1. Responsibility 

2 Guidance

3 Independence

4 Stability 

5 Society

Although some may say that these classes shouldn't be offered as it may discourage students for their future due to the big amount of money they need, it's worse to not be prepared. By giving this opportunity they may decide to save more than they originally had and think things better. 

I interviewed my cousin and she was a credible source because she's 22 and having first hand experience. I asked her what her biggest struggle has been due to lack of knowledge and she answered "having to rely on others." Since she was never given the opportunity to receive any sort of class or have a club available she was lost on a lot of topics. When she filed her taxes for the first time she depended on her parents a lot to help her and tried to get help from apps for similar topics.  

My personal opinion is that schools should make real world classes accessible to their students and leave the decision to them. 

As the shift from being a teenager to a young adult comes, so do the responsibilities. Those responsibilities may include learning how to get a mortgage or how to build a credit score. Though to some those may not sound too heavy of responsibilities due to experience, young inexperienced and poorly educated adults may find these tasks difficult to execute. The education system has done a poor job of preparing students for their outside of school life. Due to this issue high schools should implement life skill classes because they provide guidance, allow students to become independent, and help with future stability.   

The main focus for education in the past was a curriculum full of only academic subjects. The result can be seen in the amount of people who aren’t able to complete certain tasks alone. Despite the benefits of past curriculums, there’s no good in excelling academically but failing practically. As society has modernized and realized that preparation for adult life is a necessary component in the education of future generations, some schools have started implementing real world classes.

Significant guidance for students can come from these classes for their journey after high school. The guidance can be towards many different life aspects, such as goal setting, budgeting, growing confidence, etc. One source stated, “It’s not about how long school lasts. It’s about how challenging and relevant school is on a daily basis” (Ripley). Many students could feel lost or don’t find meaning in learning in a place where their educational needs may not be met. For this reason, providing engaging and applicable material in curriculums is important not only for the student’s educational benefit but for a more involved audience. The source continued to say, “Each year, nearly one in four American teenagers drop out of high school” (Ripley). With guidance and support more and more students may be discouraged to drop out if they feel they are gaining valuable skills. Success can be achieved with the proper counseling from those specialized in skills such as time management, decision-making, etc.

Furthermore, life skill classes allow students to become independent. Another source said, “Parents may be passing along bad financial habits to their kids because that’s all they know” (Bortz). This is a clear example of the way an innocent action can become a great disadvantage to the children as it will only lead to a cycle of bad financing. This is all an effect of low education on real-life topics that leads to asking those around us which as expressed, isn’t always the most reliable or helpful resource. An additional source talked about a class that has incorporated real-world topics into their lessons, “The students go to a car dealership, choose a vehicle, and then research what would be a fair price, as well as calculate the estimated personal-property and sales taxes” (Bortz). Buying a car is a very common task you take when you’re becoming an adult. Although some do have family or friends to go through the process with them, it’s not fair to say that’s everyone’s case. This is why being well-informed on how things work and understanding certain procedures can allow everyone, not just those who have extra help, to get their tasks completed with the same amount of benefits.

Lastly, the classes can be of much advantage to a student’s future stability. The word future does imply a time further from the present but that doesn’t mean the actions you make now won’t result in impactful consequences for your future. High school students are in their prime time to make crucial decisions that will impact their future stability. A source voiced that, “as juniors, they can learn about the implications of taking on student-loan debt while they’re considering what college to attend” (Bortz). This is an important point to consider as college is expensive and has been a major reason many students are in debt. A new source introduced data, “About 45 million Americans have student loans, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Education” ( Helhoski & Haverstock). With such a large amount of Americans in debt it causes the mind to wonder whether these people knew how to manage their money or if they didn’t and were just taking loan after loan. To try and lower the number of students in debt schools should prioritize teaching skills that will be of use to high school students throughout their entire college-seeking journey. 

Although some may argue that incorporating life skill classes into curriculums will cause an issue with teachers and finances, this isn’t exactly true. Evidence suggests, “More than 70 percent of teachers polled in a nationwide NEFE survey said they are willing to receive formal financial-education training to teach a financial literacy class” (Bortz). This is valuable as it shows the compliance and support teachers are willing to give their students. Additionally, a source stated a teacher’s perspective on her life skill class which revealed that they “don’t use a textbook because the economy changes so quickly that textbooks would become outdated fast” (Bortz). In other words, with the price of textbooks out of the way and resources available online at little to no cost providing extra funding shouldn’t be a major reason to not want to include life skill classes in high schools.

With the implementation of life skill classes, students are more likely to be better prepared for their future and become less dependent on others as they will be the ones with the proper knowledge. In addition, the students will obtain a better opportunity to have a stable future. High schools need to start providing all available resources to their students to open the door to success. Consequently, schools need to update their curriculums and require students to take the class as many may not know of its benefits until they apply it to real-life experiences. By doing this high schools are equipping students with important skills to face challenges they may encounter throughout their adulthood.

Works Cited

Bortz, Daniel. “Why Most High Schoolers Don’t Know How to Manage Their Money.” 

U.S.News, U.S.News, 9 Oct. 2012, money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2012/10/09/why-most-high-schoolers-dont-know-how-to-manage-their-money. Accessed 3 Mar. 2024.

Helhoski, Anna, and Eliza Haverstock. “How Many Americans Have Student Loan Debt?” 

NerdWallet, NerdWallet, 19 Jan. 2023, www.nerdwallet.com/article/loans/student-loans/how-many-americans-have-student-loan-debt. Accessed 3 Mar. 2024.

Ripley, Amanda. “Should High School Last Six Years?” The New York Times, The New 

York Times, 22 Jan. 2014, www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/10/29/should-high-school-last-six-years/real-world-skills-in-the-classroom. Accessed 3 Mar. 2024.