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Nila Priyambodo
Editor in Chief
There is a certain time when young adults can explore their options and figure out what they want to do for the rest of their lives. It is a time when they can search within themselves to find their true identities and their passion. At this point in life, they have had enough experience and education to make the right decisions. This time in life is the college years, not the high school years.
A bill, passed 85-35 on a straight party line vote last week in Florida by the Florida House, requires high school students to declare a major before attending college. According to USA Today, the passage of the Republican-sponsored bill would make Florida the first state to have such a constraint.
It is ridiculous to force high school students to determine what they want to do and be in life when they might not be ready. Most high school students do not even know what schools they want to attend.
There is already an enormous amount of pressure on high school students to get good grades and study for the SATs in order to get into the college of their choice. Throwing it in their face that they must choose a major before even attending college is too overwhelming.
What’s next? Is the government going to coerce high school students to decide where they want to work after they graduate college before they even graduate high school?
Gov. Jeb Bush said that the bill would not only make school a lot more interesting, but it would also prepare students for college and the working world. How can picking a major in high school be more beneficial than picking a major in college?
What happens when high school students do not even know what they want to major in? Are they supposed to be forced to pick one, resulting in a major they might not even be interested in? Then what? Are they supposed to stick with that major for the rest of the four years despite hating it? What happens after that? Do they get a degree in a major they hated and would ultimately have to find a job in that area?
First of all, this bill is problematic. Second of all, it is silly that this bill was even passed in the first place. A large percentage of high school students enter a college or university with an undeclared major and that is perfectly fine.
There is a reason why institutions have general education classes; to not only have academically well-rounded students, but to allow students to take a class in each subject if they wanted to, if it means realizing what they want to do in life. This bill passage constricts students from doing so.
I know plenty of people who were undeclared in college and they are doing just as well, if not better, than their peers who declared a major when they entered college. Declaring a major in high school does not make a difference.
It is what they do with that passion when they are in college that sets them apart from everyone else. Not the fact that they declared a major when they were in high school.
This bill may have been passed in Florida, but if the Senate wants to do the right thing it should not allow this restriction to go on any further.
High school students have too much on their plates as it is. They should be able to enjoy high school while they are there. They should not have to worry about this just yet.
Most high school students are still trying to figure out what they want to do in the future, let alone figure out who they are. Give them a chance to figure it all out. Once they do, everything else will fall into place. Don’t rush it.
Nila Priyambodo, a senior journalism major, is editor in chief of the Campus Times. She can be reached by e-mail at npriyambodo@ulv.edu. |
