One teen’s standardized testing horror story (and where it will lead)

[exboyfil]

11. My High School junior daughter is not taking a single AP class

I am paying for her to take classes from a local university and an online community college. She will have 3+ semesters completed in engineering when she graduates from High School. After she takes the courses that are equivalent to the AP classes at the High School, the 2nd sem Freshman and Sophomore classes will be paid for by the school. The AP is a rip off - you study for a year of intense college material and have to get a 4 or a 5 on the test to get college credit. We decided to bypass that rat race. At the end of this semester my daughter will have 21 1/2 hrs. of college credit between this past summer and the fall (4 1/2 paid for by the school). She will add another 12 1/2 hrs this spring (all paid for).

One thing I disagree with him on is that you do have to grow up. Children used to have to grow up at 16. Now we are extending that age to 22 or even later. I am amazed that 18 and 19 year olds go off to college spending big bucks without some sort of plan for their lives. As I was telling my daughter, if you are not certain then get a job and take one or two community college classes until you have better definition. I know many areas are depressed for entry level work, but their are opportunities in this country. If 3 or 4 young adults get together in a small apartment, they can swing working at entry level jobs.

I do like to the idea of doing a documentary. My daughter does documentary film making as well. She hopes to combine it with the engineering degree.

Education has multiple purposes. Of course it is to make you a well rounded individual (that is why a broad liberal arts education should be emphasized). In addition it should serve to train you to make a useful contribution to society.