During your younger teenage years in the lower part of the school we are all faced with a huge task, not learning about algebra or Shakespeare, but the ultimately more important lesson of learning who we are, and who we want to be. So during these turbulent years we are not placed in a constructive, and helpful environment, we are forced into a volatile environment where the minority are bullied and the majority are too afraid to be different, we are surrounded by social stereotypes, greebos, skaters, townies goths, etc. The only way to truly be an individual is to shun other people’s opinions of you and be yourself but this can be difficult when they surround you. Bullies often unfairly target those with learning difficulties, and we all soon learn that teachers and parents can’t really do much to help, we are told over and over again to “just ignore them” or “try to stay out of the way” But it’s hard to stay out of the way of someone if you have to be in their class or form.
Basically if you differ from the majority in any way then you are classed as a freak.
As you get older more and more people leave these social groups and have the courage to be themselves, as this happens once close friendship groups start to break up and new ones are formed, new people get invited to parties that they would never have been invited or wanted to go to before. So when you reach your last couple of years in compulsory schooling and mature, finally becoming an individual and an adult you are still not treated as one teachers still talk to you condescendingly, don’t respect your views and in many cases punish you for trying to maturely debate a point on which you disagree.
Do you honestly think that your school years will be better than all those ahead of you? If you do I pity you.
People say, “If you stay in school you will be presented with better opportunities” this is a fallacy. Yes if you stay in school you may be offered a job with higher pay, but think, will you enjoy it, and where will you be in ten, twenty, maybe thirty years later. The reason I asked will you enjoy it is because you will not excel in a career that you do not enjoy. Also at the current time there are so many people going through higher education that certain career paths will be flooded. For example, if you took a degree in computing five years ago you may have been able to go straight from university into a high paying job, but now there are so many people qualified to do this job that you could easily get a job for more pay without a degree. So all that time you spent working hard to pay off student loans was wasted.
So what’s the alternative?
In my experience of work I was treated as an equal, I was allowed to have a debate with my superiors, I wasn’t punished and I had a great time. The atmosphere was a constructive and fun one, everyone was laughing, joking and working hard. I actually looked forward to going to work instead of coming to school. I managed to grasp concepts that were new to me much faster than I ever could at school.
So at school you are placed in a suppressive environment get treated like an insignificant drone, you are expected to do what your told when your told it without having an opinion whereas at work you are in a fun, constructive environment, treated as an equal and an individual, all at the same time as getting paid.
Is there really any choice?