Generic high school diplomas are not worth the paper on which they are printed.
Armed with generic high school diplomas, students are not trained and are not prepared to
get a job to ensure financial independence. They are heading towards dead-end
minimum-wage jobs. Many high school students would do well in vocational education
and they would be prepared to enter a job with a marketable skill at the end of their senior
year.
In spite of what every high school guidance counselor says, not all high school
graduates are going to college, whether it is lack of money, lack of interest, and/or lack of
brain power. Our education system is pumping out high school students who earn a
generic diploma with no focused job-related skills. At the end of their high school years,
they are released upon society with little or no guidance as to what they are going to do
with their lives. Vocational educational programs can offer a chance for training in job
skills which will ensure a lifetime of financial independence.
probably the reason for the generic high school diploma. However, a generic diploma
says nothing except a generic education for the masses. The ninth grade needs to be used as an academic trial period to weed out students who are not college material. At the end of the ninth grade, test students to discover their aptitudes to aid them in choosing a life skill, and funnel them into a vocational education program. By the end of their senior year, these students will have a vocation which they can easily slip into.
After being tested at the end of the ninth grade to determine their interests and
aptitudes, students will spend their sophomore and junior years in a split school day--half
in classroom lecture learning about the profession, and the other half in an actual hands-
on work environment. Some vocational education programs are auto mechanics, aircraft
mechanics, woodworking/carpentry, welding, hotel management, culinary skills,
dietician, bookkeeping, upholstery, auto body repair, heating/air conditioning,
refrigeration, licensed vocational nurse (LVN), x-ray technician, plumbers, electricians.
In their senior year, students participate in an apprenticeship working full time in their
trade. At the end of their senior year, they have a job.
Of course everyone has the right to go to college; that goes without saying. The
typical traditional “four-year degree” actually takes longer to earn than four years because the average college student changes majors three times before deciding to stick with one. And with all the lower division general education classes, and then all the upper division general education classes one is required to take to give a student a well-rounded college education, the semesters just keep adding up. Thousands of college students graduate every spring with no job prospects. There is nothing wrong with not going to college but choosing to learn a trade instead. Once vocational education students have chosen a profession, have learned the skills, and are working, they become respectable and responsible contributors in society. We can always use more mechanics, plumbers, electricians, and carpenters. Some vocational education programs are interconnected and students can study for a split certification such as auto/motorcycle mechanic or gasoline/diesel engine mechanic. Some professions can inspire into more advanced education such as Licensed Vocational Nurse to Registered Nurse to medical school or book keeping to Certified Public Accountant.
A generic high school diploma tells nothing about what one learned in high school nor evidence of any acquired job-related skills to guarantee financial independence. There is nothing wrong with not going to college, However, it is important to have a plan to be able to attain financial independence through learning a trade that can be used anywhere, anytime, and be proud of what you do. Once you learn a trade, it can never be taken away from you.
