College is not for everyone - some quick thoughts.

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College is not for everyone. But, education policy loves to say that we are making students "college ready", whatever that really means. We need to focus on giving students certain knowledge and skills, but college ready is not the only focus we should have.

A report I saw today (sorry, can't find link) said that 2.1 million college students are MIA. They were tracking the number of college freshmen, and then the number of graduates. The data is hard to get because there isn't any true data collection. I'm sure everyone knows some students that have not finished college. College isn't for everyone.

College is expensive. If you really don't know what you want to do, should you really spend all that money to "find yourself", or would it be better to work for a while and explore things. Some students are not mature or socially or emotionally ready for college. Some students have interests and job wants that don't require college.

I think we need more career/job training in schools. We need plumbers, electricians, mechanics, and carpenters. They make good money too. We really need skilled machinists in this country. CT has a huge shortage. Engineers I know tell me that their companies can't find enough machinists, and they make very good money.

College is great for some people. It's not for everyone. Schools should not focus on "College Ready", we should focus on "future ready." We should focus on giving students the skills to succeed in college, technical school, apprenticeships, or any job.


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