Teens Think High School is Pointless
Posted by anastasia on 04-27-2005Ypulse reader John emailed a really interesting press release about a survey conducted by the National Governors Association of "more than 10,000 high school students on their expectations and frustrations about America's high schools and how the work they do affects their futures."
Here are the key findings:
"While America's high school students say they are adequately prepared in basic reading, math and science skills, more than a third of them say their high schools are not properly preparing them in many areas critical to their future success.
For example, about one third of students don't feel their schools are adequately preparing them to think critically, analyze problems and communicate effectively. Moreover, 43 percent don't believe they are gaining practical and essential life skills while in high school.
The results reveal students fail to understand that mastering an academically rigorous high school curriculum, especially during senior year, will not only help them excel in college, it also will help them graduate from college on time and make them a more attractive candidate in today's increasingly competitive job market."
Categorized under: Education
April 27th, 2005 at 11:45 am
Don't those last two paragraphs seem contradictory? First it's saying that kids don't feel adequately prepared for the real world. Then it says the kids fail to understand the value in mastering a rigorous academic cirriculum. Seems to me they DO understand the value in it and that's why, therefore, they are unsatisfied by the inferior educations they're receiving.
I spoke to an English class to try to get teen writers for our teen-written newspaper/Web site and one kid asked the teacher what the word "zenith" meant. The teacher responded, "It's like the television." She knew it also meant "something else," but didn't know what. She didn't even then set a good example by consulting a dictionary. No wonder kids feel undereducated. It has nothing to do with them not wanting to be well-educated. It's starting at a higher level than that.
I'm disappointed that this study twisted its findings around to blame "kids these days." That won't solve anything.
Thoughts?
Hillary Rhodes
Editor, "Your Mom" & YourMomOnline.com
April 27th, 2005 at 1:12 pm
I agree. It's twisted b/c some of the other findings mentioned in the press release say to me that teens think that high school is failing them:
Students strongly sense high school is not adequately preparing them for their future, and a third — including those most at risk of dropping out — feel overlooked by their high school.
Students recognize the importance of senior year, but 49 percent want it to be significantly more meaningful. They say high schools are lacking the practical programs and skills that could help them better prepare for college or a job. Meanwhile 29 percent characterized senior year as a "waste of time."
A large majority, 59 percent, would work harder during senior year if their school offered more demanding and interesting courses.
One-third rate their schools as doing a "fair" or "poor" job of "giving them the skills to succeed."
Three in five students (60 percent) rate their high schools either "fair" or "poor" in preparing them for a career or trade. Likewise, 57 percent believe their school does a "fair" or "poor" job of preparing them for the future by providing them with tools to learn a trade or skill.
About one-third of students say their high schools are doing a "fair" or "poor" job in preparing them for college. Only a quarter say their schools do an "excellent" job.
Three in 10 students say their high school does a "fair" or "poor" job challenging them academically and nearly 70 percent say teachers have high expectations for only "certain students."
July 7th, 2005 at 2:53 am
School does not teach us many practical life-skills. I do not need to learn triganometry. I don't need to know how to structure an analytical essay on some boring bit of literature. School is a waste of time. Property development and multi-level marketing is where the money is. Nobody ever got rich from going to school–unless they became a doctor or a lawyer.
November 28th, 2005 at 11:32 pm
In my opinion high school is uterlly pointless and no longer needed!
This is what happens(to me at least) when no-one bothers to care, to teach you, or care if you succeed or fail!
Sadly(but gladly),I had to teach myself where jakass teachers left off.
The worst part is:im still no better off.
I see no chance of ever going to college to become a 3d animator/fx animator/ceo nor being able to afford it-or building a global corparate empire..but scrooe college & bullshit finacial-aid,..I have a plan that began when I first came to earth:"Someday I shall execute it and then I shall at last be happy and at peace and have revenge on the basterds who destoyed my future & chance of financial freedom in this wonderful country-that seems to be slowly lossing it's appeal."
December 4th, 2005 at 6:11 pm
I agree. Consuling services for depressed and troubled teens has sky rocketed in high schools. Many teens miss one or two days/week. Teens know there isn't a point to a majority of it. Its all artifical. Teachers are clueless. Parent's are clueless. Its time we started a revolution.
December 7th, 2005 at 9:53 am
yeah, totally i agree with you on the fact that school is utterly useless in its entirety… we seriously have no reason to learn the same thing 10 times until our brain bleeds. I've been screwed over my entire life, and school has been the cause of it. With this stupid 12 years worth of my life gone, i have no money, no family, and no chance of getting the job i wanted so bad. yeah, but i agree overall…
December 8th, 2005 at 4:35 pm
You're right Travis, at your age I'll bet you already know everything there is to know about not only academics, but life in general. Man, I know I did at your age. Here's a tip for you: Since you have nothing left to learn in high school take some standardized tests (do insanely well ,you genious!), and get into any college you want. And yes, become the ceo of your very own 3d cartoon company.
Tom, I got my pitchfork and torch ready to go buddy. Our parents can't tell us what to do anymore!!! Hey, we can also stop taking that damn prozac medicine. That never really helped us anyway. Man Anti-depression medication is so clueless. Millions of other teens suffering from depression need to get back at the schools, too. God forbid they try to set up "Consuling services for depressed and troubled teens."
And Paco…I have to say reading your post bought a tear to my eye. That is so sad you wasted 12 years in school/detention. Unlike all the other kids who went solo from the start and are now rolling in benjamins. And your family didn't support your decision to forever live in their basement and get high? Absolutely awful!
January 3rd, 2006 at 3:21 am
@ Hillary Rhodes
I agree with you as someone with firsthand experience in today's schools. Many modern teachers have become very inefficient, both in their jobs and in the knowledge of their subjects. Perhaps this the first of many repercussions from their teachers being inefficient. If only defining solutions was as clear as seeing the problems.
@ Staci
Traditions among previous generations have affected all of our lives. What we learn in school is definitley a result of that. While certain groups may feel it is important to educate everyone in advanced mathematics or English literature, topics such as those are not always important in one's life. Particularly, I would like to know why modern subject matter is so slow coming into schools. I am sure that some people would benefit more from reading "Advanced Computer Programming" instead of "The Scarlet Letter".
@ Travis
I feel your pain. Many of my hours spent doing pointless review work or resting my head on my desk because I completed the assignment 20 minutes early could have been spent much better in other academic areas.
@ Tom
It is true that many teens out there feel that the programs and services that have been initiated are pointless. I believe that a lot of this results from the fact that they speak to the students as if they are poor, stupid, and misguided.
@ paco
I loathe school as much as the next person, but we cannot go around blaming it for all of our problems. Instead, I believe a large portion of that blame falls on many other groups as well, including ourselves and our reactions to it. I like to think of those 12 years spent thus far as necessary experience which led me to have a better perspective on life and the behavior of people who think they can run each other's.
@ Karsten
I don't think it is right to discredit one's perspective on life. If you think his views and experiences in life at that age are worthless compared to your matured views, maybe it is because you didn't give yourself enough credit at that age.
Judging on your previous sarcasm, I belive you are for Prozac. We just cannot make it through life without artificially modifying our brains anymore can we? This surge of depression that has been striking the media in frightening statistics, surely it was not brought on by public schooling in the first place at all? Surely the education system has no blame in the matter, it is all MTV and popular culture. I can refer you to some specific cases if you wish when I have more time.
Just for the record, where is the line drawn between taking Prozac to modify one's brain and getting high to modify one's brain, because one of them is government-backed?
January 4th, 2006 at 3:49 am
Allow me to amend some information to my previous post just to give some examples from firsthand experience of the incompetence in modern public high schools:
- An AP Biology teacher who didn't even cover one quarter of the material on the AP Biology Exam in the first semester hands out frivolous extra credit assignments such as bringing in napkins, baggies, and whatnot that are worth as much as a 5-10% boost (a letter grade) in one's grade (to make himself look like a good teacher of course). Of course, the students have to know little pieces of information here and there to pass the exams, but it is really just scratching the surface. No one is really gaining an in-depth knowledge about any area in Biology, and this is advanced placement.
- A gym teacher who spells Wednesday "Wensday" (although this fits the common stereotype). Hopefully, no more needs to be said about this one.
- A German teacher who has his eleventh grade students make gingerbread houses, while 3/4th of them still have trouble with simple conjugation and knowing what a pronoun case is. Of course, many vocabulary words are gone over, but there are no exams on the vocabulary words! You can have most of his students recite food words in German, but they couldn't form a sentence or use proper grammar with them! Again, this is another subject where the teacher just scratches the surface.
- A chemistry teacher who offers an A in her class for the semester for finding her lost dog (there is so much to cover with her I will just leave it at this and allow you to make whatever assumptions you wish).
I can say nothing bad about the History, AP English, and Calculus teachers. They actually "TEACH" :-O. Here you have it, 4/7 teachers with a bad record on a single schedule.
The problem in public schools is not just students not wanting to have an in-depth knowledge in many subjects. In fact, a much bigger problem is how schools are not really teaching these subjects.
March 19th, 2007 at 2:05 am
The schools themselves aren't the main problem here, it's the whining screaming little children, and the horny, stuck up adolescents who know fuck all about the world whom you have to mingle with 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 40 weeks a year, for 13 years that screws people up. when u think about it, anyone who is willing to put up with that much is clearly out of their minds and needs a reality check. either that or they're teachers.
October 23rd, 2007 at 11:50 pm
The problem that I have with school is the fact that I have to take subjects that I have absolutely no interest in.
I don't see how knowing how to distinguish different types of poetry will help me become a chemist. I don't see the point in taking three years of a foreign language that I won't ever fully learn unless I live in that country for a few years. I appreciate knowing how to speak multiple languages (which I do) and I think that if poets want to write poetry of if artists want ot make abstract art it's good on them but no one should be subjected to a letter grade for their artistic or poetical skill.
March 2nd, 2009 at 12:39 am
Ok my two cents…
I'm in school now and I have my opinions on it, good and bad. One large thing I dislike is the fact that basically, here's my class schedule: 10 before class is wasted, 20 min of actual learning is done, the teacher gives out busy work to finish off the lecture.
So after six classes, I've learned little while the majority of my time was wasted. I don't mind school, but the problem here is the busy work we are given and the fact that many of these subjects are useless unless we are entering that field.
I want to go into film. At the moment I have the ability and the skill to get started in small film things. Along the way I can take film classes. However, instead of taking this time to be productive and to learn more about film, I'm stuck learning about math for twenty minutes, then I have to finish it off with an hour of questions.
So, while this work may be nessassary for some reasons, and there is no real correct answer, my honest opinion is that the educational system is broken a bit. There just seems like there should be a abetter, more time productive way to learn.
April 26th, 2009 at 4:37 pm
Higher education AND HIGHER EXPECTATIONS should be enforced. When you treat teens like they're intelligent and well rounded individuals, they make an effort to meet your expectations.
It seems that if you show teens the big picture and give them a taste of all the opportunities out there, they TRY to get there.
Its the teachers job to show them these places, ideas and people. It shouldn't be a half-hearted "go read this book and write a 2 page essay about it" There's no point to that, so why try? I'll just go online, read a summary about it, and bullshit my way for a B-.
At my school it seems they've completely given up. Every Friday they have an army recruiter come in with a clipboard to take names :(
I feel bad for everyone at this school, they don't know anything beyond their family farm.
(I moved from a city school to a country school, the difference is unbelievable.)
May 18th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
The Industrial Revolution brought upon many changes to the United States, including a new educational system which seems to be focussing more on "quantity" instead of "quality." Honestly, the people behind the education system need to pull their heads out of their ***es and realize that not everyone wants to be an engineer or a scientist or a doctor. We need a rudimentary understanding of math, science, history, and we definitely need to understand English, but really, they need to teach the students what they want to learn.
May 30th, 2009 at 11:05 am
people school puts kids and teens in alot of stess this is why we get ulcers and end up in hospitals ,HSA is a dumbass tests and bridge projects.its freakin boring and pointless some of that shit were not going to need ,we hate teachers,skool sould be 3 hours,no school on fridays too!
January 10th, 2010 at 11:53 am
i'm in high school, 10th grade, and honestly i have to agree here. high school is just a mindless barrage of trials to see how low you'll sink to get an A+. there is literally nothing i am learning right now that i can or will use in my future life, except maybe algebra.
i want to be a concept artist for a video game company. i've been dedicated to this decision for years now, but in the last 2 years of my academic life i have learned exactly nothing that would help me become that. and it's precisely because of that i'll end up working in a McDonalds for the next 30 years. thanks high school.
seriously, i've had to do my own research and teach myself about the gaming industry, and to me that's all i should be doing right now. but apparently, doing menial projects week after week about a book that relates in no way to the present day is more important. once again, high school, i can't thank you enough.
February 16th, 2010 at 2:06 pm
As someone who is out of school (HS and 4 years of college), to some extent I agree about high school. I think that there are a lot of teachers who do not do a great job of conducting their classes or helping students learn in a way that will be helpful in the future. Sure some of that is state and national education standards, but there are some terrific teachers out there who can cover what the standards require as well as many other useful, interesting things – major kudos to those teachers.
I wish that I had taken more initiative in high school to learn about future careers, to start a book club, or an AV club, or any sort of club relating to my interests. As high schoolers we get treated like kids sometimes and it makes us angry, but, let's be honest, we all act like kids sometimes too. For the most part, if you act like a responsible, focused, driven adult, that's how people will treat you. And if your teachers aren't teaching you things that you want to be learning – write a well thought out letter to the school board and try to work with the teachers and the administration to take a more active role in your own education. Some things are just too specialized for a whole class in high school. If they're not – be proactive. Think how it will look to future employers. Maybe even lazy teachers can present you with an great opportunity.
July 26th, 2010 at 10:39 pm
Hah, those arrogant bastards.
"The results reveal students fail to understand that mastering an academically rigorous high school curriculum, especially during senior year, will not only help them excel in college, it also will help them graduate from college on time and make them a more attractive candidate in today's increasingly competitive job market."
Or it shows that students are smarter than you give them credit for because they can smell bullshit from farther away than you thought. High school teaches you nothing but the ability to take orders and follow directions. If you want citizens of any real mental caliber (with perhaps, say, some lateral thinking skills as opposed to the painfully linear ones taught in high school), you might try a different approach.
This article really sickens me.