Bringing Real Life Into Education
by Mark Jacobs
When I was in school, I repeatedly had a disturbing sense of unreality. I knew the real world. I saw it every day, but it was clear that this was quite unlike the world of school. I believe that most students feel this way; they know that they are waiting for school to end in order to begin their real lives.
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In modern education, most of the teaching and learning is done in classrooms. If students want to learn about any field, they go to classes, read books and articles, write essays and papers, and complete tests in order to show “learning.” Far too often, our youth spend years studying particular fields without spending any significant amount of time in the workplaces into which graduation sends them. I believe this to be a major factor in the multiple career changes people tend to make throughout their lives (three to five career changes, according to the Department of Labor).
Historically, the apprenticeship model enabled young people to learn how to do jobs requiring specialized skills while in the workplace. This approach dates back to the Middle Ages (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apprenticeship). In this system, young people were trained over a period of years to do jobs in agriculture, crafts, trades, domestic work, etc.
In education, internships are a way to gain the benefits of on-the-job training without the commitment of an apprenticeship or a degree program in the field. At
So far, our students have done internships in a variety of workplaces. Last year, Maxx worked in an acupuncture practitioner’s office. He went there once a week and helped out with office work while learning both about running a small business and doing acupuncture.
This year, Maxx heard that Something Good in the World had a need for a teenager to help out with their preschool-aged children. These kids come to Hilltop Hanover Farm and participate in a range of indoor and outdoor activities. Maxx volunteered to go each week. In the process, he learned a great deal about working with young children.
Ben, at age 12, is our youngest student to do an internship. He expressed an interest in learning more about horses. Due to the generosity of Carolyn at Chicory Meadow Farm, Ben was able to learn a great deal about taking care of horses through a weekly internship.
Paul has an interest in landscaping. He was able to obtain a paid internship working for Manuel Pousada in which Paul does both outdoor and indoor landscaping plus learns different handyman work.
Surprisingly, kids can learn as much from internships that they hate as ones they enjoy. Imagine a young woman studying for enough years to earn a degree in a field such as physical therapy. Maybe she does so based upon her interest in the field and her desire to help people. Then, she uses her degree to get a job and start work. What if she hates working in a medical office? What if she hates seeing patients for short periods and then moving on to new patients?
It is irresponsible for our modern educational system to train people for so many jobs without having them spend any significant amount of time in their future workplaces. Internships are an excellent way to learn whether people like or do not like various settings. These enable our students to make more informed choices about their future employment.