The door is right there. I could just walk out and never come back to school. Nothing is stopping me, right?
Wrong.
Compulsory education laws exist in the United States, varying slightly from state to state. According to the Texas Education Code Section 25.085, unless a student is specifically exempted by Section 25.086, which includes attending private or parochial school and having a mental or physical condition rendering the child’s attendance infeasible, a child who is at least 6 years old, or who is younger than age 6 and has previously been enrolled in first grade, and who has not yet reached the age of 19 shall attend school.
These laws allow for equal educational opportunities for all children to participate in society. However, it poses the question of whether a traditional classroom has lost its relevance.
Why should attending school be mandatory if we have access to information at our fingertips and can learn anything we want with the click of a button? Is there a point of going to school other than to mindlessly memorize information, take a test, get a grade and forget what we studied?
Believe it or not, school has a larger role in students’ lives rather than merely being a place for learning. Many students who attended school online during the COVID-19 pandemic were just sitting at home for years and, as a result, regressed in maturity and socialization. A big part of school is social interaction, whether that be with fellow students or administrators. It is a place to develop maturity, work through adversity, refine character and be part of a community.
Honestly, I do not think I will use most of the things I learn in school. In fact, sometimes I find it pointless to spend so much time studying for something I do not need to be successful in life. However, through my time in school, I have come to realize pushing yourself to do things that you do not want to do is a very important skill to develop. It trains the brain to persevere and focus, fostering discipline that can be applied to many fields.
Of course, it is important to consider the future of schools with artificial intelligence projected growth. It may seem unnecessary to attend school with all the information you could ever want available in an instant, but school should still be mandatory to develop your social skills.
Though it may seem tempting to sleep in, pick yourself up out of bed and drag yourself to school, compulsory education is beneficial because it develops many essential life skills, such as adaptability, resilience and emotional intelligence. I agree that the things we have to do in school seem a little unnecessary, but pushing yourself will only help you.
If I was unsuccessful in convincing you why mandatory school is of value, just remember: it’s the law!
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