Dumb Kids, Dumb Government

A report has recently been released that Ontario has the highest high scool drop out rate in Canada. I think they said one in three kids will drop out, but don't quote me.

Why is this? Many people blame the new curriculum brought in by Mike Harris in the late 90s. They claim it's just too hard. I have first hand knowledge of this. My class was the first to go through the new curriculum and was the first to graduate highschool in four years instead of five. Was it hard, yes it was. I considered myself to be an average student. I didn't get sky high marks. I worked hard, and was accepted into all four universities I applied to.

Now they are talking about dumbing down the curriculum to keep more kids in school. This really upsets me. Why should some other kid get a place in the same university while having to work less in highschool. This is not fair to me and all the others like me. The reason the curriculum was made harder, was Ontario couldn't keep up with other countries like Japan and the UK in terms of education. Kids in the UK enter university at 16 or 17 and already have a year or two of higher education under their belts before out kids even think of it.

I agree with Mr. McGuinty keeping kids in highschool until at least 18 or until they graduate, which ever comes first. I think everyone should have a highschool diploma. A lot of changes need to be made to the way we think about education though. First off, we need to stop pushing every kid into university. It is not for everyone. There needs to be more emphasis on skilled trades. Parents are part of this problem. A skilled trades person can make as much as any university grad, sometimes more depending on how much their skill is in demand. We also need to switch back to a student orientated education system. Let the teachers whine. Their job is pretty easy when compared to most others. I don't know any factory worker who gets eleven weeks paid vacation.
What we need is an education system that encourages a students skills. Kids are smart, they'll choose the right path for the most part. There are some kids who are just bound to drop out anyway. They're just can't deal with the real world, a sad fact of life.