Lexi - Blog 8

I found the discussion in Chapter 8 “School-to-Work Transitions” on how educational attainment in Canada is highly polarized interesting. I have always found that there is so much emphasis and importance on attending university after high school and that it almost being conveyed as the only acceptable option for high school graduates to choose. This failure of teachers in giving information and guidance regarding other options has the “effect of having youth enrolling in high school courses that are not appropriate to their interests or skills, and can lead to youth getting poor grades and dropping out of school in frustration.” (236)  Many who have argued against the stigma towards any “non-academic” pathways say that “Canadian schools need to be ‘re-cultured’ so that college and university are not stressed as the ‘preferred’ pathway and that the benchmark of the success of a school is not the proportion of students that are enrolled in university preparation courses.” (236) When we watched the video from the show ‘The Passionate Eye’ in class on how other countries such as Switzerland approach post-secondary education, I was intrigued. In Switzerland they only admit a small number of students to their universities but also treat other work-education programs with equal importance and significance. This has helped the employment rates of new grads in the country improve and remain steady. In Canada unemployment rates among younger adults are “much higher than in the average adult workforce – often double or even higher.” (239)I do agree that new grads should have to compete for jobs and that earning a degree does not necessarily come with the 100% certainty of having a job right after school. However, it seems that too many young people after completing university are out of a job.

Discussion question: How do you think Canada can work towards improving job opportunities for young adults?