People Don’t Know How to Live

If one was to poll a random high school student, the student could most definitely answer some complex problems. He or she would likely have little trouble factoring a polynomial, listing the layers of the Earth’s atmosphere, or writing a snippet on the cultural impact of Of Mice and Men. However, this same student is quite likely to struggle with basic questions surrounding financial literacy and basic life skills. He or she would not be able to cook a meal, file taxes, or properly save for retirement. Even so, this student would ‘complete’ his or her education and be thrust into the sea of life akin to that of the Bermuda Triangle. The student has a compass, but no boat to sail on.

This has been an issue that has grown substantially: the degree of people that are financially illiterate and the amount of people who cannot complete basic household chores is becoming worryingly high. Over one in three people are unable to make basic dishes like pasta!

Some action has been taken to remedy this problem. James Harden, a professional basketball player, has partnered his non-profit Impact 13 Foundation with managing partner of Awoye Capital Jordan Awoye to provide a financial literacy tour to young adults. This would teach them the value of having money work while sleeping and other important concepts to make sure that these people remain financially stable. There has been an increase in available resources to learn how to accomplish household tasks like sewing and cooking as well. However, these remedies only tackle the effects of the problem, not the problem itself. Any doctor worth their salt would scoff at such a solution. It just is not functional.

Just like in functional medicine, it is imperative that the root of the problem is found and handled. In this case, students are not being educated on how to complete basic, life-critical actions. People are taught to work, not to live. The emphasis in schools is to prepare students to succeed on the standardized tests. Classes like Physics and Calculus are respected and sometimes mandatory, but classes that teach everyday skills such as Home Economics are belittled and nearly ignored. Schools need to reverse this stigma and prioritize these ‘life’ classes as an integral part of the curriculum. They provide so much value to students, but because it does not prepare them for standardize testing, students are kept from receiving those benefits. Often, these classes are the first to be removed if a school suffers from a lack of funding. If they survive, they are severely limited. Normally, the time slots are inopportune, or the number of available classes is miniscule in relation to other classes deemed more important.

To better prepare students for life, schools need to change what they deem a successful curriculum. Not only should students be skillful in academics, but life skills as well. If institutions continue to value only the number on the score sheet, students will eventually be unable to fend for themselves. Give them the boat. A compass is useless without it!