Schooling

[MODU]

I agree (but not strongly).  First, let's define school as being K-12, and not college.  School teaches you the basics you need to "survive" in life, from reading to writing to arithmatic (sounds familiar).  Without those basic skills, you cannot survive.  If you check on the statistics of those living in poverty, you will find that many fall short in two of those categories, thus putting themselves at a grave disadvantage.

Now, is the purpose of school to direct you into getting a job?  No, which is why I don't strongly agree with the statement.  The basic skills you learn will help you in the quest for a job though.  Of course, the skills will also help you get into college or to conduct yourself as a member of the community with a background knowledge of what and who came before you.  

One nice thing I have seen in schools these days are the options for electives, where you can choose to take courses in a vocational field.  The local school here offers accounting, drafting, shop, beauty (like hair, make-up, etc), and computer programming.  Another one down the street goes a step further and has their own communications department including tv and radio broadcasts.  These courses can help the student get a jump start into a particular field (over those that do not have college experience), but I cannot think of many businesses today that would hire someone directly out of high school for such a profession, at least not a position which isn't an administrative or support role.

[MODU]

I can honestly say that, other than the math (which I was interested in), I didn't learn a damn thing in high school. So much for well-roundedness.

Really?  You write amazingly well for a guy who learned nothing in his English classes.

It would also seem that some of your civics stuck, if you have such an interest in politics and understand how some of the basics of government work.

Congratulations.  You were so well educated, you never even realized you were well educated.

hahaha . . . thinking back (and this is way back), it's hard to distinguish between what I learned in High School compared to what I learned in college or on my own.  I remember taking English, Math, Science, History, etc, but beyong concepts like Beowulf and polar-covalent bonds, it's hard to say what key items in High School carried me through college and then into the work force.  Of course, that too might be a sign of good education since it was a seemless transition.