Staggering high school drop out rate

[Jaboney]

[quote=“Chewycorns”]The Catholic School System in Alberta is especially strong. I wonder if the StatsCan Study separated the two (Public and Catholic). I’d be willing to bet that the dropout rate for the Catholic System is significantly lower. Better teachers and a much richer school board.[/quote]One hopes. The local religious school system where I grew up was similarly endowed, but showed significantly poorer results and expelled far more students.

Just out of curiosity, could you reconcile these two statements for me? I don’t want to get you wrong.

@Chewycorns

I think it is normal for certain types of people to drop out of school to work when there is a huge boom. These people are often walking into 20 or 30 dollar an hour jobs. If the economy weakens significantly, you’ll be seeing many of these workers returning to school for skills upgrading. In Alberta, the economy is so much stronger than other places in Canada (better than most American states even in terms of GDP per capita), many students are probably anxious to get out in the “real world” and make good coin. Of course, I think they are thinking only about the short term and it would make sense for them to complete high school (as insurance for when the economy slows or as a building block to something better).

[quote="[url=The ridiculous legacy of the Bush (II) administration - #73 by Chewycorns I don’t think some provinces would appreciate what is basically another type of National Energy Program mandated from Ottawa, particularly in these uncertain economic times. Such a program could hurt the economies of Alberta and Newfoundland (oil), and Saskatchewan (coal etc.).[/quote]

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[quote=“Surly”][quote=“Jaboney”]Until those jobs are gone and these guys are 40 years old and without marketable skills or the ability to acquire such skills. Then it’s the east coast fishery all over again.
If not a national crisis, it’s certainly a regional or provincial one.[/quote]
And their social programming isn’t complete until they graduate from University, right?[/quote]
And thank you for that sunshiny incursion, Surly. Not only not giving me the benefit of the doubt… but assuming the direct opposite of my intended meaning.

Review, if you please, my opening statement:

@Jaboney

I hated high school. Given how nasty it was, I understand why kids would want out. I have a much harder time understanding why high schools and education ministries have done so poorly adapting to retain students.

All very consistent with my view that a gov’t of the people exists to serve those same people. Not to program, but to empower them.

So thank you very much… kiss my ass.