The Case for Working With Your Hands

[csleslie51]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/24/ma...abor-t.html?em
"High-school shop-class programs were widely dismantled in the 1990s as educators prepared students to become “knowledge workers.” The imperative of the last 20 years to round up every warm body and send it to college, then to the cubicle, was tied to a vision of the future in which we somehow take leave of material reality and glide about in a pure information economy."
"If the goal is to earn a living, then, maybe it isn’t really true that 18-year-olds need to be imparted with a sense of panic about getting into college (though they certainly need to learn). Some people are hustled off to college, then to the cubicle, against their own inclinations and natural bents, when they would rather be learning to build things or fix things."
"A gifted young person who chooses to become a mechanic rather than to accumulate academic credentials is viewed as eccentric, if not self-destructive. There is a pervasive anxiety among parents that there is only one track to success for their children."
"A good job requires a field of action where you can put your best capacities to work and see an effect in the world. Academic credentials do not guarantee this."
Thoughts? Would you support (financially and otherwise) your child if they decided against a traditional college and instead opted for a more vocational route?

[parent56]

definitely yes for my youngest... he is definitely a hands on person and struggles with academics. i had to ask for special permission for him to take regular classes next year in high school rather than CP courses. i wish voc programs didnt carry the stigma they now seem to have

[Pizzagirl]

"Thoughts? Would you support (financially and otherwise) your child if they decided against a traditional college and instead opted for a more vocational route?"

As long as there was a clear plan of some sort, sure.

[csleslie51]

"As long as there was a clear plan of some sort, sure."
Is this required for the traditional college experience as well?

[Pizzagirl]

No :-). In other words, I don't particularly care what my children major in (I have twins -- my S has definite leanings towards two fields, my D has no idea and that's perfectly fine).

[mmaah]

I absolutely would...though I would find it hard if they were to entirely "miss" some of the liberal arts college experience.

I'm actually hopeful that one of the outcomes of the current economic crisis will be some revival of sense about the skew towards "everyone must go to a 4 year college" that afflicts many communities. I see many kids, especially in upper middle class/well off communities, who would be happier, healthier (and probably wealthier) if they had felt support for pursuing hands-on, heart-led work. Our schools have too much abandoned useful vocational options that used to be viable alternatives, even if you were a good student. And unless you choose an alternative path and fight for it, kids leave high school woefully ill-equipped to do anything but go on to college.

I wish the mania for APs was balanced by a passion to be sure all kids knew a set of fundamental survival,social, and parenting skills, as well as a chance to observe and know craftsmen/experts in a wide range of occupations. Then they would be more ready to be adults and more able to know what they really want to study.

[HImom]

Two of the mechanics I've used have MBAs & another is an engineering from UWa. They all find that their choice of career pays their bills better than other alternatives. My kids aren't that great with their hands, but there are a lot of folks returning to CCs to get vocational training with their BAs and BSs, so they can get a paycheck after their "college experiences." Many of the respiratory therapists (RTs) I work with obtained their BAs/BSx & then went back to school for their 2 year CC RT degree.

Another friend in CS has been taking courses and testing to get certified for computer skills to be more competitive for jobs. Many of these courses and certifications are from CCs.

[PlantMom]

Thanks for posting this link--the article makes some excellent points. (Believe it or not, I had a friend in graduate school who was working on his Ph.D. thesis for which he had to inseminate turkeys. Besides leading to a career in a human fertility clinic, it lead to much comic relief during evenings out with fellow stressed graduate students.)

I think that yes, I would support one of my kids if they decided to take a more vocational route. My third child is definitely a "hands on" kid. He's always fiddling with his paper folding passion, or strumming the guitar. I remember when he told me that he wanted to be a roofer, and then a chef who creates food art. Chances are good that he's every bit as smart as his two older siblings, but he applies his intelligence much differently. Where will go when it comes time for college? No clue yet. I have a brother-in-law who has a degree in architecture. However, he's always been a hands on guy who enjoys building cabinets. He went back to cooking school for a happier career--and boy can he cook. There's something to be said for matching individual aptitudes to careers.

I have encouraged my kids to find real life applications for their interests in high school. My D, who just finished her first year as a 4.0 GPA nerdy major at excellent college, had home ec and agri-science proudly displayed on her high school transcript right next to her full load of AP courses. She was a ceritified master gardener at age 14, volunteering at our local cooperative extension. A family member once laughed when she said she might want a career in park service or environmental science after college. I wanted to bop him on the nose because he was implying that she was too smart to "waste" her smarts on a hands on career. How did we get to the point that hands on work implies lower or wasted intelligence, or a lack of ambition?

[kitty56]

Absolutely.

[Pizzagirl]

I have a friend who graduated from William & Mary and has worked for the Nat'l Park Service for many years. Yes, it's hands-on in the sense that she's leading tours and so forth, but the amount of knowledge that she has had to learn and communicate about our country's natural history and our country's history-history (when she's worked in places like Independence Hall) is great. Really, at one level, how is she any different from a lecturer or college professor, except that her classes come to her and disband shortly thereafter?

[FallGirl]

I'm actually hopeful that one of the outcomes of the current economic crisis will be some revival of sense about the skew towards "everyone must go to a 4 year college" that afflicts many communities. I see many kids, especially in upper middle class/well off communities, who would be happier, healthier (and probably wealthier) if they had felt support for pursuing hands-on, heart-led work.

Absolutely true in the area I live in. I know kids who wanted hands on work whose parents made them go to a traditional 4 year college. Very sad, and the peer pressure here contributes to it.

At this time, neither of my kids are interested in this type of work, but if they were I would certainly encourage them.

[MidwestMom2Kids_]

There are some smaller four-year colleges that are more career-oriented than a typical liberal arts college. These may please families who want their students to go away to a four-year school for a bachelor's degree. Ohio Northern University is one nice example.

http://www-new.onu.edu/about_onu

You might find these labeled as "comprehensive universities" rather than "liberal arts colleges."

[csleslie51]

Some of the smaller state universities (rather than the University of _____) focus more on the hands on, practical side of academics. At S's CSU there was plenty of opportunity for kids to get their hands dirty while learning.

[momofthreeboys]

Absolutely I would support a child who had a clear vocation in mind. I would probably advise a child that it would be good to take some basic finance and/or business classes before, during or after vocational training or apprenticeship or I would find one of the more vocationally oriented colleges that aligned with whatever interest the child had. There are so many career paths possible, I would never do anything to derail one of my kids if they chose a different path than directly to academia.

[nunya]

Now days plumbers make as much as doctors. As long as you're happy and have a nest egg set back then why not?