High schools are not teaching students the skills they need

Not all high school students want to attend college. Many want to join the workforce.

On Election Day, Philadelphians made that easier by approving a City Charter amendment giving graduates of School District career and technical education programs preference in securing city jobs. After several years of advocacy, Philadelphia City Councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson was finally able to move this measure to the ballot.

But this victory should not be the end of public discourse about career-oriented education. Instead, it should be the start of a larger conversation on whether schools, as an institution, are serving students.

High school is a rite of passage; everyone goes through it. Because of this, high school is supposed to offer a general education, preparing students to lead productive lives. But only 26% of students who responded to a School District survey in 2019 feel their school has prepared them for a career and college. This tells us that schools are not serving their students. And, given what schools teach, that is no surprise.

Do you use the quadratic formula in your daily life? Does knowing the distinction between an electron and a proton help you put food on your table?

My bet is that most people don’t know the quadratic formula or the difference between electrons and protons. And that’s OK because that information is only useful in a handful of professions; the general public doesn’t need to know it. Yet, that’s what students spend time on in school. But to what avail? Teaching esoteric content does nothing but drive students away.

Teaching esoteric content does nothing but drive students away from school.

According to a 2010 U.S. Department of Education study, 80% of high school dropouts cite math as the impetus for dropping out. Who can blame them? The content schools teach is immaterial to everyday life. But math is special because, on top of being useless for everyday living, it’s hard. Expecting students to struggle to understand concepts they’ll never use is a big ask, and a sure way to lower student attendance and retention.

Some defend teaching advanced math by saying it forces resilient thought. This is true, but math is not the only subject that sharpens thinking.

What about questions of philosophy like what is truth? Is there a God?

Humans have wrestled with these questions for many millennia, and they prompt intense thought.

Or, to take a more contemporary issue, can one person’s terrorist be another person’s freedom fighter? Many nonmathematical subjects strengthen thinking, so the notion that math is the only — or necessary — way to nurture resilient thinking is hooey.

Now, I must acknowledge the awkwardness of a Gates Scholar bashing schools. But truth must be spoken. And, as a freshman at Swarthmore College who was a high school student just earlier this year, I can credibly say our education system deserves an F.

» READ MORE: At 17, I was City Council’s youngest aide. I saw lethargy and dysfunction.

While schools expend resources drilling mathematical formulas, students graduate illiterate, ignorant of their constitutional rights, and without an understanding of finances (a form of math actually worth studying for a general education). This is wrong.

Surely, after 12 years of public education, graduates should have something to show for it — preferably skills and meaningful knowledge that help us succeed in our everyday lives.

When adults tell young people on the wrong path to “stay in school,” they should keep in mind that only 26% of students in Philly public schools feel prepared for college and a career. Before you say that to a young person, ask yourself what you mean. Stay in school doing what? Being force-fed useless information?

I wish more people understood that students’ attention and interest have to be earned. Students need to feel sustained by their classes to be intrigued by school.

Imagine how exciting school would be if students could use what they learn. If, for example, schools taught students how to manage their finances to build generational wealth. Or if school taught them how to write well, allowing them to apply that skill when writing a cover letter for an internship.

These are life skills that everyone ought to have. But we’re graduating generations of students who are unable to do those basic things.

According to a survey conducted this year by the American Cleaning Institute, only 28% of college students were completely prepared to clean on their own when they first moved to college. Seriously? If college students, having made it past high school, are intimidated by cleaning, imagine how they feel when dealing with larger life challenges.

High schools are failing entire generations, sending them into the world skill-less. (And before you say it’s not the role of schools to teach practical skills, remember that schools used to have home economics classes).

To better serve students, schools need to focus on meeting students’ needs. Because high school is a general education, we must ask ourselves what skills and knowledge the general public needs to know to lead upright, productive lives. If we approached education from that lens, students would be better off.

Jemille Q. Duncan is a public policy professional, columnist, and Gates Scholar at Swarthmore College. @jq_duncan