I question America’s, “public education system.”

And furthermore, when American music and nutrition continue to decline in overall quality then I believe that the masses silence… points to problems within the American Education System, today.

Job Hunting Post College Graduation

Nevertheless, as a 30 year old college graduate… I didn’t expect to wait until I was 31 years old to start a career. Nevertheless, here in Michigan this circumstance of revolving, temporary employment, is exactly what’s happened in my life post college graduation.

And I’ve filled out thousands of resumes, maybe as many as 5-10k resumes and I've submitted them to employer's without finding long term, stable employment. I’ve also; searched multiple job boards, arrived in person, called prospective employers and blogged about jobs… with no, “luck,” after my college graduation. So, this year I’ve moved to NYC once again doing whatever it takes to land a career. Although, I’ve moved to a more industrialized city a few times and nothing has changed my circumstances as of yet, including flawless work attendance at the restaurant jobs that I have had. In fact, I’ve worked several lower class jobs but I’ve never found employment that’s lasted more than 9 months, while also allowing me to keep my dignity intact. (*IE Restaurant work which used to be beneath college graduates.)

The Value Of College Education

But throughout this circumstance and throughout this, “quest for a career,” I’m led to wonder, “what is the value of a college education?” And after a long and rather expensive self financed education, I still struggle to find career oriented work. And I don’t blame myself anymore…

In fact, this is why I protested alongside 50k people in the Occupy Portland Movement… in 2011. Whereby, to be fully honest, sometimes I don’t think that there's much more that I could do. (And it’s also worth noting that I haven’t missed a day of work in over 4 years, working jobs that fall short of the title, “career,” I might add.)

What Should Change?

So, what can I do?

And what can my aging generation of 30 somethings, “change,” over the next 20 years to make the American Education System stronger and more impactful? Because, today, I consider myself a critical scholar of sciences but I’ll admit that this was not always the case. Whereby, I think that part of the problem lies in my loss of the enjoyment of reading which was somewhat tarnished as a child due to overbearing and rigid memorization learning in public schools. So, I would like to see further emphasis placed on, “theoretical sciences,” in today's general education format. Furthermore, I find that when taught properly; advanced physics, software engineering, gene therapy and all sorts of real world innovations, that perhaps once were beyond a general public education can now be taught to kids and in fact… can be FUN for students to learn about. And I find that this is especially true when these subjects are taught from the approach of real world applications and not simply memorization.

I also believe that many of these subjects should be taught at the HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL and I believe that many of these subjects… should not just be taught at overpriced colleges. For example, Einstein’s famous work on relativity which was first crafted in 1905… could and should be taught at the High School level today, in my opinion. And while I recognize that not all students… and not all schools can cater to that sort of advanced placement curriculum, some schools could and should challenge students to think beyond rigid curriculum's and venture into the, "unproven," realm of science. Furthermore, I believe that many more teachers should teach, "general relativity," in High School.

Also, the importance of physics is gravely undervalued in public education today, in my opinion. For example, we use the electromagnetic spectrum through radio waves… everyday… and yet, we teach very little of this in the American Education System. Whereby, I also believe that computer programming should become a, “core,” High School curriculum, as well.

Yet, with that being said; how can we make public education and public schools, “stronger?” And I believe that another facet of this dilemma is corporate America. Whereby, a great deal of information is kept secretive today, in the name of capitalism and I believe that this is done for a variety of reasons and in a variety of industries to maintain very specific corporate entities, “strength and positions,” in and around the free market.

However, imagine a world… where public schools taught people; “this was Michael Jordan’s workout routine." Or, "this was Einstein's morning routine." Or what if school's taught children what books that Tesla liked to read? Or simply had kids read books from Bill Gates's reading list? And furthermore, what if that information was made public, for general education purposes and not simply held in a Nike vault? Which is to say that I strongly believe that this type of information should be made available for public schools, today and in particular, I would like to see corporate information revealed both in the technology sector and in the physical fitness sector perhaps 30 years after it’s initial use in professional fields akin to patent laws.

I imagine a world where there's a renewed focus on, “general education,” as opposed to, “higher education,” as well. In fact, I believe that through creating a renewed focus on general education… that this reform would simultaneously combat the ethnic divide in America simultaneously, which I believe is in part due to the overpriced institutions which urban youth often cannot afford.

The Importance Of Biographies And Autobiographies

As well as advocating for; a renewed focus on general education, theoretical sciences and corporate information sharing, I’d also like to see a revitalized focus on history. But specifically, I’d like to see curriculum’s revolving around biographies and autobiographical works in the near future because over the years biographies have greatly shaped my adult life and I’ve personally discovered that autobiographies are perhaps the most important historical documents. Whereby, focusing education on biographical works might also give kids the vitally important role models… that many children lack today.

Kid's today need role models more than, “grade point averages,” in my opinion. So why not teach William Wallace’s fight for freedom? And even if some people argue that biographical works can become culturally and even racially biased, I personally find that this argument is less important than the substance of these works. However, I also believe that as a reward for giving children these historical biographies or historical role models, perhaps they will find comparisons within themselves, in some way.

So why not teach kids the legacies of; Mickey Mantle, William Wallace, Eugene V. Debs, Achilles, Mahatma Ghandi, Alexander the Great, Ceasar, Augustus or the Buddha / Muhammad / Christ? Because, again, in my opinion censoring public education from this type of information leaves many students in the worst of predicaments, today. Furthermore, why not teach kids about Vladimir Putin? Or China’s President Xi? Or French President Macron? Vladimir Putin is by far the most well known man in Asia and his name is nothing but a sound byte to most Americans today.

So, in conclusion…

I’d like to see biographies and autobiographies like that of Nikola Tesla... brought BACK into western culture at the public school level. Furthermore, I’d like to see this occur even when some of these prose are considered politically or even culturally biased, while telling children, "this is considered by some to be biased."

Beyond that, I’d also like to see running incorporated into American curriculum’s… as well.

In fact, I believe that one Presidential debate should be changed into a 1 mile run and that this would force candidates to exude a different kind of grit/effort potentially forcing politicians to lead by example while also attacking America’s health crisis head on. In fact, I believe that every student in America should receive a personal, “hour-glass,” as a token of High School graduation, counting down to their personal best 1 mile time from their High School physical education courses. Furthermore, I believe that by giving students an hour-glass… verses a diploma… that you're teaching students to value something within themselves versus giving them a piece of paper which very few people even really, “value,” today.

-William Larsen; Civilians News Founder.

5’56.