Commenters on the AJC Get Schooled blog debated whether America sends too many students to college rather than into the trades. Here is a sampling of comments:
Woodrow: It's not about education. As it is now, college evolved into a holding tank for soon-to-be but should-have-been-already adults. It is a way of delaying adulthood. Contrast this with the military, which has been successful for many years training and making good use of 18-year-olds. Many 21-year-olds in the military have significant responsibilities. Who can say that of most 21-year-old college students?
SS: All of this ignores the role U.S. policy and the tax code has played in shaping an economy that allows corporations to send manufacturing jobs overseas to maintain short-term profitability. There cannot be an honest discussion about how and in what ways the educational system should be structured until we deal with the broader issue of how we structure the economy so that a broad swath of the citizenry is able to be gainfully employed at all rungs of the ladder, not just the top and bottom ones.
Claver: I am all in favor of increasing vocational and technical training, but I do not buy the idea of doing it on the backs of kids who should be going to college.
Logical: There are certainly too many ill-prepared students graduating from college, but is that the fault of the university, or of businesses expecting too much? A university degree is twofold. It gives the student a well-rounded higher education (thus, the core classes like the humanities, etc.) as well as prepare students to be placed in skilled positions that require the vigorous coursework a university provides. Trade schools neglect the well-rounded higher education portion to focus on skill. This streamlines the process of providing skilled workers and reduces the course load on those students who don't want it.
Looking: We talk about "one size fits all" as a problem in public schools. Yet colleges force all freshmen and sophomores to take basically the same classes no matter what their major or interest. Why is it a good idea to force a cookie-cutter education in college, but not in elementary, middle and high schools? Colleges have lost their way as they look for ways to get students into deeper debt by adding requirements for graduation and extending the four-year degree to a minimum of five years. That fifth year isn't free, you know! Colleges are money makers, even the ones that are "nonprofit." Society keeps kids in college to pursue even higher education when we can't explain why some degrees are needed.
OldTeacher: Wow! I said this very thing more than 20 years ago. "A Good Education Will Get You A Good Job" is a total lie. I had nothing but a high school degree and went into retail directly from dropping out of college — actually, flunking out. Within three years, I was running a branch operation. A good work ethic and being smart will get you a high-paying job. Not everybody has the ability to direct the band, and there's only one position available. But there are plenty of positions for competent musicians. College ain't for everybody.
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