What would you like to see studied at school?

[changedmyname24]

We have just been having an interesting chat as a family, about what we think should be taught at school.

I am in favour of a Life Skills subject for all students, incorporating:

• Growing fruit & veg in a garden, pots or an allotment
• Preparing said fruit & veg
• Cooking basic meals
• Basic car maintenance eg changing a tyre, checking oil etc
• Laundry - from sorting to ironing
• Mending clothes
• Budgeting
• Paying bills
• Basic first aid

I think that some of these would alleviate pressure on other services, such as the NHS, so would be of national benefit.

What would you add?

It’s all very well to say “This stuff should be taught at home-it’s basic parenting” but in many cases it clearly isn’t. We need to be addressing where we are now, not where we should be.

Maths (how it used to be taught), critical and independent thinking, cursive writing (studies show it improves attention span and attention to detail)

I agree. This site is full of privileged, well educated posters who live in their middle class bubbles and who have no idea how many underprivileged children there are with parents who either don't care or don't know how to parent.

These young people don't have decent role models, and without them they will be poor parents as well.

Growing fruit & veg in a garden, pots or an allotment
Agreed.

Preparing said fruit & veg
Cooking basic meals
No, that's something that should be taught from home.

Basic car maintenance eg changing a tyre, checking oil etc
Agreed.

Laundry - from sorting to ironing
No, that's parents' job.

Mending clothes
Budgeting
Paying bills
Basic first aid
Agreed.

I also think kids should be taught about the tax system, how to read payslips, how to invest and the importance of saving and living below your means. Although, the latter two is probably more of a parents' job.

That finance stuff is taught in PSHCE.

Funnily enough 15yos don't really care about the tax system.

Basic Economics. For example, magic fairies don't 'find' more money for spending on education or the NHS. We pay for it, through taxes etc and if not enough people work and therefore pay taxes, or if people do everything 'cash in hand', they're not paying for stuff that we are all paying for.

I work in a secondary school which is rural, disadvantaged and not terribly progressive. However, we teach most of the things on this thread. Food tech does cover basic skills, maths does budgeting, finances etc, textiles teaches sewing, pshe is extremely broad and covers most of the other things mentioned. I teach English and include debating, critical thinking, letter and speech writing, persuasion, discernment and on and on in as many ways as possible. We also have debating clubs, gardening clubs, functional skills courses and myriad other extra-curriculars we give up our time to offer.

What happens of course is that parents and students claim we don't teach these things and when I remind them for example that their Maths homework was to revise personal budgets and interest, they roll their eyes and say that's not what they mean by we don't teach this stuff. They have to engage and for those students who aren't taught this stuff at home, engagement is often problematic. Believe me, we teach reams of things of which students claim they have no knowledge. I even teach justice and democracy to year 9 as part of English but those who need to understand it don't necessarily take it in.

I have a very similar experience to @ShowOfHands although in an inner London comprehensive school.

The main issue is lack of engagement by the students who would most benefit not lack of provision, although schools do vary (an issue locally to us is lack of food tech and textiles teaching because they can't get teachers, for instance, and Economics and Business teachers are also in short supply).

That's not entirely true though. It's often funded through debt, which is why the interest rate paid on UK government bonds is so important and hence the political demise of Liz Truss.

A lot of UK students do study Economics. Around 40,000 sit the A-level every year, with many more taking Business in various forms.