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   From: alien5ftw_nospam@gmail.com   
      
   How to Survive School: An Introduction   
      
   This article is aimed at young people who hate school and would rather   
   be somewhere else. These young people often actually love to learn - the   
   problem is that few subjects offered at school are interesting to them,   
   or the way in which it is presented is just horribly boring.   
      
   Before I go on, it is possible to legally get out of school, and get   
   your education in other ways, through homeschooling or unschooling (if   
   your parents will let you). Since this article is more focused on how to   
   survive school if you can't get out, more information about those   
   options will be listed at the bottom of this article.   
      
   Here are five vital points that will help you keep your sanity:   
      
   1) Just because they like it, doesn't mean you have to.   
      
   Everybody's different. People like different things, people do things in   
   different ways. Why should school be an exception? What were they   
   thinking when they designed a school that would teach everyone the same   
   stuff in the same way? Did they really think that would work? Fact is,   
   it doesn't work. Not for everyone, at least. If you prefer to do things   
   your own way, that's a GOOD thing. Those kids who function best when   
   told what to do every second of their lives will probably be working for   
   you someday.   
      
   What about those people who assume that just because they did well in   
   school or even liked it, that everyone should be capable of the same   
   results? Don't worry about them. You can't expect everyone to understand   
   you, just as they can't expect everyone to react to school the way they   
   did. You could try to reason with them, but some people just won't   
   change their minds no matter what, so don't lose sleep over them.   
      
   2) You're not the only one.   
      
   Lots of young people hate school. Lots of older people still hate   
   school. Does that mean people who hate school are doomed to "flip   
   burgers the rest of their lives"? Nope. Just because someone hates   
   school doesn't mean they hate learning - in fact, often people hate   
   school precisely BECAUSE they love learning - school is so boring it   
   gives learning a bad name.   
      
   Some people who won the Nobel Prize hated school:   
      
   George Bernard Shaw said, "There is nothing on earth intended for   
   innocent people so horrible as a school."   
   Albert Einstein said, "Education is what remains after one has forgotten   
   everything he learned in school."   
      
   3) How educational is school really?   
      
   You listen to a lesson, you do some exercises, you are given a test. In   
   order to pass the test, you must memorize information - this is often   
   done by following elaborate "learning methods", none of which are really   
   much more than ways to trick your brain into remembering things it   
   otherwise would disregard. Some people actually remember some of this   
   information later in their lives - especially if they happen to go into   
   a career that's somehow related to it. Most people, on the other hand,   
   don't remember much more than 20% of everything they ever learned at   
   school - including the skills needed for reading, writing and working   
   with numbers.   
      
   4) What's the point, then?   
      
   If you're stuck in school, and your parents won't let you get out and   
   try something else, don't despair! There is some fun to be had in   
   school. If you already have a good circle of friends there, you're off   
   to a good start. If not, whatever you do, don't change yourself to "fit   
   in" with any crowd so that they'll let you hang out with them.   
      
   If there's one thing people who like school are right about, it's that   
   "school is what you make of it". This is true. If you don't want it to   
   be boring, bring something interesting to do. Just don't make it too   
   obvious or it might get confiscated for being a "distraction from your   
   education". Make a "mission" for yourself to achieve in school - this   
   could be anything you choose, or a good cause - like finding all the   
   young people in your school who can't stand it, and handing them a   
   printed copy of this article.   
      
   5) Getting your life back.   
      
   If homework and tests are taking up time that you could spend doing   
   things that actually interest you, there are ways around it. If your   
   parents aren't too fussy about your marks, you could just do the bare   
   minimum required to pass. If, on the other hand, they want "nothing but   
   the best", maybe you should try reasoning with them. Tell them how   
   school makes you feel. Explain to them that you'd learn a lot more if   
   things weren't forced on you. It's bad enough having the teachers down   
   your throat about all sorts of things, but having your parents on your   
   back as well is like being attacked from all sides with no escape. If   
   you can't get a word in, try writing it down and having them read it   
   when you're not in the same room with them. Either way, try not to show   
   your anger, or at least don't make it look like you're angry with them.   
   Most people take that the wrong way.   
      
   Having your parents on your side is really the best way to survive   
   school with your sanity intact, and it's a luxury not many young people   
   have. Put as much effort into reasoning with your parents as you   
   possibly can, and only after all else fails should you consider other   
   ways of getting good marks that don't involve working so hard, like   
   finding a friend and helping each other finish the work off quicker.   
      
   Hopefully this article has helped you in some way, or at least cheered   
   you up a bit. Don't ever give up - school may seem like prison or even   
   hell, but it won't last forever. Maybe you can even help out some other   
   people along the way. Good luck.   
      
   	HELPFUL LINKS   
   http://www.school-survival.net/articles/ - More articles about school   
   http://www.school-survival.net/alternatives.php - Alternatives to school   
   (homeschooling, unschooling, etc.)   
   http://learninfreedom.org/Nobel_hates_school.html - More Nobel Prize   
   winners who hated school   
      
   ------   
      
   Please spread this information far and wide - we need to stop the plague   
   of depression and helplessness in schools! We need to let kids know that   
   there are alternatives, and that there is nothing wrong with hating   
   being forced to waste their days away in a prison-like building! Tell   
   all the kids out there that there are ways out of and around the system!   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)