In recent years ,the Pleasant Valley School District has implemented more and more classes focused on preparing students for their future careers. The majority of these classes are business focused in hopes of giving students an opportunity to explore the business world before entering the workforce or post-secondary education.
Scott Community College has partnered with the school to give students the option to earn college credit while taking courses at the high school. The wide variety of options for students is enticing, but there is still a problem. Students are required to take required core classes to graduate, limiting their ability to explore other options.
In most European countries, high school curriculum focuses on core subjects in the first two years of school and then provides more freedom for students in later years. The class options are similar to those in the US, although it is possible to take multiple courses centering around a possible career in the European curriculum system.
Schedules are much more flexible in most of Europe because of the idea that if a student plans on going into welding, they’shouldn’t be required to take an English class. This is mostly because of how their education system is controlled. The education system in the majority of countries allows for the curriculum to meet similar standards to pleasant valley, but with more options. It is not required that each student take a certain number of courses, but instead that they grasp the fundamentals of each subject.
One other large difference between the types of education is the available funding. The funding for teacher salaries and available courses is a main driver in the ability for schools to provide opportunities. For instance, the Netherlands uses one large fund for education that can go to both public and private schools.
Senior Will Dekezel takes many different dual enrollment and future preparation courses. “I feel like if I had the opportunity to take more classes that are in my interests I would be more prepared for after high school. I think it’d be easier to know where I want to go with a job,” he stated.
There are some local schools that offer the ability to graduate high school with an associates degree. Although Pleasant Valley is not one of them, many students feel that it would be beneficial. “I think it would help a lot of kids that don’t want to go to a four year college because you could go straight into a job like welding without having to go to another school,” said senior Coy Kipper.
There are many differences between high school curriculum in other countries in comparison to the U.S., but both have advantages and disadvantages. Some value the core subjects and the strategies they teach while others believe more direct preparation for post high school plans to be more valuable.
