The anticipation of getting a car at age 16 is almost too much to bear. However, along with the privilege of driving comes the responsibility of car insurance. 

While driving is one of the most dangerous activities performed each day, especially as teenagers, how much do we know about the insurance that is protecting us? What happens if we crash? 

Schools should put more focus on teaching practical life skills such as learning about insurance. Instead of educating us about the importance of having a job, there should be a class educating us about paying bills, how credit cards work, and what insurance is and how it works. 

A study conducted by Education Dive states that a majority of interviewed college students wished they learned how to do laundry before they headed off into the world alone. While teaching this task seems to fall on the parents, it is important to take into consideration how many high school students actually have a stable place to learn these life skills. In 2017, there were a recorded 1.3 million homeless high school students in the United States, according to The 74 Million. Taking these numbers into consideration, high schools should at least offer a class that educates students, homeless or not, on these seemingly simple life skills. 

In school, schools should provide classes that prepare students for practical real – life scenarios, for example, folding laundry, cooking a simple meal, and changing a tire. Students would benefit from learning these life skills to help them for the future. With these life skills, students will not only be more prepared for their academic lives, but also give them even more opportunities to succeed. According to the New York Times article, “I Love Housework”, doing housework can release hormones that make you happier once the chore is complete. High schoolers are typically described as sad and depressed so some cleaning would do them good! 

While some schools do offer finance classes, those classes are directed at students looking to pursue a finance or business path in life. Schools need to focus more on life skills, instead of telling us everything we are doing wrong. 

Triton should offer a class as either an elective, or part of a guidance class that teaches these students life skills. It would be similar to a home ec class, with added economic components. In order to pay for these classes, teachers could volunteer to teach these skills as an elective, instead of hiring a new teacher. In order to pay for this class, the money would come from the schools budget plan, which would include this class as a new elective.