The cartoon by syndicated San Diego cartoonist Steve
Breen of the San Diego Union-Tribune shows
a student telling a teacher, or perhaps a guidance counselor, “This fall, I’m
going to trade school to be a welder.”
There’s a block pointing to him that says, “Starting salary upon
graduation $50,000.” The school person
is thinking, “Loser.” The block point to
that person says, “Starting salary upon graduation from a pricey, 4-year school
with a liberal arts degree $25,000.”
There’s another parenthetical phrase in that frame I cannot read.
The cartoon was an attempt by the governor to show
educators that everyone doesn’t need a college education and society does need
some of those trade people. I agree with
the governor except I’d add that at least some college work wouldn’t hurt
anyone. Let me just pop this in
here: I did graduate from one of the
South’s best universities, the University of Florida, thus the Gator
designation.
Way back in the early 1960s I was teaching in a Portland
school when one of my students was telling his friends he was quitting school
to become a bulldozer operator.
Believing in the importance of at the very least a high school diploma,
I tried to talk him out of quitting. As
I recall, it really was a good, non-confrontational conversation as he
explained how he simply couldn’t stand the learning stuff at all and could make
good money in the trade. I tried to
explain to him that how income grew with each level of education and that
dropouts were at the bottom. It meant
nothing to him.
A few days later he was not in class. “He’s gone,” a friend of his told me and
already is working on a job. I was
disappointed.
Several months went by and one afternoon, the young man
appeared in my classroom. “Are you
coming back?” I asked.
“Oh, no!” he smiled.
“It’s just you tried to talk me out of quitting and I liked you so I
thought I share where I am with you.” He
was really happy and confident at his success.
We talked for a while before he offered, “I happen to have a pay stub
with me and thought you’d like to compare yours with mine.”
He was earning twice as much each week as I was earning
bi-monthly. “As soon as I’m 18,” he
said, “I’m going to buy my own machine and then I’ll be able to earn some real
money.”
It’s true; this fellow’s experience was not typical of
high school dropouts. Also, I have no
idea what ultimately happened to him so it’s possible he never did get his own
machine, it’s possible he no longer drives one, it’s possible he ended up on
the low end of the wage scale. Sure, but
it does illustrate that not everyone, at least in their teens, didn’t need a
college education.
Before she retired, my wife worked many years in the
office of Portland Regional Vocational Technical High School which became
Portland Arts and Technology High School.
She was saddened when the change took place because, as she said then,
it marked the beginning of the end of vocational education. Fewer and fewer
young people graduated from the school as excellent mechanics, machinists,
brick layers, small engine repairers, electricians, and the list could go on
and on.
She told me that “sending schools” were discouraging
students from attending or putting other roadblocks in front of them. Instead, many students attending were
encouraged to take what they called general trades.
Meanwhile the emphasis was placed on college
preparation. I think even the SAT
(Scholastic Aptitude Test) was adopted as the Junior Year standard test to
measure progress. It’s hard to accept
the schools’ challenge to the assertion that preparation for college had become
the prime goal of schools when a college entrance test was used to measure the
students’ achievement.
Yes. Every student
should be encouraged to accomplish goals as high and perhaps higher than that
person is capable of achieving, but the schools should also have strong ways
for those wishing to study for a trade to also achieve at the top.
After all, where would we be without plumbers,
electricians, engine repair people, roofers, mechanics, constructors, you name
it. I think that’s the purpose of Gov.
LePage’s plea in his use of the cartoon.
Dave
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