Randi Brooks 8

Blog #8

I found the second last chapter of the textbook to be quite informative and a little eye opening. I found it to be very disheartening to hear that “individuals whose highest level of completed education is high school face the highest unemployment rates” (239). When getting accepted into the Faculty of Education, most people react with the question “but are you going to be able to find a teaching job?” I find this to be a little worrisome because no, I am not guaranteed to find a teaching job once I finish my Education degree, but I’d like to think that I have some sort of advantage for employment over other people who don’t have any post-secondary degree. But in fact, this is not reality. In regards to student employment, the textbook mentions, “Tuition fees have increased at a faster rate than inflation during the last 20 years, creating a greater need for students to work in order to cover the costs of attending post-secondary education” (248). I’ve been very fortunate and have had the same job over the past 7 years. This job allows me to be fulltime over the summer, and drop to any kind of part time I’m comfortable with during the school year. It allows me to work while I’m in school, as well as giving me time to study when I need it. Although, without having this job I would never be able to attend school, and I also have to continue working while I’m in school, otherwise I would not be able to pay for my schooling.

This brings me to the “transition to adulthood” that the text talks about. “Compared to their parents, young adults today stay in the parental home longer and spend more years in education” (249). I can definitely relate to this. It was cheaper for me to stay living at home in Portage with my parents and commute to Winnipeg for school. So that is what I did until I was 24 in order to save myself some money. Now, I have my own house (in Portage still, I’m just not a city girl) and along with transitioning into adulthood come way more financial responsibilities. It has definitely been eye opening and sometimes really hard to have to pay for everything that comes with a house (mortgage, hydro, water, property taxes, etc) along with everything else such as tuition for school, gas money for commuting, groceries, etc. Although it may seem hard and living with your parents until you’re done school is definitely less stressful financially, at 24 I made the decision to get my own place and I do not regret it. The text describes five key transitions into adulthood, “completing education, leaving the parental home, completing one year of full-time employment, entering a spousal or “conjugal” partnership; and having children” (249). I’m at 3/5 for adulthood transition and I think that’s pretty good. The other two will soon follow once I finish my Education degree.

Discussion question: How do you feel about your transition to adulthood?