I've spent 3/4 of my life in some sort of formal education system. In that time, I've learned a bunch of things... just nothing that I could really use as an adult. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad that I know Pythagoras theorem or that mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell - I could do so well at a trivia night with all the mostly useless information I've learned throughout the years. But there's so many things that I've been struggling with or seen a lot of my friends struggle with that I think should have been taught to us in high school. I totally understand that some people think that some of the things on this list should be taught by parents, but a lot of our parents didn't have time to teach us, or didn't even know how to do these things themselves.
1. Taxes
Seriously I have no idea what I'm doing. Or why. Or when I'm supposed to do it. What happens if I don't? There needs to be a class on this because every person I know is struggling with the exact same questions.
2. How to buy/take out loans for cars or houses
We rented houses the whole time I was growing up, so I have never had to know what a mortgage is. This year, my mom and I bought our first house together and it was so much harder than I expected. There's so many steps that go into it and I'm still not even sure if I could do it without my mom.
3. Voting
We talked a little bit about voting in our civics class, but I don't think it was nearly enough. With technology as accessible as it is, it's really hard to sort through all the news and figure out what's real and what's #fakenews. Kids should be taught in school where to find the relevant, real information. They should also be taught where to go to register to vote, and where to vote when it's time to actually cast your ballet.
4. Home Economics
I don't know if some schools still have classes where they teach you basic cooking, personal finance, sewing, and just general how to keep yourself alive information, but my high school definitely didn't. Thankfully my mom did teach me a lot about taking care of myself, but a lot of people I went to school with weren't as lucky, and as soon as they moved out really struggled with day to day living.
5. Social Media Training
Our whole lives are spent on our phones and computers, so I really wish someone would have taught me the things that I should or shouldn't post on social media, how to be professional or grow a following. How you portray yourself on social media is so important, and get potentially make or break your career depending on how you show yourself.
6. Time Management Skills
I feel like you're just handed 10 billion things to do everyday and expected to just know how to manage your time wisely to make it all work, but I definitely could have used some help. I still struggle with managing my time throughout the week with all the things I have to juggle, so I think it would have been so good to have some sort of skills taught to me in school.
7. How To Say Sorry
I literally am learning how (or when) to say sorry at 20 years old. I used to just go through life, never apologizing for any thing until I realized how hurtful that was to my friends and loved ones. I hate saying that I was wrong about anything, so when I started dating my boyfriend we would get into so many arguments just because I would refuse to admit that I was wrong about anything and I would never say sorry.
8. Your High School Friends Might Not Be Your Adult Friends and That's Okay
I'm incredibly lucky because I met both of my best friends in grade 9 and we've still managed to be friends after we graduated. That's so rare and a lot harder than I ever expected. But when you move away from home for school or work, you meet so many new people and you're so busy that it becomes much harder to keep in touch with old friends. Sometimes you also realize that you're just not on the same path as someone and it's totally okay if you don't want to do the same things anymore.
9. Grades Don't Really Matter
I was never a great student. Heck, I wasn't even a good one most of the time, and that bothered me a lot until I graduated. I failed more classes than I care to admit to (also I definitely lost track), but after you're done school, no one really cares if you're a A+ student or a C-. Obviously if you're planning on going to college or university you do have to take certain classes or maintain an average, but after you graduate, things as trivial as what grade you got on an assignment won't matter at all. Just do your best and try not to stress about it too much.
10. You're Going To Make It Through
I wish that there was someone that told me not to get so stressed about little things when I was in school. When you're in high school everything seems so big and important that it's so hard to deal with, so just take a deep breathe, trust in yourself and know that you're going to get through it and be better for it. <3
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