The Benefits of a Quality High School Education
The Benefits of a Quality High School Education
My Grandson is going to be three years old in just a couple of months, and I have been thinking a lot about his education. Looking at many of the eighteen to twenty-five year olds, I feel I have a legitimate reason to be concerned.
Many of today's younger graduates can't spell, none of them understand the basics of grammar, they haven't read Shakespeare or any of the classics, they can't write-either physically or creatively, they have no real sense of either their own country's history or any other country's history. They don't even know the history of their own state or the town in which they live. They know nothing about music-neither the fundamentals of notation, nor the appreciation and history of classical music. These were all things that I was taught in school. I would also point out that in my twelve years of schooling, I attended twenty-seven different schools all over the country. They all taught the above, so it isn't a question of region.
We also had a class called Civics, where we learned how the government worked, read the Constitution of the United States, and the Declaration of Independence, learned about the separation of powers, and the importance of making wise decisions about voting.
What we were not taught was that only the educator's opinion is correct, or that everything we read and hear in the media must be true. Instead, we were taught to make our own judgments based on independent research using many different sources. We had debates where we were divided up and given a side to argue which was mediated by our teacher, who would always ask "on what do you base that statement?" In other words, we were taught to think for ourselves, not to just follow the majority opinion which may or may not have any basis in fact.
All of our papers, in any subject, were graded on content, spelling, correct use of grammar, and proper use of footnotes for source materials. Points were taken off for the mis-use of any of the above. In red ink, and with constructive criticism.
I want my grandchild to have the benefit of the same quality of education I had. I did not attend private schools, with the exception of one year of Catholic School. I attended public schools and recieved a wonderful education. I want him to have a solid background in the Humanities, which, in fact, helps us to understand the world in which we live, and creates a sense of empathy for our fellow men. It also helps us to make our own choices and follow our own consciences when faced with difficult decisions. I also want him to be encouraged, not only to read on his own, but to comprehend what it is he's reading. We used to be tested on reading comprehension. Without comprehension, reading ceases to be a tool for self-education later on in life.
When I was able to attend college, at the age of forty-eight, I finished up with a 3.88 GPA. That included English, History, Biology, Chemistry, Biotechnology, and Pre-Calculus (I don't even think that was invented when I was in High School). I did not depend entirely on my professor to teach me, but made good use of my books to explain to me the things which I had difficulty understanding. I was able to do this because I can comprehend what I read.
I understand that today, parents are of little help in the education of their children, and that teachers today are being hamstrung by regulations which more or less force them to dumb down' their instruction to the level of the slowest student. More teachers need to stand up and protest this method of educating as being unfair, not only to the smarter students, but also to the slower ones, who would benefit more from special classes and/or trade schools.
Every one does not belong in College. The idea that every one is entitled to a college education is absurd. The world need's auto mechanics, plummers, carpenters, electricians, and construction workers as much now as when I was a child. These trades pay more than many college professionals make. I managed to make it thirty years without a college education. I was a manager for a book publishing warehouse, I was a registered representative licensed to sell mutual funds for First Investors Corp. and for John Hancock. I was a Stage Manager for ten years. All with the benefit of a solid High School education. I did not attend college out of high school because I could not afford to so. Still, I did quite well for myself.
I am happy that grants and scholarships are readily available today for students wishing to attend college, but the student should have the proper grades before being accepted to any college.
What's the solution? Throwing money at the problem does not help. It is a problem which can only be corrected through a partnership between Educators and Parents, a revolt against the government intervention which is preventing all students from excelling. An understanding that learning a trade is not a thing of which to be ashamed and an understanding among pupils that, if their goal is to go to college, they will have to earn that right by keeping their grades upl
We had three choices when I was in school. College course, business course, and trades. We need to direct students where they want to go based on their own personal preference and desire to succeed by getting the grades. We must give real grades to students, not A for effort, B for trying really hard, etc. That is shear nonsense and does not prepare a child for the cutthroat environment of a competetive workplace. If you fail you fail. Make it up in Summer school or switch to another course.
Finally, we need to stop making excuses for students who fail. Broken homes, dysfunctional families, and the poor,all existed when I was in school also. We did not make excuses for them. They either rose above it or sunk into it. The choice was theirs and theirs alone. We decide if we want to better ourselves or succumb to our environment. I made the choice to better myself. I was not given the option of using being poor, or being raised by a drunken and promiscuous parent as an excuse for failure.
Lastly, we need to bring back English as a subject that includes spelling, grammar, syntax, hyperbole, nouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, prepositions, objective and subjective pronouns, past,present, and the dreaded dangling participles. We need to teach students how to speak properly and write properly. If I had a dime for every time I found my speech being corrected, I would be a very rich woman. Ironically, when teaching a foreign language, all of the above are explained and learned, yet, when it comes to our native tongue, I don't believe anyone even knows what those words mean.
We need more emphasis on literature. In my time, that included Shakespeare, Chaucer, Beowulf, Austen, Frost, Byron, Shelley, Donne, Verne, Orwell, Whitman, Richard Wright, Langston Hughes, Willa Cather, Samuel Clemens (unedited), F. Scott Fitzgerald, Franz Kafka, Dostoevsky, Melville, Tolstoy, to name just a few. There is much to be learned from these writers. To deprive a child of these works is to doom him to ignorance.
And we must bring back music. Music appreciation, notation, history. If we ever hope to have real music in our future, we must teach it in our schools. Computers can not replace a fundamental education in Music.
History and Civics need to be taught properly, not used as tool to brainwash our children into believing that we are an evil country. We are not. We are a great country with a rich history, warts and all. We have made mistakes like any other country, but our goal has always been freedom and justice for all. That will not be achieved by telling students that we are racists, but by pointing out the errors and the efforts that have been made to correct them. No other country has ever achieved the richness, growth, and freedom that we have. These are not bad things. Success is still possible here, but the key to that success in America is education, not welfare checks.
I did not need someone to tell me to do my homework or study for exams. I knew that, if I wanted to pass, I would have to do the work. If I needed help, I sought out my teacher, other students or other book sources to either answer my questions or lead me to the answer. If I failed a test, I went back over it and studied the material again. If I failed a class, I went to summer school. When I realized I didn't have the means to go to college, I switched to the Business course.
Until we achieve the level of education required to succeed in this country, it will be up to parents and educators to inspire students to want to learn more, to want to do their homework, to want to get the best possible grades, and to compete to be the best at whatever they choose to do.
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