Great point Z-Carpentry. When the GHS school district was preparing to search for a new Superintendent they had surveys done of teachers, staff, parents and students as to what they felt was important. One of the comments that was in report, was that there needs to be another track offered in addition to College.

Work sometimes is a lot like High School and College, you can be assigned to things that are not on your list of interesting topics. Failure is not an option unless you want to be searching for a new job. Bosses are like teachers, sometimes you get a good one and sometimes you end up with an ass.
If there is something specific that you would like to do for a living, take a few classes that are applicable to that field. At least then you can explain to the person interviewing you for the job that you did not want to take all the bs classes that are just fluff.
Apprenticeships are available in the trades, but with many journeyman on the bench it is not likely any Company will hire an apprentice.

http://portwashington-wi.patch.com/blog_posts/5-ways-to-make-sure-college-is-worth-the-cost
This article with comments had some great ideas such as a career coach to aid in a career path, I'm assuming this would be a students "guidance counselor?" When looking back at senior year most students were undecided... and with college costs increasing we better be sure that our career path is one we can live with. . .
CRAIG- All the "fluff" as you call it is what may be hindering our development in becoming a productive and knowledgable work force. Is it possible that we are faced with too many options, and forced to learn too much "Fluff" that we stay undecided? ... I would love more insight on the decline of our work force productiveness and the crucial role our schools curriculum plays in that.

I will re-phrase this for conversation sake. " I was not capable of A's and B's in every subject." I am not a 4.0 average and did not dedicate my life to the criteria that was available to me.
I do think the curriculum is out dated and has not helped me make my way in the real world... Yes the high schools are failing to recognize natural aptitudes and subject everyone to the same assignments.
There is no sense of accomplishment in high school other than a passing grade, an art fair, science fair.. etc and I would like to see more students obtain and utilize life skills and the creative technology/networking we have available to us.

there is so much to learn by the age of 18. This age is commonly perceived as the age to be an adult, this is the age when some parents feel there kids should be self sufficient..
I am Just pushing for the ability to do so, provide the youth with the things they will need to know to survive in an apartment, balancing the checkbook, thinking about retirement, looking for investment opportunities... No curriculum has ever taught me how to prosper in the world... and the opportunities I have.. I had to learn about patents on the internet, I had to learn about the stock market online, I had to learn web design, and sales and marketing through trial and error. I never even learned about a production line until I worked one.. or I never did a sales call until I talked myself into the position... I just think that this knowledge should have been readily available and taught to me.

Yes the world is a very diverse place, and without "beating a dead horse" so to speak I will just do my part and be a mentor when I have a chance. That is the only way to put this issue to rest for now. thanks for all the insight." whether we be ill prepared or ignorant, The strongest and smartest will survive."

vote Romney!

Vote for Gary Johnson!

@Z-Carpentry.com....You have broached a subject that is a core issue with, I would say, most young adults. You have to understand that public education has not kept pace with the the changing demands of the non academic world. At one time secondary schools taught two tracks, vocational and college. Most school systems have pretty much dropped the vocational tracks and concentrated on the college track. I think that many are now taking another look at reintroducing vocational education into the curriculum. There are some institutions that still teach life skill classes; including money management, parenting, independent living skills, etc.

I think, that college is not for everyone. The idea that you go to college to receive training for employment is contrary to the purpose of a college education. College prepares a person for future learning and to endow the student with basic principles and knowledge to be used in their desired future profession.

Z-man, I would like to congratulate you on making the right decisions. It may not feel that way right now when your buddies are partying at Moo-U while you go to work every day but in the long run it is far more rewarding to be an entrepreneur and small business owner than a wage slave.

College for all has been vastly over sold in this country and the price of higher education keeps going up in lockstep with increased taxpayers funding; a classic bubble created by distortion of the market (see affordable housing policies and the financial crises for an example of how this works.) Witness all the talk about onerous debt due to loans for higher education.

A majority of people your age have no clue what they want to do as a career and for most college is a very expensive way to become the assistant manager of a book store. We need businesses to participate in public education starting no later than high school to develop vocational tracks and skill sets for good paying, high tech service and production jobs.

For the detail check out:
http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news_events/features/2011/Pathways_to_Prosperity_Feb2011.pdf

I know we're all getting 'smarter,' but I don't think college is the answer for everyone, unless high schools are just as committed to bringing back skilled trades (remember shop class) to teach skills needed in technical schools for decent to high-paying jobs that are in incredible demand. ACT testing doesn't help a student who would make a great truck driver or welder, both of which make extremely good wages and are desperately needed.