When I was 16, higher education was optional, and half of my friends chose not to do it. After the first year, I too drifted away from education and got a job instead. In hindsight that probably wasn’t the best option, and had I stayed at my sixth form college longer, it wouldn’t have cost me so much (or taken me so long) to get my degree.
These days, post 16 education is compulsory and teens can only step away from a full-time education environment if they’re completing an apprenticeship, or work over 20 hours while in part-time education. So if you’re attending a sixth form in Hertfordshire or completing an apprenticeship in Grimsby, you’re in education until you’re 18 – no matter what.
Between the ages of 16 and 18 you’re at your most confused about your future. Unless you’re one of those people who have been working towards becoming a brain surgeon since they were 5-years-old, it’s easy to feel clueless about what career to go for. I know I did.
By ensuring 16 to 18-year-olds attend some form of education that involves some form of mentorship, you’re making helping to guide them into a happy adulthood. There is nothing worse than hating your job because you’ve picked the wrong career. Young people need guidance and compulsory education provides this.
For the year I did attend sixth form, I found the way my classmates and I were treated to be completely different to school. I was encouraged to think outside the box, form my own opinions and seek out the beliefs of others. Those extra years in education can shape who you are as an adult, and without them the path to a happy work life can be longer.
I wish I’d stayed in education during those vital years and I think it’s fantastic that children are expected to now.