Desarae Luce

Mrs. Cramer

College Comp. Pd 2

11/20/20

School and Real-World Preparations

At around the age of five students are entered into the education system until they are

considered adults at the age of eighteen. Throughout their Pre-Kindergarten to middle

school education years, students are taught the basics, including reading, science and basic math.

Although these are all necessary, once reaching high school, students are forced to take a

certain amount of English, science, math, and extra elective classes to graduate. Nowhere in

these classes are students taught how to file taxes, buy a house, open savings accounts, apply for

loans and all around make it in the real world. If schools would allow students to choose their

subjects revolving around what they enjoy when on their way to a successful graduation, then the

time would be better spent. Instead of someone who wants to be a lawyer taking plenty of math

classes they will never use, they could be taking more English classes and apprenticing in a law

firm. Throughout this dissertation it will be elaborated on how schools can change to what would

best benefit the future of students and why it currently does not.

Education is said to be the main fundamental of making it anywhere in life. However, in

many cases, it does not seem like the best approach. Instead, it seems to be an unnecessary stress

for many students that in no way, shape, or form prepares them for the real would. In past times,

apprenticeship was normal and seemed more beneficial than the current education system.

People would receive hands on experience that was able to apply to the job once the

apprenticeship was finished. The negatives to apprenticeship were sometimes people were
unable to pick what they wanted to do. Whatever their family wanted them to do was

what they had to attend to. Now of course we have more options. If it was fixed to be

the child's choice in career fields, then it would be more beneficial. “In 2011, 1.5 million, or

53.6% of college grads under age 25 were out of work or underemployed.” Most people who

take college courses in what they want to do hardly get jobs in what they wanted to do, or if they

do end up getting a job, they become the, “48% of employed U.S. college grads that are in jobs

that require less than a four-year degree.” It would be more beneficial to bring back

apprenticeships as at least an option.

Another option could be lifestyle classes. A few years ago, they had classes you could

take that were for planning and understanding the future. For example, how to pay bills, apply

for a job, and paying taxes were just a few things under the class's curriculum. Now, in most high

schools those classes are not taught anymore. Almost a decade ago they implemented the, “No

child left behind act.” This act mandated the increased student testing in order to verify the

effectiveness of each individual public school's progress and instructional practices. While this

act had ideal intentions, many have realized that the initiative merely distracted students from

learning, while emphasizing a new focus on testing and progress scores. Now school is just

memorizing something one week, test on it, and then move on to never revisit it again. The

information taught is hardly retained. Yet, this still happens year after year. If lifestyle classes

became accessible to all high schools, students would have at least one class that they genuinely

care about and would retain the information that would most likely be used in the future

repeatedly.

Schools push college saying, “The safe, sure way for a great career”. College admission

alone is expensive. That is not including housing expenses, books needed for the courses, food,
utilities, etc. Overall college is excessively expensive. This can be stressful for students who do

not have the funds or the credibility for loans. There are kids that just left high school and have

no idea what they are doing. Students feel that it is a must to go to college or they are not going

to make it anywhere beneficial after high school. “When a company selects from a sea of faces

and they all have identical or similar degrees, the value of those degrees shrinks, and they will

look for the people who can do what they need right now.” For example, “Candidate A has 95%

overall potential but can only do 15% of the job now – she must be trained. Candidate B has 63%

overall potential but can do 85% of the job right now – he’s ready to go. Candidate B gets the job

almost every time.” No one cares about potential they care more about experience. So, is college

worth it? It depends on your career field because it is easier for employers to pick the person

that has more experience. Some students are willing to take the chance that an employer will

pick them based off potential then it shows college is for them.

School currently does not prepare new coming adults for the real world. The education

system expects parents to teach their kids basic life skills. Most parents are unfit to do so. There

are multiple options that could be implemented into high schools that would be increasingly

more efficient in helping students be successful in their lives after they

graduate. Including apprenticeships and/or lifestyle classes. Instead of

tests determining whether they are ready to go off into the world, the schooling system can give

us experience in the fields they want to get jobs or careers in.