How to Survive School: An Introduction
This article is aimed at young people who hate school and would rather
be somewhere else. These young people often actually love to learn - the
problem is that few subjects offered at school are interesting to them,
or the way in which it is presented is just horribly boring.
Before I go on, it is possible to legally get out of school, and get
your education in other ways, through homeschooling or unschooling (if
your parents will let you). Since this article is more focused on how to
survive school if you can't get out, more information about those
options will be listed at the bottom of this article.
Here are five vital points that will help you keep your sanity:
1) Just because they like it, doesn't mean you have to.
Everybody's different. People like different things, people do things in
different ways. Why should school be an exception? What were they
thinking when they designed a school that would teach everyone the same
stuff in the same way? Did they really think that would work? Fact is,
it doesn't work. Not for everyone, at least. If you prefer to do things
your own way, that's a GOOD thing. Those kids who function best when
told what to do every second of their lives will probably be working for
you someday.
What about those people who assume that just because they did well in
school or even liked it, that everyone should be capable of the same
results? Don't worry about them. You can't expect everyone to understand
you, just as they can't expect everyone to react to school the way they
did. You could try to reason with them, but some people just won't
change their minds no matter what, so don't lose sleep over them.
2) You're not the only one.
Lots of young people hate school. Lots of older people still hate
school. Does that mean people who hate school are doomed to "flip
burgers the rest of their lives"? Nope. Just because someone hates
school doesn't mean they hate learning - in fact, often people hate
school precisely BECAUSE they love learning - school is so boring it
gives learning a bad name.
Some people who won the Nobel Prize hated school:
George Bernard Shaw said, "There is nothing on earth intended for
innocent people so horrible as a school."
Albert Einstein said, "Education is what remains after one has forgotten
everything he learned in school."
3) How educational is school really?
You listen to a lesson, you do some exercises, you are given a test. In
order to pass the test, you must memorize information - this is often
done by following elaborate "learning methods", none of which are really
much more than ways to trick your brain into remembering things it
otherwise would disregard. Some people actually remember some of this
information later in their lives - especially if they happen to go into
a career that's somehow related to it. Most people, on the other hand,
don't remember much more than 20% of everything they ever learned at
school - including the skills needed for reading, writing and working
with numbers.
4) What's the point, then?
If you're stuck in school, and your parents won't let you get out and
try something else, don't despair! There is some fun to be had in
school. If you already have a good circle of friends there, you're off
to a good start. If not, whatever you do, don't change yourself to "fit
in" with any crowd so that they'll let you hang out with them.
If there's one thing people who like school are right about, it's that
"school is what you make of it". This is true. If you don't want it to
be boring, bring something interesting to do. Just don't make it too
obvious or it might get confiscated for being a "distraction from your
education". Make a "mission" for yourself to achieve in school - this
could be anything you choose, or a good cause - like finding all the
young people in your school who can't stand it, and handing them a
printed copy of this article.
5) Getting your life back.
If homework and tests are taking up time that you could spend doing
things that actually interest you, there are ways around it. If your
parents aren't too fussy about your marks, you could just do the bare
minimum required to pass. If, on the other hand, they want "nothing but
the best", maybe you should try reasoning with them. Tell them how
school makes you feel. Explain to them that you'd learn a lot more if
things weren't forced on you. It's bad enough having the teachers down
your throat about all sorts of things, but having your parents on your
back as well is like being attacked from all sides with no escape. If
you can't get a word in, try writing it down and having them read it
when you're not in the same room with them. Either way, try not to show
your anger, or at least don't make it look like you're angry with them.
Most people take that the wrong way.
Having your parents on your side is really the best way to survive
school with your sanity intact, and it's a luxury not many young people
have. Put as much effort into reasoning with your parents as you
possibly can, and only after all else fails should you consider other
ways of getting good marks that don't involve working so hard, like
finding a friend and helping each other finish the work off quicker.
Hopefully this article has helped you in some way, or at least cheered
you up a bit. Don't ever give up - school may seem like prison or even
hell, but it won't last forever. Maybe you can even help out some other
people along the way. Good luck.
HELPFUL LINKS
http://www.school-survival.net/articles/
- More articles about school
http://www.school-survival.net/alternatives.php
- Alternatives to school
(homeschooling, unschooling, etc.)
http://learninfreedom.org/Nobel_hates_school.html
- More Nobel Prize
winners who hated school
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Please spread this information far and wide - we need to stop the plague
of depression and helplessness in schools! We need to let kids know that
there are alternatives, and that there is nothing wrong with hating
being forced to waste their days away in a prison-like building! Tell
all the kids out there that there are ways out of and around the system!
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