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(Ed. Note: Many seniors will graduate this May. Their brains have been saturated with physics, chemistry, calculus, and just about every academic requirement they could fit into their schedule in order to have a sterling college application, enabling them to gain admittance, and better yet, vie for a hefty scholarship. But what is wrong with this picture? Are they really ready to take off on their own and face higher learning when in reality they know very little about life’s practicalities? This editorial by graduating senior Libby Sanders struck a personal nerve with me; because it contains the same things I questioned when I graduated high school in 1962. And to this day, I can hear my father asking me, “What on earth did you learn in school?” when I approached him in 1963 to help me complete my very first 1040 form. He was a man with a fifth grade education, yet he knew more about life’s lessons than anyone else I knew. However, a 1040 form is the least of all worries among today’s future generation.)
What Isn't Being Tought
By Libby Sanders
The most common question we hear in school everyday isn’t “Why?” but “Why do I have to learn this?” Especially in high school, when students’ minds are molding into the personalities they will revert to for the rest of their lives, there is a severe need for practical education; education for our public, personal, and global responsibilities. I am an ardent supporter of broad education (even forcing future mathematicians to learn about Shakespeare and forcing future authors to learn about parabolas) but I am also a realist. Most of my peers, myself included, don’t know how to fill out our taxes, plan for future savings, or to keep dignity intact when dealing with used car salesmen. A small handful of students that take business courses (or get stuck in business courses because all of the library aid positions are filled) may learn these skills, but with a large percentage of us leaving public school within a few short months, a handful is not enough.
Besides the universally practical lessons left unlearned, public schools are also not keeping up with the demands of a 21st century workforce. By the time my peer group graduates college, the technology sector will be in high demand for qualified employees. Our lives are completely dependent upon modern technology, and most 13-year-olds are more skilled with computers than their parents. Between cell phones, digital cameras, and blogging – there are few aspects of my generation’s daily life that aren’t augmenting our technological savvy. Our education is a poor mirror of this high demand. Texas public high schools require only one technology credit and most students take only the bare minimum in order to fulfill the rest of their graduation requirements. In the ever-changing workforce, our high schools desperately need to catch up.
It is ironic that school, the institution dedicated to preparing us for the “real world,” ignores real world issues and replaces them with a PG-rated microcosm revolving around Homecoming and Prom. Besides practical problems, there are too many issues (dangerous and even deadly issues) waging war on teenagers and the entire world every day to keep ignoring. However, schools remain silent. I cannot account for the lack of common sense in not making “American Citizen 101: Voting, Taxes, and Auto Insurance” a mandatory class, but there are boundless theories on why the other issues are not addressed in America’s public schools; issues like sex, religion, and the world outside of suburbia. We are quick to blame incompetent teachers and apathetic teens, but there is another factor affecting our surreal education: the shaky moral groundwork our nation still seems to think we operate by. If our administrators were to actually walk through the halls of an American high school, they would realize that we no longer live in a conservative society, and we cannot be educated as if we do.
Much to parental chagrin, the sex-drugs-and-rock-n-roll lifestyle is alive and well in today’s teen culture. Sex is rampant throughout music, movies, and even cheerleading routines (Texas legislature attempted to ban “booty” moves in cheerleading routines because it is common knowledge that cheerleading is the modern catalyst of moral decay). Instead of educating students on the reality of their hormonal addictions, schools embrace a fire-and-brimstone approach to sexual education. These programs aren’t sponsored by Planned Parenthood or other reality-based teen advocacy groups, but instead receive funding from the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.
There are eight strict guidelines that all abstinence-only programs must follow, many of which offer nothing but condemnation for any sexual activity outside of marriage, claiming it to be the “expected standard of human sexual activity.” With Texas schoolbooks defining marriage strictly as the union between a man and a woman, it can be implied that any homosexual relations (as well as premarital) lay outside of this “expected standard,” unless they take place in Massachusetts. Already considering gays and lesbians below human standards, these guidelines forbid any discussion of contraceptive use. While contraceptives do not protect against sexually transmitted diseases, they can protect against pregnancy and are a valuable alternative. With natural hormonal peaks occurring during the teenage years, abstinence is a tragically unrealistic ultimatum.
That is not to say, however, that teaching abstinence as a good option (if not the best option) is a bad thing. It’s the best option medically, and unlike the pervasive moral dilemma it causes in teen movies, practicing abstinence will not make you the butt of everyone’s jokes and cause your friends to dramatically abandon you. There is no denying that abstinence is the only 100% effective way to avoid contracting sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), but there is denying that every kid that signed the abstinence banner in seventh grade (or the drug-free banner, for that matter) can still stand by their oath. Sex is a choice, and current sex-ed programs throw dissenters out into the cold. There is no guidance, no support, and no hotline to call. When “abstinence or bust” is preached, students are left with the feeling that there is no safety out there for them. Abstinence should be taught first, but students should be provided with honest information on how to practice sex safely. Maybe this is too extreme of an approach, but schools could at least provide information on how to contact groups like Planned Parenthood for more personal guidance. It won’t make us randy or cause foaming at the mouth. If anything, it could prevent teen pregnancy by giving teens a comprehensive knowledge of sex, helping us to make a more informed decision in our own lives.
Such honesty is taboo, not necessarily because it is explicit in nature, but because it goes against what the majority of policy makers consider essentially “American” values. I do not take the stereotypically liberal God-blasting approach to religious faith; rather, such faith is inseparable from the majority of American’s lives. Over half of all Americans believe in a creationist doctrine as opposed to the theory of evolution, and whatever one’s scientific leanings, there are as many around the world that believe similarly. Many current political issues, from teaching the popular creationism in science classrooms to abortion rights to stem-cell research and even gay marriage rights, are debated over solely because of their religious ties.
Domestic issues that are deeply entrenched in religious values are extremely volatile. In such debates, Leviticus is considered a credible source. There is no evidence to support the rhetoric, and the only result is a more charged and less reliable populace. The only, yet regrettably improbable, way to create realistic policy on religious issues is to put aside passions and eliminate ad hominem attacks. Religion and science face off, putting Republicans and Democrats in their respective camps, labeling the former religious fanatics and the latter Godless secularists. If we could better understand these issues and their political effects beyond possible damnation or salvation, our generation could heal our own holy wounds. Sadly, controversial topics are considered inappropriate for school discussion. Better then, to leave it in the streets, where there are no classroom rules and few knowledgeable professionals to lead the debate.
Aside from evangelical battles, there is a larger importance of religion – worldwide. The conflicts between mainstream Islam and fundamentalist sects, the warring Israeli and Palestinian nations, religious tension in communist countries, and the religious-political warfare rampaging Africa all claim thousands of lives, working only to divide humanity on violent grounds. How much do we really understand these conflicts and the religious history behind them? It is disconcerting that the heads of America’s security agencies don’t know the fundamental differences between Sunni and Shiite Muslims, but this shouldn’t be an excuse for the rest of Americans to be equally ignorant.
To be more understanding of both domestic and international issues, we need to begin religious instruction in schools. If children can understand the lessons of Sunday school starting in kindergarten, they also have the ability to understand religious diversity in their Monday through Friday school just as early. In our melting-pot society, there cannot be such a harsh distinction between “us” and “them” based on religious views, but without proper education, that will and has proven to be the current viewpoint of our national policies and policy-makers.
Contrary to popular belief, we are capable; not only of learning more, but capable of accomplishing more in our own lives and to aid the lives of others. I won’t spend this time to argue the importance of Prom Queens, but I will argue the overlooked importance of practical, lifelong education. The public school system should have benefiting the public as its primary goal, and the overwhelming benefits from a more direct approach to public, private, and global matters in the classroom will cause more communal growth than the next generation of tiara-toting teens could ever accomplish alone. Students and policy makers must work together to stop asking “Why?” Instead we ask, “Why not?”
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