Schools should do more to prepare students for the non academic aspects of adulthood Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the recommendation and explain your reasoning for the position you take In developing

Schools are unarguably one of the most important institutions recognized in the society today. They have become so popular that it becomes aberrant to describe a developed or developing country or community without making mention of schools. Their popularity is definitely as a result of the unique service they provide – educational or academic services. Therefore, if the services offered by schools are in anyway modified, such that they incorporate other aspects order than academics into their curriculum, they begin to lose their uniqueness, value and importance to the society.

Schools have long been classified as educational institutions, because they were specifically required to build people academically and to equip them with the necessary knowledge they require to fit into the academic and professional aspect of the society. This responsibility is in no way a trivial one, as people do not gain this knowledge from any other institution. For example, the only place a Medical Doctor can be trained, such that he is recognized to be fit to practice medicine is in a medical school. This illustration drives home the fact that no matter how skillful one is in a chosen profession, he is not recognized until he has the necessary proof that he has been trained in a school.

This is not to state that academic soundness is all that is required for one to be successful, other non – academic requirements such as leadership, discipline, time-consciousness, Innovation etc. are necessary for one to be considered as excellent or outstanding. The school does not necessarily have to incorporate these aspects into their curriculum before it can be learnt. However, as much as these are not in a school’s curriculum, it is impossible for a person to pass through a school without having these non-academic skills. For example, a class representative tends to develop leadership skills by taking up that role.

Furthermore, there are various institutions that are faced with the responsibility of ensuring that the non – academic skills are instilled into a person such as the family and the church to mention a few. If a person fails to gain academic exposure from a school, he most likely would not get it from any other institution, but can be trained on the non – academic skills from other institutions, as well as from his daily interaction with people in the society.

In conclusion, the importance of non – academic exposure cannot be undermined, and the school should not look away from contributing their quota in that aspect, but there is a very important need for specialization. Hence, since the school has always be known for academic training, they should focus majorly on that area, and also do their bit as always in the non – academic aspects.