The following is part of a memorandum from the president of Humana University.
"Last year the number of students who enrolled in online degree programs offered by nearby Omni University increased by 50 percent. During the same year, Omni showed a significant decrease from prior years in expenditures for dormitory and classroom space, most likely because instruction in the online programs takes place via the Internet. In contrast, over the past three years, enrollment at Humana University has failed to grow, and the cost of maintaining buildings has increased along with our budget deficit. To address these problems, Humana University will begin immediately to create and actively promote online degree programs like those at Omni. We predict that instituting these online degree programs will help Humana both increase its total enrollment and solve its budget problems."
Write a response in which you discuss what questions would need to be answered in order to decide whether the prediction and the argument on which it is based are reasonable. Be sure to explain how the answers to these questions would help to evaluate the prediction.
In the memorandum from the president of Humana University, it is stated that there will be more enrollments and the budget problems will be solved. The opponents have come to this conclusion based on comparisons of decisions and changes that have happened in Omni University. However , before this recommendations can be properly evaluated, two questions must be answered.
First of all, is the online courses or the field of studies offered online that has attracted an increase of students? In other words, did the students register at Omni’s because the subjects were not offered in classroom? It is a possibility that students have no choice about the classes except those online. Further there is a possibility that Omni University is located in a not appropriate, favorable spot so it is not easily accessed. Perhaps students at Humana University do not find it difficult going in campus and their favorite subjects are not offered yet online. If either of these scenarios has merit then conclusion drawn in the original argument is greatly weakened.
Secondly, is the promote of online degree programs a guaranty that a three years’ decrease in enrollment will be solved? The opponents in the argument, prematurely assume that as soon as the online classes will be offered there will be an increase in enrollments of students. However, this might not be the case. Perhaps, the students that come at Humana are not pleased with professors or subjects. In addition they might not be found of online learning. They might enroll somewhere else and this is does not put water on the argument.
Thirdly, even though with an increase of online enrollments will the buildings still need to be maintained and the problems with the budget will still be there? The author of the memorandum expects that online enrollments will increase the savings from the budget and solve the problems that existed before. Perhaps, the buildings are two old and they still need to be repaired. Maybe , the budget is stiil a problem and the registrations will not surpass every years ones. If none of these assumptions comes true , the argument is flawed.
In conclusion, the argument as it stands now, consisting in increasing online classes, is considerably dysfunctional due to its reliance on several unwarranted assumptions. If the author is able to answer the three questions above and offer more evidence, perhaps in the form of research of what goes on and what is predicted to follow with measurements taken, then it will be possible to fully evaluate the viability of the proposal of adding online classes will increase student enrollments and solve the budget problems.
Comments
e-rater score report
Attribute Value Ideal
Final score: 4.5 out of 6
Category: Good Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 0 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 3 2
No. of Sentences: 22 15
No. of Words: 438 350
No. of Characters: 2174 1500
No. of Different Words: 195 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.575 4.7
Average Word Length: 4.963 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.723 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 165 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 124 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 93 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 49 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 19.909 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 10.251 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.591 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.283 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.505 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.052 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 5 5
Grammar and spelling errors:
Line 1, column 259, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...isions and changes that have happened in Omni University. However , before this r...
^^
Line 1, column 285, Rule ID: COMMA_PARENTHESIS_WHITESPACE
Message: Put a space after the comma, but not before the comma
Suggestion: ,
...ve happened in Omni University. However , before this recommendations can be prop...
^^
Line 1, column 295, Rule ID: THIS_NNS[1]
Message: Did you mean 'these'?
Suggestion: these
...d in Omni University. However , before this recommendations can be properly evaluat...
^^^^
Line 2, column 248, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...d in classroom? It is a possibility that students have no choice about the classe...
^^
Line 2, column 578, Rule ID: SENTENCE_FRAGMENT[1]
Message: “If” at the beginning of a sentence requires a 2nd clause. Maybe a comma, question or exclamation mark is missing, or the sentence is incomplete and should be joined with the following sentence.
...te subjects are not offered yet online. If either of these scenarios has merit the...
^^
Line 3, column 10, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
...argument is greatly weakened. Secondly, is the promote of online degree programs...
^^
Line 3, column 15, Rule ID: A_INFINITVE[1]
Message: Probably a wrong construction: a/the + infinitive
...ent is greatly weakened. Secondly, is the promote of online degree programs a guaranty th...
^^^^^^^^^^^
Line 3, column 191, Rule ID: WHITESPACE_RULE
Message: Possible typo: you repeated a whitespace
Suggestion:
..., prematurely assume that as soon as the online classes will be offered there wil...
^^
Line 3, column 405, Rule ID: SENT_START_CONJUNCTIVE_LINKING_ADVERB_COMMA[2]
Message: Did you forget a comma after a conjunctive/linking adverb?
Suggestion: addition,
...pleased with professors or subjects. In addition they might not be found of online learn...
^^^^^^^^
Line 4, column 384, Rule ID: COMMA_PARENTHESIS_WHITESPACE
Message: Put a space after the comma, but not before the comma
Suggestion: ,
...nd they still need to be repaired. Maybe , the budget is stiil a problem and the r...
^^
Line 4, column 491, Rule ID: POSSESIVE_APOSTROPHE[1]
Message: Possible typo: apostrophe is missing. Did you mean 'assumptions'' or 'assumption's'?
Suggestion: assumptions'; assumption's
...pass every years ones. If none of these assumptions comes true , the argument is flawed. I...
^^^^^^^^^^^
Line 4, column 513, Rule ID: COMMA_PARENTHESIS_WHITESPACE
Message: Put a space after the comma, but not before the comma
Suggestion: ,
... If none of these assumptions comes true , the argument is flawed. In conclusion,...
^^
Transition Words or Phrases used:
first, however, if, may, second, secondly, so, still, then, third, thirdly, in addition, in conclusion, first of all, in other words
Attributes: Values AverageValues Percentages(Values/AverageValues)% => Comments
Performance on Part of Speech:
To be verbs : 31.0 19.6327345309 158% => OK
Auxiliary verbs: 18.0 12.9520958084 139% => OK
Conjunction : 14.0 11.1786427146 125% => OK
Relative clauses : 10.0 13.6137724551 73% => More relative clauses wanted.
Pronoun: 28.0 28.8173652695 97% => OK
Preposition: 55.0 55.5748502994 99% => OK
Nominalization: 9.0 16.3942115768 55% => More nominalizations (nouns with a suffix like: tion ment ence ance) wanted.
Performance on vocabulary words:
No of characters: 2230.0 2260.96107784 99% => OK
No of words: 438.0 441.139720559 99% => OK
Chars per words: 5.09132420091 5.12650576532 99% => OK
Fourth root words length: 4.57476223824 4.56307096286 100% => OK
Word Length SD: 2.8246123471 2.78398813304 101% => OK
Unique words: 209.0 204.123752495 102% => OK
Unique words percentage: 0.477168949772 0.468620217663 102% => OK
syllable_count: 700.2 705.55239521 99% => OK
avg_syllables_per_word: 1.6 1.59920159681 100% => OK
A sentence (or a clause, phrase) starts by:
Pronoun: 4.0 4.96107784431 81% => OK
Article: 8.0 8.76447105788 91% => OK
Subordination: 5.0 2.70958083832 185% => OK
Conjunction: 0.0 1.67365269461 0% => OK
Preposition: 5.0 4.22255489022 118% => OK
Performance on sentences:
How many sentences: 22.0 19.7664670659 111% => OK
Sentence length: 19.0 22.8473053892 83% => The Avg. Sentence Length is relatively short.
Sentence length SD: 61.2174183877 57.8364921388 106% => OK
Chars per sentence: 101.363636364 119.503703932 85% => OK
Words per sentence: 19.9090909091 23.324526521 85% => OK
Discourse Markers: 6.0 5.70786347227 105% => OK
Paragraphs: 5.0 5.15768463074 97% => OK
Language errors: 12.0 5.25449101796 228% => Less language errors wanted.
Sentences with positive sentiment : 7.0 8.20758483034 85% => OK
Sentences with negative sentiment : 9.0 6.88822355289 131% => OK
Sentences with neutral sentiment: 6.0 4.67664670659 128% => OK
What are sentences with positive/Negative/neutral sentiment?
Coherence and Cohesion:
Essay topic to essay body coherence: 0.214933709628 0.218282227539 98% => OK
Sentence topic coherence: 0.0640008062228 0.0743258471296 86% => OK
Sentence topic coherence SD: 0.0504859046926 0.0701772020484 72% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence: 0.119892803531 0.128457276422 93% => OK
Paragraph topic coherence SD: 0.0413927851179 0.0628817314937 66% => OK
Essay readability:
automated_readability_index: 12.5 14.3799401198 87% => Automated_readability_index is low.
flesch_reading_ease: 52.19 48.3550499002 108% => OK
smog_index: 3.1 7.1628742515 43% => Smog_index is low.
flesch_kincaid_grade: 10.7 12.197005988 88% => OK
coleman_liau_index: 12.24 12.5979740519 97% => OK
dale_chall_readability_score: 8.51 8.32208582834 102% => OK
difficult_words: 109.0 98.500998004 111% => OK
linsear_write_formula: 8.5 12.3882235529 69% => OK
gunning_fog: 9.6 11.1389221557 86% => OK
text_standard: 9.0 11.9071856287 76% => OK
What are above readability scores?
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Rates: 50.0 out of 100
Scores by essay e-grader: 3.0 Out of 6
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Note: the e-grader does NOT examine the meaning of words and ideas. VIP users will receive further evaluations by advanced module of e-grader and human graders.