Should Corporations Be Allowed to Advertise at Schools? (Essay Sample)

Student’s Name:
Professor’s Name:
Course:
Date:
Should Corporations Be Allowed to Advertise at Schools?
School lockers in schools are slowly turning into advertising billboards and becoming part of revenue generators for schools, an idea that has brought up a heated debate in the educations sector. School buses and lunch tables have also become platforms for local as well as international businesses to pitch their ads. The ongoing debate questions the effect of corporate advertising on learning activities in general. Businesses profit by being able to advertise their products directly to the students and the schools profit from the revenue they get from the advertisement companies. While some people argue that the increased revenue finances students’ affairs, there are rising concerns that the ads disrupt learning activities and process.
Firstly, it is true that advertising at schools brings more revenue to the school. There are many public schools that do not have modern or enough learning amenities. Besides, schools would want to engage its students in a variety of programs that improve the learning process as well as benefit the students to grow in other areas such as academics. According to an article on “Fox News” in the face of a tough economy, schools often forego having some facilities and launching certain programs. The advertising industry is one of the industries that control the economy and partnering with schools will have these schools boost their revenue. The revenue from advertisements is then channelled into financing building school facilities, offering scholarships to needy students, and other important programs. The revenue will unload both the parents and teachers the burden of fundraisings and the aggressive search for donors.
The opposition to advertising in schools is what brings out the debate. Concerns range from students losing their concentration to ads to an increased spending by students which is transferred to parents. Many students especially in high school cannot manage their finances. Parents complain that they already face problems with children not being able to manage their daily allowances and having advertisements in schools will make the problem worse (Macbeth 83). Moreover, having advertisements in schools does not teach students about finances but commercializes the school system. Students will see no difference between the streets and the school environment since both are packed with ads.
There is also the moral question when it comes to advertising in schools. While advertisers argue that the school will have full authority to review and approve an advert before it is placed anywhere within the school, opponents argue that an advert does not have to evoke negative morals to negatively affect the students (Macbeth 85). For instance, parents often engage in quarrels with their children trying to keep them away from the ...