what do they do? I can't imagine they all get scooped up.

I'm genuinely curious what an average player does when they get out of college and have those kinds of poor academic marks.

 

[Tragicomedy]

Send them all to the Derek Zoolander School for Kids Who Can't Read Good and Want to Do Other Stuff Good, Too.

The Chiefs employ a backup, backup nose tackle from Wayne County, MS, who cannot read. That dude went through high school and college.

 

[RocBase]

Yikes, can't even read or write? How does that even go unnoticed for so long...

SHOCKING! Many [people] read and write at elementary school levels.

As someone who does technical writing for a living, it can be pretty funny to see the stuff that engineers, software developers, and project managers write in emails and documents. Maybe not as low as elementary school, but definitely no higher than basic high school.

Kinda shocking to read about the guy who couldn't even read or write, but at least he's getting the opportunity to do so now

Legit curious: how do you measure this? Are they supposed to read like theses?

 

[Makonero]

Anecdotally, I had to edit a student athlete's paper at University for an upper level English class and I don't think I've ever seen such a long, incoherent, misspelled run-on sentence (which was the whole paper). It is obvious that the "student" part of "student athelete" is a misnomer for many.

 

[Mattlikewhoa]

I remember this gem...

 

[SafeinSound]

.

holy fuck

 

[Josh7289]

Sports should be separated from academics.

 

[Fantomex]

Cue Vince Young wonderlic test.

 

[jmdajr]

truly shocking


You definitely lose some of it over time. My father's email's are pathetic ("mom wants know when your coming home next month") and yet he's incredibly well read. He just never has to actually write anything anymore, and hasn't had to for many years now. Or he just gives absolutely no shits. I can't tell anymore.

Some people after awhile just don't care. It's not that they never learned the skills. But if you have a base of it you can always get better. You know.. to be bestest again!

 

[UncleSporky]

Anecdotally, I had to edit a student athlete's paper at University for an upper level English class and I don't think I've ever seen such a long, incoherent, misspelled run-on sentence (which was the whole paper). It is obvious that the "student" part of "student athelete" is a misnomer for many.

I did peer editing for an athlete once too. It was a paper on Shakespeare's The Tempest. Pretty much the same as your experience.

I remember he focused a lot on the fact that someone mentions breaking a virgin-knot.

 

[Dennis]

Cue Vince Young wonderlic test.

The joke answers besides, are those questions for real?

You had to be the dumbest motherfucker on the planet to not be able to answer those correctly.

 

[KevinRo]

I knew a kid at my school who was dumb as bricks. When he talked, you wanted him to stop talking. Only good thing he had going was that he is a freak of nature. He could run faster than anyone in the state. Eventually got a College scholarship then went on to the NFL. Listen to an interview with him and you could tell he grew up but he's still as dumb as bricks.

 

[Crisco]

I knew a kid at my school who was dumb as bricks. When he talked, you wanted him to stop talking. Only good thing he had going was that he is a freak of nature. He could run faster than anyone in the state. Eventually got a College scholarship then went on to the NFL. Listen to an interview with him and you could tell he grew up but he's still as dumb as bricks.

Chris Johnson? Sounds like Chris Johnson.

 

[jmdajr]

Chris Johnson? Sounds like Chris Johnson.

lol

 

[Gabriel_Logan]

The joke answers besides, are those questions for real?

You had to be the dumbest motherfucker on the planet to not be able to answer those correctly.

To be fair I have no idea what number 4 is.

 

[pretty done]

Chris Johnson? Sounds like Chris Johnson.

Dez Bryant

 

[Gentleman Jack]

The officials also said they believe excellent tutoring and extra attention from academic support allows these athletes to excel off the field as well as on, and many cited the high graduation rates of athletes.

That's fucking rich considering the UNC prof who got popped for faking grades, accepting plagiarized papers and taking salary for classes that never existed except to be a stamp on a student-athlete's transcript. The NCAA is a goddamn joke.