Skip to main content

Mandatory Schooling, 8.5 classes for high schoolers

Little House Antique Style School Desk, Ink Wells & Pens Fits Two ..."Dad, I know what I'm not going to do. Sit in a desk. I just wasted the last 13 years of my life doing that. I'm done sitting."

My son graduated this year. He gets asked all the time what he wants to do next. He has plans to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and then pursue a career in law enforcement.

My heart hurt. He's right, in a way, that it was sitting. Not entirely wasted, mind you, but he makes a great point.

Here are 8.5 mandatory high school classes, not time wasters;

  1. Money management - it's a resource that requires skill and knowledge. Debt is poison.
  2. Mental health - statistics on this, for this generation, scream for education and support.
  3. Time management - instead of yelling get off your phone, teach replacement behaviors.
  4. Taxes - see #1, and #7.
  5. Self-confidence - coping skills, self-facilitation tools, conversational and manners.
  6. Self-care - awareness, attention, habits of work, habits of play, leadership.
  7. Financial literacy - see #1, #4, and paying tithing.
  8. Outward mindset - how to see others as people rather than objects.
8.5. Outdoor survival - see #2, #5, #6.

Education is changing. Rapidly.

Onward!

Dr. J

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

1.5 Reasons to Take a Different Path - The Hippy-Cow Way

The Hippy-Cow Way I remember early in my career asking a question something like, "Why don't we try [insert idea here]?"  And the quick reply, "Because this is the way we've always done it." Wow. 2020 is teaching us that the way  we've always done things..does not work.  Yeah.  The age-old rut that can trap us all. Frustrating isn't it? As a child growing up in the Aspen Valley, I remember traveling many miles along Highway 82.  Glenwood to Carbondale, then to Basalt, and on to Aspen.  Two lanes most of the way, it was and is the main route connecting all of these Rocky  Mountain towns.  The drive can be breath-taking in the Fall. And most take this route because, well, it's the route we always take. It's familiar. Safe. Known. Well traveled. You get the idea. There are other ways to get where you're going. Roads less traveled that hold great sites and great reward. One of my favorites is the Hippy-Cow Way. Known only to our fam...

Prayer for an Educator

It's rare to sit in the staff lounge for the 30 minute lunch break  we get and be able to reflect on one's career. Today was one such day...causing a flood of memories.  I offer this prayer for educators May you have protection when you do the home visit on the little girl who's father beat her with a 2x4 for getting a C.  May you have wisdom when consoling the teacher who gave her the C. Go with courage to sit next to the little girl who all alone weeps at the lunch table because she has lice. Teach her mother with tenderness. Be vigilant when the little boy describes the cigarette burn on his eye given him by his mother because he complained he was hungry. Hold fast at the 9 o'clock hour, still at school prepping for another day, while your own children go to sleep not having seen you all day. Have wisdom when all at home is falling down around you - and you know the children at school need you now more than ever. Be with joy when t...

Weigh ins...How Wrestling Teaches Equality

I adore the sport of wrestling. Very few things have brought me as much personal and professional satisfaction, grief, suffering, confusion, and growth.  Three of my children have wrestled, including my youngest daughter. She's a pioneer in the sport, as evidenced by the interesting questions she gets asked. "You wrestle boys?" She does, and she wrestles female opponents as well. Or, "Wow, that's cool?" Almost like a side compliment. Wrestling is all about equality . It begins with weigh ins. Pre-match and pre-tournament, stripped down to the skivvies, get on the scale and check how much you weigh. I wrestled in the 119, 132, and 138 pound weight class. My opponents weighed the same.  The mat size is the same for all competitors. Mat time is the same, roughly six minutes, depending on division and age group. Same number of coaches are allowed in your corner, two. Same number of referees, usually one, supervise the match. Unless someone puts their thumb on t...