ipl-logo

Apathy In America Essay

1370 Words6 Pages

Decreasing School Apathy in America Early mornings and long days that are filled with factoring polynomials, conjugating French verbs, analyzing historical documents, and studying for state-mandated tests. This required curriculum set by the state is what comprises many students’ average school day. This curriculum was developed with the goal of preparing all students for college; however, not all students plan on attending college. There are many jobs that are crucial for society to function that don’t require a college degree. For students who go straight into the workforce, this college-bound curriculum is nearly worthless. The disconnect between the required classes in school and the skills needed for the workforce right after graduating …show more content…

For many students, especially those going straight into the workforce, there are little to no skills taught in high school that would benefit them outside of high school. Their apathy toward school is justified due to the major gap between the curriculum taught in schools and the skills needed for the workforce outside of school (Stull 6). The students of today’s age are mostly driven by the promise of immediate benefits for their work. With a curriculum that doesn’t provide immediate benefits, students have limited motivation to perform well in school. The most prominent conclusion of a study of the reward structure in schools is that a very high number of apathetic students is expected due to the lack of benefits from taking high school earnestly (Stull 5). College-bound or not college bound, money is a major concern for most students fresh out of high school. Directly after high school, the wages earned by graduates are not notably affected by the skills taught in high school (Stull 6). For these young adults, there is little to no benefit from paying attention; therefore, they see no need in paying attention or taking school seriously. While the disconnect between the curriculum taught in schools and the skills needed for the workforce directly after graduating high school is a major cause of school …show more content…

The root of the major causes of school apathy is the ineffective curriculum used in schools all over the country. The current curriculum is designed to make all students college bound; however, not all students are going to attend college. For the students going straight into the workforce after high school, high school is viewed as a waste of time. According to a study performed by William J. Stull, the salary earned in the early workforce is not notably affected by the skills taught in high school (18). This fact justifies these students’ apathy toward school. Most people, especially teenagers, don’t like having to conform to large restrictions set forth by authority. Students are required to learn from a very structured curriculum, which in itself causes some apathy due to the abundant restrictions, and on top of that, it is a curriculum that won’t affect most of their futures. A revised curriculum that still has class requirements, such as being required to take four years of English classes before graduation, but offers more options for college-bound and non-college bound students, such as the option between an average English class a person would see in most schools now where students learn how to analyze literature and a class that teaches communication skills, would help to reduce apathy. By providing options, students would feel less forced by authority to conform and there would be a

Show More
Related
747 Words | 3 Pages

Otherwise, if society was to continue on this path of engendering pharmacists, doctors, and dentists without curtailment, those fields will eventually “crash” and many graduates fresh out of school will be left with a degree on paper that will barely serve to contribute to their earnings and well-being. Somewhere and somehow, an equilibrium needs to exist between people aiming to become blue collar worker and other endeavoring to work as an allied health professional. Without the equilibrium, the job economy will be found to be in a precarious situation where any move could result in a recession. People who do not need to attend college should not enroll in college and should stop with a high school diploma because continuing further on will only help to put the economy on the precipice of stability and

Read More
1189 Words | 5 Pages

College and Career Analysis Part One: Rationale For some, the workforce is almost immediate after school, for others, it's the military but for me, its straight to West Hills. In his article, “10 rules for going to college when nobody really expected you too,” Joe Rodriguez states that “the mere act of attending college is totally unexpected there are unforeseen obstacles including family and friends that tend to blow nontraditional students off their paths like landmines. He believes if educators helped to guide them into what the reality of life could look like before, during and after college then more students would be willing to attend. He believes if educators helped to guide them into what the reality of life could look like before, during and after college then more students would be willing to attend. I was personally moved by Mr. Rodriguez’s article, it not only reminded me that I'm on the right track but encouraged me to face this bittersweet journey with my head

Read More
1132 Words | 5 Pages

With the federal government mostly out of the picture, our state will be able to decide what is working and what needs to be changed in order to have a higher percentage of our high school students graduating and becoming productive citizens. Summary In the article, The Economic of Education, Dana K. Rickman is presenting evidence of how a low high school graduation rate has a major economic impact in an area. Such hardships come from having to provide healthcare, food, and shelter for the uneducated and unemployed person.

Read More
966 Words | 4 Pages

Getting a good education helps get you a better job and better quality of life. Essentially, education makes individuals into who they are for the rest of their lives. Over the past few decades, the amount of schooling and importance of schooling has grown as education has become more easily accessible and necessary for careers. This idea is shown through the data from studies done on degrees and financial records. A census done by the U.S. government on education in the U.S population of individuals age 25 and older, shows that the high school completion rate increased from 87.6% in 2011 to 91.1% in 2021.

Read More
2186 Words | 9 Pages

Seventy-five percent of high school seniors are accepted to their first college choice or university, but less than fifty-seven percent can bear the expense to attend their first choice learning institution. In fact, ”two out of three college students have now graduated with student loan debt. The average tuition is three times higher today than in 1980.” “1.5 million, or about 53.6 percent, of all bachelor's degree holders age 25 or younger were unemployed or underemployed in 2011.” (Gerber, "34 Depressing Facts About The Job Market For College Grads").

Read More
577 Words | 3 Pages

Depression sets in and you leave the room hoping not to bear another minute of this miserable day. Within the American school system, the goals to help students gain personal fulfillment and help create good citizens are contradictory. One cannot think for themselves and pursue personal interests while being socialized to fit into society, it is an oxymoron and it is a belief of nation. Truly, school systems need to understand that while individuality is an important factor in self-growth, some conformity is necessary for societies to function.

Read More
1297 Words | 6 Pages

Schools are like prisons. A student wakes up, goes to school, sits for an hour for each class, for seven classes, five days a week, nine months a year, for 12 years...if they do not decide to go to college. This monotonous routine has been shoved down the throats of students for years ever since attending school was made a requirement by the government and it doesn’t help today’s world at all. In her essay The Essentials of a Good Education, Diane Ravitch writes about the faults in our education system and how we need to refine our education system so that everyone benefits. In John Taylor Gatto’s essay, Against School, Gatto explores the realms of schools and how they are an outdated system that hurts individuals and encourage for people to

Read More
1006 Words | 5 Pages

(DeWees) What is the source of all this? Today in age student seem to find school more and more boring. With this being said students tend to study less and perform academically wise. Students tend to hate school and find no reason to go. Even if “Knowledge is power” and “the more you learn the more likely you are to succeed”, students still don’t take this in to consideration and could care less about how well they are doing academically in school.

Read More
676 Words | 3 Pages

With mass learning regulations the government mandated programs make the students feel like they must obey orders to succeed in college or a working environment. “The whole educational and professional training system is a very elaborate filter, which just weeds out people who are too independent, and who think for themselves, and who don’t know how to be submissive, and so on-- because they’re dysfunctional to the institutions.” School can feel as though the student is becoming submissive to a plan they had never signed up for; working towards a goal that the student had never planned on achieving can make them lose interest and become increasingly unmotivated. Schooling should be based around programs that encourage enjoyment and stimulation to the brain (Chomsky

Read More
1019 Words | 5 Pages

A rising issue in today’s society is deciding whether or not college is worth the cost. There is an extreme amount of pressure that is forced upon high school students by parents, teachers, and peers to further their education and attend college. However, there is research that challenges the thought that college is the best possible path for a person to take. College may be a great investment for some people, but it is not meant for everyone. This is supported by the arguments that colleges are expensive, jobs do not always require a college degree, and students are forced to choose a lifestyle before being exposed to the real world.

Read More
833 Words | 4 Pages

A recent study released by Pearson that questioned over 400,000 students in grades 6-12 shows that only “48% of students think their teachers care about them…and only 45% of students think teachers care if they are absent from school” (Hare, 2015). This shocking statistic demonstrates what American students think about their teachers. Most students are under the impression that their teachers don’t care about them. When teachers don’t care about their students and allow them to fail, many students with unrealized potential give up on education. Mike Rose’s “I Just Wanna Be Average” describes his journey through high school on the vocational track after the results of his “tests got confused with those of another student named Rose” (Rose, 1989, p. 2).

Read More
498 Words | 2 Pages

Walking into a high school, it is not uncommon to hear teenagers complain about the strains of an education. They may not realize, however, the numerous benefits of learning. Education is important because it makes the leaders of tomorrow more capable of dealing with real-world issues and eventually leads to economic growth, sustaining society. Any long-time teacher is familiar with a teenager's uninterested groan and the following, "When will we actually use this?"

Read More
806 Words | 4 Pages

In source four, Nicholas Wyman rightly questions, “in a situation where 70% of high schools students do not go to college… and over half of the graduates are unemployed or underemployed, is vocational education really expendable?” (Document 4). This query points to the flaw in new public school system; all students are directed towards college education even when that education is costly and ineffective. Even in regions where a majority of individuals choose alternate career paths, school districts such as the Los Angeles Unified School District make “plans to cut almost all of its CTE programs by the end of the year” (Document 4). As Wyman mentions in early in the passage, the old American education system, including both core and vocational education, was more effective and equitable.

Read More
901 Words | 4 Pages

Most of my friends who are currently in college have between 5000$-20.000$ in federal and private loans. In many cases, besides for the loans, students have to work and study at the same time, which results in a stressful life for the student. In fact, many students are not able to finish their education because, since they can’t afford it, they have to work over their studies. Out of all the possible reasons to drop out of college, “the No. 1 reason many young adults drop out of college is an inability to juggle school and work” (Johnson). Finishing college is the most decisive forecaster of prosperity in the workforce and the inconsistency in college completion between children of rich and poor families duplicated since the late 1980s (McGlynn 55).

Read More
1762 Words | 8 Pages

High School Dropouts Neil Urbano DeVry University  High School Dropouts I. Introduction A. Thesis Statement: High School students who dropouts matters after they exit school because there is a direct and negative impact on life outcome, the labor market opportunities are limited, and there are disadvantages that leads to poverty. 1) Main Idea: High School students who dropouts matters after they exit school because there is a direct and negative impact on life outcome. 2) Main Idea: High School students who dropouts matters after they exit school because the labor market opportunities are limited. 3) Main Idea: High School students who dropouts matters after they exit school because there are disadvantages that leads to poverty. II.

Read More

More about Apathy In America Essay

Open Document