Should school attendance be a legal requirement?

[Nihilego]

See title. Most people spend at least 11 years of their lives in school (as far as the UK goes anyway; idk about other countries) because it is the law to do so, and because they want the qualifications to get a job later on in life. While I think like most of us here, and agree that school attendance is definitely important, I sometimes question if it should be a legal requirement.

Is it the responsibility of the parents or guardians and the child involved to decide if attending school is appropriate on any given day (outside of illness or major family issues) or even attend at all, at the cost of the child's knowledge? Or, should the government be able to force attendance and the schools able to prosecute parents who do not make their child go to school?

Discuss.

 

[Alex]

Well, last I checked, in Canada, or at least in Ontario, you're legally able to drop out of school starting at 16 years old. I think that's pretty young, because if you haven't failed any grades, you're presumably in grade 11. I'd make the legal requirement to have at least finished high school. Although it's very tough to find a job without a high school diploma, one to live off of anyway, you'll have even less luck if you haven't at least completed grade 12.

As far as post-secondary education, I don't think it should be illegal to not attend a school, and to not have a degree/diploma. A citizen should have the right and freedom to choose if they want to work or to study.

That being said, I would be open to a type of law that required schooling if the government, or some other provider, paid for the tuition of students. At the very least, if you're gonna force someone to do something, don't make them have to pay for it, too. And if the money comes from private funding, the buyers should in no way have power over the students for whom they are paying.

 

[Black Ice]

Good God, America would be even worse if it weren't a legal requirement. Then again, most people who don't care about school still won't care about it even if they're forced to attend.

 

[Rogue planet]

I didn't care about school, in fact, I hated it.

My attendance of school in year 8 was 36%, in year 9 it was 42%. That was because I was bullied extensively, my teachers weren't nice, I hated school. I suffered from depression (and I was diagnosed with it, before everyone comes in and tells me to not self-diagnose). School was a terrible experience for me, so understandably I didn't attend often.

The reaction from institutions was really bad. I was forced to visit multiple psychiatrists, none of which were interested in actually helping me. All of them (iirc, there was 6 different ones) told me that there was something wrong, they told me I had a number of disorders ranging from social anxiety to asperger syndrome; simply because I didn't want to attend school. Personally I don't think not wanting to attend a school which treats you like absolute ****, and where you come home covered in bruises means you have aspergers.

I had education welfare officers come to my house every 2-3 days, they threatened my mother with a jail sentence frequently, as well as a fine of up to £3,000. She herself is a very fragile woman, and it shook her considerably. Our small family unit also had next to no money, we relied on welfare and had very little income; if we were to be fined, it would probably result in a reduction of our amount of meals, rather than money we spent on things like luxury items, things we desired but did not need. In the end, she was fined. Luckily, it wasn't that large amount, it was only £150. Yet still, why should she be threatened due to my reluctance to attend? Despite this, she didn't force me to go to school, and for that I will be forever grateful to her.

The system is ruthless and callous, it doesn't care about vulnerable people. I was a victim due to the persecution I faced at school; despite that, I was treated as a criminal. I would be able to live with this; except for the fact my own mother was threatened as a result of this broken system. If it was only myself who was given warnings, I would be able to deal with it and move on. But the fact my mother was persecuted because of it, I will never forgive them. It brings a heavy feeling in my heart right now as I type this. I hate the education system and I always will until there is a lot of change.



Despite all of this, I passed every single subject, I received 5 A grades, 3 B grades and 2 C grades. If those are the results of a deviant delinquent who is a burden upon society, then there is something wrong with those perceptions.

 

[TRIFORCE89]

It benefits the government if you have a well-educated population. Theoretically, better education = better job = better pay = more tax revenue.

So, I think it should be a legal requirement. At least up to high school (even though, like Penatrait said, that's not a requirement here in Canada, unfortunately).

Yeah, it is the responsibility of the parents, but... parents don't always know best. That's why governments ensure that certain vaccinations are given. Same logic here I think. It benefits the country if you're educated.

 

[Palkia]

In the uk, have to be 18 before you leave school now. I personally do feel that 16 is a better age to leave school as that's when you have GSCE's. Still, the more education, the better knowledge people have.

 

[Captain Fabio]

There is a big problem with kids, now-a-days, where a good bunch of them don't care about it.
I think they should be forced to go because it will, hopefully, kick them into gear.​

​

 

[Happy Azumarill]

attendance should be required, i would have faild year 10 if it wasn't for my attendance, so it should be mandontry.

 

[TheRedeemed]

IDK. I guess so?

If they wanted to NOT go to school, I think that they and the parents would have to write a letter to the school board and have a good reason why they wouldn't attend.

Otherwise its in both the country's and their personal best interests to go to school, unless there's some sort of situation like Vendak. I don't know whether home school was a possibility in your case, though if it were my child, I'd probably go that route rather completely pulling them out of school, though admittedly I don't know how hard it is to do that.

 

[Sydian]

As far as grades K-12 go, then yes, you should legally have to go to school, especially in America. Compared to other countries, we're pretty lacking in the education department. And I think a reason why is because it's legal to drop out at a certain age (I think it varies in different states? But I'm not entirely sure). That's not to say everyone that dropped out of high school is terrible and wasted their lives, and I mean, it's not too incredibly hard to get through grade school. Not hard at all when you compare it to life outside your parents house and trying to make it on your own. But to those that don't strike lucky by some means, it's better to have that diploma as back up than nothing at all. And I know some parents might have that "it's your life, screw it up if you want to" mentality, but there's some points where that just shouldn't kick in, really. So if your kid is wanting to drop out, would you let them make that big of a mistake? Though I'm not gonna sit here and tell someone how to raise their kid. This is just my opinion of it, and since I'm going to be a teacher anyway, I guess I'm a little bit too opinionated on something like this, lol.

As far as beyond that such as college and university, that shouldn't be a requirement, since unlike most elem/high schools, they cost a lot of money. And not everyone seems to be able to find that field they'd want to work in most. I know I had trouble with it myself.

 

[Alley Cat]

Yes, yes, yes, and yes. Without it being a requirement, I could imagine the millions of kids who would just stop going all together. The USA definitely needs their failing education system, as it is the only thing keeping them from delving into utter idiocy. High school is extremely easy, and if you're smart about it, you can get out early and save yourself the time. Pretty much the only thing you need to do in highschool to pass, is... show up. You just do the classwork you're given instead of wasting your time not doing it, and well then, you're done.

The school environment, however, and the system as a whole(in the USA at least) could use improvement. I think it would be nice if we did something similar to what other countries do in that they take an hour or two for lunch and everyone can go home/off-campus and just really RELAX. School keeps most people edgy, and that is why they don't like to go. It'd be nice if we could motivate people to go, as opposed to forcing them.

 

[mondays suck]

11 years?

After 11 years is where school only starts being interesting... and challenging. 14 years, that's the real deal!

As for school attendance, it's mandatory here. If you miss more than 25% (or was it 20? 30? 1/3? I'm not too sure, it could be any of these) of classes in a subject, you automatically get the worst grade, have fun with that. I don't know if it depends on schools or states, because in cities like Köln or Berlin, for example, not attending school is a popular sport... at least that's what things always appear to be on TV. What i don't know is whether the TV shows are just made up (that particular station is well known for doing so), the people not attending school get away with it or drop out of their school and proceed to lead a school- and jobless, sucky life (these kind of people sometimes make me seriously question my socialist beliefs).
What was I going to say? I think it's good for school attendance to be mandatory, because in the end it's only to people's best. Unpleasant factors such as bullying that encourage missing commonly are hard to eliminate, of course, but the teachers and school officials can at least try fighting them. Because, unless you basically aren't taught anything at school, missing can only harm you, no matter what.Freedom should, always when possible, stop where people start ruining things, and not attending school is certainly a way of ruining one's future.

 

[Esper]

Adding to what Triforce and Ausaudriel said, it's not only good for the government, but it's part of the social contract you agree to by being a citizen of your country. Country provides roads, emergency services, and so on and you help them do that by not being a burden. It's kinda your responsibility to be educated.

I think it should be required up to high school or something equivalent to that. For instance, a friend of mine never finished high school, but he passed his GED (General Educational Development) and even though that has a bit of a stigma, it's still considered equivalent to passing HS. Homeschooling, too, should be enough if it gets you to that level.

As for instances like what happened with Vendak, the government folks failed there. When a kid is absent from school it's okay to check in a find out why, but they should be checking with the school, too, especially if a parent tells them that their kid is being bullied. They ought to go right to the school and say "Hey, School, whatcha doin'? You have kids who are afraid to come to school. Fix it." I know this is more ideal than can probably happen in most cases, at least with the education system I'm familiar with. But actually funding education would be a great start. Of course there should always be leeway for kids who miss school for good reasons.

 

[Oryx]

I'm curious about the people who say more educated citizens are better citizens, and therefore education should be mandatory. I'm not necessarily against mandatory education, but I'm not sure the difference between that and other self-destructive life choices. Healthy citizens are better citizens, yet the government doesn't require all people to be healthy in every way they can (applies best to weight-related concerns where the patient has some control). It's beneficial to the government if everyone was aware of politics so they were informed enough to vote, but it's not required of the people to be informed enough or vote. Why is education a requirement, but these are not? Is what's in the best interests of our government be the deciding factor on what should be required of all citizens of a country?

 

[Calipornia]

To me, it seems like a very bad question. Not only you're forcing it on others, in a case like this, it's going only to be counterproductive.
Instead of forcing it, improve the system. Make high standards for teachers. Higher quality education = higher quality population. Force school, and even people with potential won't be using it.

 

[Sydian]

To me, it seems like a very bad question. Not only you're forcing it on others, in a case like this, it's going only to be counterproductive.
Instead of forcing it, improve the system. Make high standards for teachers. Higher quality education = higher quality population. Force school, and even people with potential won't be using it.

Elementary ed has it hard enough with all the unnecessary math we have to take. In America, not sure about other countries, teachers get tenured after 2 or 3 years (can't remember). So I mean, they could do fantastic those first untenured years and once they get tenured, they figure "well, can't get fired now!" and go to absolute crap. I say eliminate tenure, to be honest. I know your post had nothing to do with tenure, but it just came to mind.

And if more teachers knew how to engage all five senses when teacher students, young and old, I'm sure it wouldn't feel as "forced" and it could be more enjoyable to students.

 

[femtrooper]

I think it should be legal...as it is now. You have to be in school until you are 16 (in Canada) and I think that's right. Can you imagine if people were like 10 years old and thought, hey, I'm done! lol Bad bad bad. School makes you more diverse and teaches you important skills and let's face it, you kind of can't do much anymore without having at least a high school diploma. I'm almost done university and I may need to do a Master's, so yeah, I really think people should finish high school...plus omg, it's not that hard! COME ON!

 

[Calipornia]

Elementary ed has it hard enough with all the unnecessary math we have to take. In America, not sure about other countries, teachers get tenured after 2 or 3 years (can't remember). So I mean, they could do fantastic those first untenured years and once they get tenured, they figure "well, can't get fired now!" and go to absolute crap. I say eliminate tenure, to be honest. I know your post had nothing to do with tenure, but it just came to mind.

And if more teachers knew how to engage all five senses when teacher students, young and old, I'm sure it wouldn't feel as "forced" and it could be more enjoyable to students.

I don't know how the system in America works, however I heard that in Russia elementary math involves X and Y. And, to be honest, as a child, math, X, and y was not much problematic with me. But everyone tells me I have a mathematical head, so perhaps it just seems to me this way. I could go on, but it would be too long. But to keep it short, I don't think very highly of people that get sick when they see X and numbers on the same line.

As for tenure, thanks for teaching me a new word. A horrible idea. It encourages teachers to not do their job properly. It's comparable to giving judges a bad salary, since a thing like that can lead to them taking bribery. Also, teachers don't need much work to do. At the very least, they shouldn't deal with behavioral issues. If they missed someone, how long will it be before his/her grades will show there's an issue? Don't forget there are parents with the children, but I've given up a long time ago about parents properly educating their children or even understanding them properly.
And about forcing.. it won't be a big problem. Good children who want to learn will go regardless. Without it being forced upon them.

School makes you more diverse and teaches you important skills

School makes you more diverse and teaches you important skills? School made me far more miserable than diverse and I lost more water on crying than the "important skills" I gained from school, if we put it on scales.
We probably should make people join the army. There's a lot of diversity there, and self defense is a very important skill.

Can you imagine if people were like 10 years old and thought, hey, I'm done!

Yes. First, when did a 10 year old makes such decision by his/her self? Second, I'm sure that society have not lost gold ingots by them doing that.
Also, from my experience, those 10 years old who did that would probably not be missed much. At least, that's what I think. Actually, I would be grateful at the time if some children left my class.

 

[Sydian]

As for tenure, thanks for teaching me a new word. A horrible idea. It encourages teachers to not do their job properly. It's comparable to giving judges a bad salary, since a thing like that can lead to them taking bribery. Also, teachers don't need much work to do. At the very least, they shouldn't deal with behavioral issues. If they missed someone, how long will it be before his/her grades will show there's an issue? Don't forget there are parents with the children, but I've given up a long time ago about parents properly educating their children or even understanding them properly.
And about forcing.. it won't be a big problem. Good children who want to learn will go regardless. Without it being forced upon them.

Yup. Makes it very difficult to fire a teacher, even if they're doing a terrible job. Only things that seem to get teachers out automatically are affairs with students or drugs. Those are the first things that come to mind. There's a movie that goes very into detail about the process of firing a tenured teacher. It's called Waiting For Superman, iirc. Very touching movie honestly. It shows that there are those good children, like you mentioned, that are wanting to go to school and get the knowledge they need.

What do you mean by "teachers don't need much to do" though? And there's actually a class about dealing with children with special needs and behavioral issues, so yes, they do need to be dealt with. Though you're right in that parents aren't always reliable. Some rely on kindergarten to teach them basic things like counting, alphabet, etc when really, a parent could just as easily teach that. And it's kind of sad when a parent won't even teach their kid that much at least. As for tending to behavioral issues, they should be dealt with. I know the teacher isn't their parent, but those of us that major in education of some form have to take a course that I just mentioned. I'm not too far into my major yet, but I do know that as a teacher, it's your job to make sure your students understand the material, even the ones with those problems.

I don't see the "forcing" to be a big problem either, especially with children. Kids seem to enjoy school a lot more than high school. Granted, you're still coloring and doing crafts at younger ages as compared to writing essays in high school, lol, so that's kind of a given.