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Comment by itsmemattchung | Hacker News Reader

I had no clue that there are schools—primary and secondary—that create programs, programs that mimic "real work". For example, the author mentions that the group "9s" take on adult responsibilities: managing inventory, tracking and ordering products, and keeping a record of sales and expenses.

My colleagues and I often discuss how we would've found it helpful if during our childhood we were taught pragmatic skills such as budgeting and resolving interpersonal conflicts—skills that we require on a day to day basis.

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My friends' daughter was encountering bullying and cliques and all that fun middle school stuff to a very concerning extent. So, they pulled her out of public school and put her into a private program whose name I can't currently remember.

There are classes, sure. They also manage a garden, and their own cafeteria. There is a week or two class trip every year -- a trip they are partly responsible for and that actually works well rather than being a horror show.

And there is emphasis on social skills. Not some simplistic "zero tolerance" punishment policy, but, well, I guess, real understanding. Anyway, my friends say it is night and day compared to what their daughter was encountering, before.

This is in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota -- say, a nearby town. My friends are in construction and health care. They do ok, but are not rolling in cash. But, they made this work for their daughter.

I can only think, if I'd had the chance, I would have jumped at it. My school system was far from "bad", in the demographic sense. But their daughter's experience is night and day, compared to mine.

Kids should be learning how the real world works. Something families and home circumstances don't always provide. And I see no reason for schools to be prisons of boredom and the lowest common denominator. They should be able to harbor diversity, including but not only academic diversity, just like the real world does.

Learning by doing, indeed.

> My colleagues and I often discuss how we would've found it helpful if during our childhood we were taught pragmatic skills such as budgeting and resolving interpersonal conflicts—skills that we require on a day to day basis.

This is where many people undervalue the experience of having even a menial job at school age. I'm sure this school is amazing and this kind of experience at a younger age sounds great, but the best "real work" experience is "real work". That where you interact with strangers, adults often from different backgrounds than you, who aren't present because they're paid to watch for your interest, where you get a paycheck, and where you can be fired. I don't think that's an experience for which a school can provide an adequate substitute.

Can you suggest any specific jobs for young people?

Based on my experience and from what others have told me, one of the best jobs if you want to learn how to interact and deal with people is to be a server at a restaurant.

It takes a lot to do the serving job well, you have to learn how to:

1) Communicate well, both listening and speaking

2) Keep track of many different tasks at a single time (put in orders, take out orders from the kitchen, get someone extra sauce, etc)

3) How to make people happy, especially when they're upset

Those are just a few things you'll get better at by being a server. I had five jobs before I started my career in tech, and serving in my opinion was the hardest, and I didn't do it for as long as the other jobs I had. But I'd be lying if I said it didn't teach me the most about human to human interaction.

A side bonus to serving is that you'll have much more respect for the people in that industry. It's not easy, and it's not the best paying, but being able to understand the waiters and waitresses serving you will help you make their lives easier, thus resulting in better service for you and those with you.

It's such an amazing program. I've never been so inspired in a school setting. After witnessing the students in this program, I'm confident they'll all go on to be rockstars in their future endeavors.

I feel like all schools should be preparing students in this way.

In my 6th grade math class we practiced making change by emulating a toll booth. Of course, Asian countries were probably teaching calculus at this age :)

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