I Struggled, but In a Way I Never Expected
My school focused on the wrong thing, but I’m the one who suffered.
Oh, the irony of school.
Oh. The IRONIES of school. Aside from the typical “We won’t need this later in life anyway, why do we need to learn this?” or the idea that the students who try the least will get the farthest because they cheat, there’s another situation I’ve faced that is the opposite of what should be.
How it started
I’ve talked about the school system on the internet before and brought up that they just aren’t doing enough. Yes, they gave me information, and yes, they gave us information, but it wasn’t enough to make me feel prepared or confident to be successful.
When I asked a few kids here and there about their plans for the upcoming years, I only got a solid answer about half the time.
Yes, it’s okay to not have a path picked out, but it’s clear that many are just sitting there with no real plans.
I could have been done a long time ago
I started planning my studies during the 2nd semester of 12th grade (November 2022). Slowly, I began to look at the school part of my day as something that was getting in the way. I could have progressed much faster than I did. If it wasn’t for the 50+ hours a week I devoted to school, I’d be further along in my career.
What I had to do
Given all the days off I had at the time — about a month total plus weekends — that I just couldn’t use, I had to make up for it somehow. So recently I started skipping classes and leaving early here and there to do intensive research, narrow down ideas, make effective plans, and plot out how I was going to get things done within my schedule.
It’s not just me though
Countless teens have after-school commitments to learn skills, gain experience, market themselves, or make money.
I just wish this year was focused on helping us 17-to 19-year-olds move forward, not doing the same thing we’ve been doing for 12 years.
See more in a conversation video I filmed with Hailey in which we reflect on our school experiences.
I struggled, but in a way I never expected to
It all boils down to irony; the irony that:
The buildings in which we spend more than half of our first 18 years are there to help us gain skills and success, but they only take away.
They take away our time and energy, and we’re the ones who have to look elsewhere for internships, apprenticeships, and people to connect with. Even when we’re offered programs, it’s still exhausting to do so many things during the week, and schedules clash with family issues you may have.
So here’s the question
Why don’t we shorten the 12th graders’ school day so they have more time for college and career planning?
There are just too many cases of young people lost, unprepared, or simply lacking knowledge.
Key message: A problem I faced during my last semester of school, and the sacrifice I had to make. There is away we can fix the common uncertainty amongst young people.
