Dear Editor,
I am genuinely concerned about how uninformed we students leaving high school are about the 'real world' and the challenges that we will indeed come across when moving into adulthood.
I am 17 years old and I can honestly say that I know not a thing about taxes, applying for a job, opening a bank account, or even voting. I have, however, graduated high school with eight CSEC subjects; achieving seven grade ones and a grade two. But, where will these subjects get me, and many other students like me, if we do not know the first thing about creating a résumé or the taxes I'll need to pay as soon as we begin to get pay cheques.
It seems to me that after we graduate with our different subjects we are left to either sink or swim. My question is, why do students leave high school knowing more about safe sex than applying for jobs, paying taxes, or even voting? This clearly seems as though, as a nation, we do have our priorities in the wrong places.
It can be argued that our parents are supposed to be the ones to teach us about the real world. However, I believe if the schools have taken on the responsibility of teaching about safe sex, a relatively adult topic, why not take it a step further and teach us about making the transition from adolescence to adulthood.
The importance and emphasis we place on achieving CSEC/CAPE subjects upon leaving high school also needs to be placed on leaving high school fully knowledgeable of the steps we must take to establish ourselves as functioning members of society. Financial literacy and general knowledge of what we are up against upon leaving high school need to be just as important as any other subject that we study in school. Students ought to leave high school knowing about the importance of taxes, how to open a bank account, how to begin saving, the importance of a tertiary education, how to vote, and just about any of the basic obstacles young adults come across while transitioning from adolescence to full-fledged adulthood.
Krista-Gaye Forbes
kris97_c.c@live.com
8 CXCs but not 'ready for the road'
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I am genuinely concerned about how uninformed we students leaving high school are about the 'real world' and the challenges that we will indeed come across when moving into adulthood.
I am 17 years old and I can honestly say that I know not a thing about taxes, applying for a job, opening a bank account, or even voting. I have, however, graduated high school with eight CSEC subjects; achieving seven grade ones and a grade two. But, where will these subjects get me, and many other students like me, if we do not know the first thing about creating a résumé or the taxes I'll need to pay as soon as we begin to get pay cheques.
It seems to me that after we graduate with our different subjects we are left to either sink or swim. My question is, why do students leave high school knowing more about safe sex than applying for jobs, paying taxes, or even voting? This clearly seems as though, as a nation, we do have our priorities in the wrong places.
It can be argued that our parents are supposed to be the ones to teach us about the real world. However, I believe if the schools have taken on the responsibility of teaching about safe sex, a relatively adult topic, why not take it a step further and teach us about making the transition from adolescence to adulthood.
The importance and emphasis we place on achieving CSEC/CAPE subjects upon leaving high school also needs to be placed on leaving high school fully knowledgeable of the steps we must take to establish ourselves as functioning members of society. Financial literacy and general knowledge of what we are up against upon leaving high school need to be just as important as any other subject that we study in school. Students ought to leave high school knowing about the importance of taxes, how to open a bank account, how to begin saving, the importance of a tertiary education, how to vote, and just about any of the basic obstacles young adults come across while transitioning from adolescence to full-fledged adulthood.
Krista-Gaye Forbes
kris97_c.c@live.com
8 CXCs but not 'ready for the road'
-->