Causal argument research on The Death of Expertise

Your first major essay assignment will be a causal-argument research paper that addresses points made by author Tom Nichols in The Death of Expertise. You may cite text from any section of Nichols’ book, but this essay should focus largely on material from the chapter titled “Higher Education: The Customer is Always Right.”

You may have written a dedicated causal-argument style paper in the past. This type of essay involves what is often called “causal-analysis” or “cause-effect” writing. All of these terms mean something relatively similar: the analysis of past events as a way of understanding the present. However, causal-analysis essays and cause-effect essays may not always present an argument–especially one that proposes a solution to a problem (in this case, topical issues in American higher education).

There will be a few short preparatory assignments leading up to your submission of this essay. The paper is officially due at the end of Week 8.

Word Count/Formatting:

Your essay should be 1250 to 1500 words in length, excluding any prefatory text and the Works Cited page. There is no need for a separate title page. Essays should be correctly formatted in accordance to MLA style, preferably using Microsoft Word (available to you through JJC). Your Works Cited page should appear separate from the last page of text. Please double-space throughout, and use a 12-point Times New Roman font.

General Essay Topic + Basic Outline:

If you have attended or are currently attending a four-year college or university, you may have some personal insight into Nichols’ take on university life. If you have primarily taken classes at JJC, think about what you have experienced thus far and how Nichols’ arguments may have influenced your future transfer plans. While Nichols ultimately suggests that American higher education is world-leading, he also describes some of the more outrageous social traditions and ivory tower stereotypes associated with college–the ones that lead some people to believe our ivy-covered halls secretly foster a modern-day version of Animal House (see “Nudity Week” at Brown). Is this actually real in 2021 (or even pre-Covid)? Is it something portrayed only in the movies? It definitely makes a large swath of the American public believe universities are a sort of “summer camp for adults,” replete with keg parties, pool tables, sushi bars, spring break debauchery, and other social activities that can take precedence over academics.

The faculty and administration that preside over these institutions are by no means given a free pass. Consider Nichol’s critique of college professors. What happens when heavily-degreed, out-of-touch eggheads collide with young kids looking to have fun? Do university students and faculty live in a bubble? Should faculty members and college administrators hold students accountable, not just for their homework, but the way they comport themselves in public?

Again, your causal-argument research paper should critique Nichols’ positions and offer a potential solution for the present and/or future. Your essay structure might look something like this:

I. Introductory Paragraphs

Provide a historical overview of the time frame in which our society started to view university life as something cush or stress-free. When did this start? When did out-of-control frat parties, goldfish swallowing, streaking, alcohol consumption, hacky sack tournaments, “underwater basket weaving classes,” and spring break blowouts begin to supplant rigorous nights hitting the books, forming study groups, and pulling all-nighters at the library? How have these activities led to negative stereotypes surrounding higher education? Has the college “party animal” stereotype somehow become a badge of honor? Has “finding yourself” in a college setting become an excuse to wallow in self-reflection and put off searching for a job? Be sure to cite any sources of expository information accurately and completely, and paraphrase responsibly.
Set up a discussion of Nichols’ chapter on higher education, giving some brief background information about Nichols the person and his motivation for writing The Death of Expertise. Nichols’ book criticizes the way we Americans often sidestep expert advice in our day-to-day lives. What sort of ethical credibility does Nichols himself bring to the table?
End with a thesis statement that either a) Directly challenges one or more of Nichols’ assertions about American higher ed, or b) Agrees with Nichols’ general premise on higher ed (perhaps in a limited capacity) and qualifies anything you’d like argue as a positive trait in the American college/university system.
II. Body Paragraphs

Analyze, critique, and comment on some of the points Nichols makes about the softening of higher education. On which points do you agree? On which points do you disagree? I won’t require a set number of body paragraphs necessary to make your paper “successful.” Divide paragraphs where you think it is logical to do so, and keep overall word count in mind as a guide. Please look over the following topics found in “Higher Education: The Customer is Always Right.” Contributory causes available to dissect include (but are not limited to) elements such as
The large “influx” of middle-class students into American colleges and universities
The notion that students “must” go to college and the resulting peer-pressure that sometimes follows
Reduced academic expectations–especially in liberal arts programs
Faculty enabling students to believe they are true intellectuals by reducing expectations on quantifiable knowledge
“Ivory Tower” stereotypes – to what degree are students and/or faculty waxing philosophic in classrooms and lecture halls as a way to avoid entering the real world? You may have heard this jokingly referred to as the “five-year plan.”
A focus on professors that may have overqualified themselves with a terminal degree–and the large number of PhDs being sent out into a hugely competitive job market
Students being treated like”clients”
The number of workplace-style “perks” (i.e. sushi bars) now found on campuses and in dorms
The perception of college as a business
Lowered admission expectations at many schools
The double-edged sword of readily available financial aid
Undergraduate students believing they are on the same intellectual footing as seasoned professors who have dedicated their career to a specific discipline
The convenience of electronic communication
The potential dangers of social media marketing
Smaller colleges adding advanced degree programs
The contentious balance of STEM-based programs and the liberal arts
Grade inflation
Teacher ratings being treated by students like Yelp reviews
Potential problems with collegiate “safe spaces”
Note: I would by no means recommend trying to cover all of these topics, or even half of them. In fact, it will be in your best interest to choose one or two main topics at most, going for depth in your analysis rather than breadth. Still, you will find that certain topics readily cross over and make good subtopics. For example: If you’d like to critique the fact that college students are now being treated like “customers,” the sushi bars and boutique meal plans promoted in modern higher ed marketing may carry some of the blame for this phenomenon.
III. Transitional Topic Sentence and Concluding Paragraphs

Once you have sussed out a game plan for which points you’d like to address in the body paragraphs of your essay, start thinking about an original argument you’d like to present–one that looks to the future. A transitional topic sentence (almost like an embedded second thesis) should appear in your essay as you begin to wind down your interactions with Nichols (and other select authors) and move toward one or more concluding paragraphs. If I had to guess, I’d say this sentence should probably appear at the beginning of a paragraph that starts near the bottom of your second-to-last page, or perhaps at the top of your very last page. Everyone’s breaks will obviously be slightly different, depending on the length of your paragraphs and how much you have to say.
To put your topic sentence together, you might start by asking some rhetorical questions: Do you see some hope for the future? Is there indeed an “intellectual disease” in this country–an aversion to expert information that enters our psyche long before we ever plan for college? If so, what do we need to do to right this ship? If Nichols is generally correct about his various assertions concerning diminishing higher education admittance/learning standards, what can American institutions do to stem the tide of college graduates “feeling” informed rather than “being” informed?*