[RANT] Re: Workers, Public Schools, Tradesmen, and Justice

[Rabid Wombat <wombat@mcfeely.bsfs.org>]

> The old way was that your HS provided what the mythical average person needed
> to go about life. College was for the more "complex" careers.

Perhaps "high school" should end at age 16, with two years of publicly
funded "junior college" or "technical school" available to those who
select one or the other, and qualify. This would bring an adult-level
decision earlier in life, and students would need to start thinking about
which path to chose at about 14. Perhaps this would allow reality to set
in at an earlier age. A high school diploma has become meaningless anyway 
- it is viewed as a "right."   

This wouldn't leave anyone condemned to a life of menial labor for a
decision made at age 16 - there are plenty of successful people who have
obtained a G.E.D. later in life, and then gone on to college. It would, 
however, give some measure of responsibility to the near-adult.

In my own education, I found that I was getting nothing out of high school
by age 16. I wanted to drop out of high school to start college, but my
parents wouldn't hear of it. I got into an internship-for-credit program
instead, and got out w/ diploma and started college a semester later. My
fiance did drop out of high school at age 16 and started college, with her
parent's blessing. All her high school guidence counselor could come up 
with was "But she'll miss her prom"! 

It seemed that the last two years of high school were devoted to trying 
to drag marginal, apathetic students towards their diploma, kicking and 
screaming. Anyone "college bound" was just marking time.

I wouldn't want my children subjected to this - I'd rather they got into 
college as soon as they were ready, diploma or not.

Just my $.02

-r.w.