This article came up because I've been seeing a few posts at the other site I write on regarding people encouraging other students to leave school. Or they encourage people to home school and abolish the school system instead. Those posts are from people who dislike/d school. 

Outside of that site when I did a quick search I saw similar content saying "being in school sucks," etc., or that it is not conducive to real learning. Well hey, if being in school sucks and is hindering people's creative minds then good luck when that person graduates. Oh wait, he/she isn't graduating because that person either dropped out or just don't go to school anymore. Not because they can't but because they do not want to. Or they stay because they should and keep whining about it.

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

Since those at the site aired out their opinion publicly, I aired out mine too by commenting on their posts. What? Should I watch them agree with one another and think everyone agrees with them? They expressed their opinion, I expressed mine too on behalf of everyone else who share the opposite belief. 

Some replied to me, a few ignored my comment/s. Doesn't really matter as long as people who drop by their posts can see my response. Hopefully more people will realize that we are all different people. We all learn differently, our learning capacity and process differs from one another. You know, like the saying, "Different strokes for different folks." We each have our own way of being successful and living our life. There is no one formula that can fit everyone.

There are people who need to be in school and some who don't. If they are really smart or not, it takes a change in themselves to find the best way to get educated. A supportive family and/or attentive parents is also important in this regard. Parents will do whatever will make us happy and mostly have our best interest at heart. 

 

 

♦ 3 Reasons Why The Privileged Youths
Do Not Go To or Really Dislike Schools ♦

We all felt the "we don't want to go to school anymore" during our low moments as young people. It could be simply because we're lazy at the time. It may be some other reasons too but we always keep going back to school afterwards. This is not entirely the one I am referring to in this article. Some students abhor schools that eventually they leave, never to return again. That's what I want to address here too.

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

Every adult has been a student once so we definitely know what it's like to learn in a classroom. The times may have changed but schools will still be the same: a melting pot of a variety of people. No wonder some can't handle being with their peers while others enjoy it.

Let's see what are the possible reasons students may not like educational institutions.

 

1. They are rebels without a cause.

These are the problem children. These may be the kids of divorced or separated parents. Maybe some of them are/were constantly being verbally or physically abused too. Perhaps these are also the kids who are hurting so much they just want to share their pain by hurting others or themselves. In case they aren't damaged children, it may be that they live too much of a sheltered life so cannot relate much to most people.

Naturally these students will have a harder time getting along with peers.  

 

2. They are too smart.

Einstein had a different kind of intelligence. He's a genius but supposedly, he did bad in school. 

Some of his biographers say otherwise as they have uncovered some opposite life details a few years ago. Even if he wasn't a perfect fit in schools, he still became a genius. How's that for being too smart for school?

 

3. They have disabilities.

Some people are born with physical or mental disabilities, making them different from their peers. This can be a good and a bad thing. It's good if they are able to find a school that will let them learn at the pace they should; it's bad if they can't fit in with the normal population. 

It all depends on the extent of disabilities of course.

 

 

 

♦     Self-Reflection Activity     ♦

Whether you are part of the above list or not, why don't we do a little exercise.

For the adults, I'd like you to look back during your student days.

• What were the best experiences you had in school? 
• Enumerate the most important things and lessons you learned in an educational institution that equipped you to be a better adult.
• Would you have preferred to be home schooled or not go to school at all based on the above?

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

For those currently in school, 

• What are the most important things that you experienced or will experience in an educational institution?
• What are the best things to being in school that you would never trade?
• What amazing benefits do you get from being a student?

 

Your answers will guide you on why schools are important.

 

 

 

♦     What Schools Mean To Me     ♦

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

Educational institutions are the internet of the past. It is where knowledge so old can be handed down to each new generation. It is constantly updated too to match the times.

In the days of having no world wide web, it meant that people had to buy or borrow encyclopedias to do research. It meant reading books to learn many things. I remember the time I spent in another town's school library for a high school paper. Nobody told me about anything before submission but I got shocked when I learned I was the only one in class who submitted something. (Oh, everyone else in class got a sermon. Lol. They must have hated me then but I never heard anything so maybe not. Hahaha.)

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

Does having libraries, encyclopedias and books back then mean that we didn't need to go to school? I think not. There are millions of people who do not have access to education and any learning equipment. Most have no libraries, even books or encyclopedias at home to even learn about certain things. This is where going to school is important.

 

 

 

♦     Disclaimer     ♦

This is not an anti-homeschooling post, that is a whole different topic altogether. I am just saying if you remove children or teens from the school environment then it can ostracize them from the public. If the reasons for homeschooling is simply because the environment is always terrible and very dangerous, well okay that can be understandable. If there are no better institutions nearby than that unsafe place then of course it is another option.

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

However if it is purely for your kid/s to avoid the neighborhood's negative influence, how can you share your good ideas and values through your children if you keep them away from their peers? Will it not be a good testing ground for your offspring to be a better person? Won't they be able to learn to practice and share the good values you have taught?

Yes I might get criticized for this because I have no kids bla bla bla but I was young once too. I was a child too. It was not always easy growing up but I learned a lot of lessons from being in different schools. We all have different experiences but that does not mean the education system is entirely bad or purely inefficient.

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

Just to make it clear, this article is not about who is right or wrong. This is about equipping students with the best skills to be effective adults. This is also about current school systems needing a worldwide upgrade from centuries old education system still in place. Perhaps more so for the developed and technologically advanced areas of the world. This would make the educational system more applicable to the youngsters of today.

 

 

 

♦     Studying Tips for Students     ♦

Some people know they are smarter than others, however there are different kinds of intelligence. We all suppose that everyone thinks like us but it's not the case. So, if you're too intelligent for school and feel like you're being held back by peers, have no fear! Truly bright students can be accelerated or skip a grade or two if they are smarter than the rest.

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

If perhaps you're just smart but average enough like the rest of us, maybe it's time to look at studying differently. If studying feels like a burden or it's too hard because you get low grades, read this:

If you want to get more out of school... instead of worrying you won’t get a good grade, you can focus on truly learning and understanding the material being taught... (It) will naturally relieve you from being as stressed, tired, and burnt out, allowing you to actually learn in a healthier mental state.

The writer couldn't have said it better so I just had to quote most of it. Actually the complete context of his paragraph is not to think or look at grades at all. For me that's counter-productive because the grades are our gauges to know how we have understood something. I do agree that it is best to understand the lessons so come exam time you can be sure to answer the questions well. 

When I was a student, I was not competitive at all until I transferred to another school. I noticed my new classmates valued grades more than education. That somewhat made me strive for higher grades instead of understanding the lessons more. I think that had a slight negative effect on my previous and effective study habits. 

Look at it this way: Student grades reflect the learning progress and not how one compares to their peers. It is you who are making your grades, not your peers or your family, it's you. It is the result and not the goal. The goal is to learn. The grades will reflect how well the lessons were understood. 

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

How to learn and understand things better then? Depending on the subject, applying what you learn is the best way to go. Knowledge alone is not enough. One must be able to apply it to the real world or see and experience it in action in order to truly grasp the idea of it. Why do you think there are class experiments? Lol. (Unless the subject is religion, that is a matter of faith and more on values and history.)

How to apply and retain knowledge? Simple, teach someone else about what you've learned or discuss the lesson with your classmates. Sharing knowledge, studying as a group, and taking mock exams help you retain information too.

Here's a video on other ways students can learn better. 

(Video credit: Memorize Academy via YouTube)

 

Another way to look at education in school is taking a challenging situation and learning to be better from it. If you see and experience the negative effect, how can you turn it into a positive one next time? This is where proactivity comes in instead of just being reactive. One should find a way to turn the bad experience into a good situation. For example, if you have low grades this grading period or semester, then it means you have to understand those subjects more than the rest.

Am I getting too serious? Maybe you should watch this video about good and bad students.

(Video credit: JianHao Tan via YouTube)

 

My point is, if you think school is bad then you're looking at it negatively. There are times we all need to fail at something in order to learn. That's why there are quizzes before periodical exams so we can test our knowledge.

Everything has a good and bad effect, it all depends on how we use it. People say the internet is bad or that governments are corrupt and religions are bad. Others say nature is bad. Some say their parents or siblings are bad. Anything can be bad but if we look for the good in things and people, we can have a better world.

(Photo credit via Pixabay)

 

What I suggest is, once we've identified the bad we must then think of how to make it good. Or we must think of how we can improve things or change ourselves. Anyone can become better equipped to deal with negativities in life. We just need to look at things differently from time to time. 

Let's not focus too much on the wrong. We can examine it upon identification then look at the good things it can bring. Easy to say but if we can practice it, our life will be so much better.

Let me end my post with a question to those who think schools or the educational institutions should be removed or destroyed completely.

What can each one of us do to make public or private education better? How can it be improved or shared with the underpriviledged? 

Stay tuned for the next part which is about the benefits of schools. In the meantime, feel free to share your thoughts below. :)

 

 

 

For more of my other insightful blogs, click below:

• So, Do You Have Real or Fake Friends?
• What Happens When We Keep Doing Good
• 5 Ways on How Not to be a Workaholic Anymore
• The What, Whys and How of Workaholism    >>> 5 star blog!
• Drive and Motivation: What Compels Us to Move and Why
• How to Be Able to Do What You Haven't Done Before - Let Go of Controlling the Outcome (3/3)
• Are You Aware That The Golden Rule Sucks?
• A Basic Guide and Info on Sensitive and Manipulative People
• Complaints: The Whys and How to Stop It
   

 

 

 

 

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