Education is a very important thing in every child's life. But why is it important? What's it like in different schools? Are any of the skills you learn even going to be used in life? Does every child get an education? Read this and all those questions will be answered.  

First, there are many children around the world who are not allowed to go to school. Their families are poor and the children are forced to work to help buy basic supplies such as food.  When these children grow up, they have very little education, and they can't find good paying jobs either. They become poor like their parents.   Because of that, their children are forced to work and the cycle keeps repeating itself.

Most children in the world go to school for at least a while. Children in developed countries (countries that have more money and technology) go to school more regularly and for more years than children in undeveloped countries. That's because the governments of developed countries give more money to help pay for the schools.  Did you know that if you live in an undeveloped country, you are less likely to go to school if you live in the country than in a city? In the country, your parents often need you to stay home and do chores or take care of your brothers and sisters. More boys than girls go to school. But it is important for girls to go to school. If you educate girls, they turn into women who can take better care of their families because they have an education.

What exactly do you learn in school? It depends on the kind of school you go to. There are public schools, private schools, alternative schools, and home schools. Some schools study subjects you don't and your school probably has some things other schools don't. But all schools teach academics. Academics are your basic school skills: math, reading, writing, science, and social studies. Some schools teach religion. In the United States, only private schools teach religion in school. Public schools do not. In some countries though, the government wants religion taught in all their schools.

You learn all these skills in school, but why are they important? Well, all of those skills come to use in the real world. It is much easier to get a good job if you have an education. School teaches you skills to do your job well and prepares you to be a good employee. In school you learn how to be a good thinker. In school you also learn responsibility and how to be a good citizen. This helps you be a good and helpful member of society when you grow up.

You are used to going to school your own way, but what is it like to go to school in Japan, South Africa, or Afghanistan? In Japan, you start when you're six and can end when you're sixteen, although many kids go longer. They start with six years of elementary school, three of junior high school, and 3 years of high school. After that they have two years of junior college and then four of university. They also go to school more days a year than in the United States. Japanese students have 240 days of school a year while students in the U.S. only have 180. Most children in Japan wear uniforms even in public school.

In South Africa, there's a school called St. Mary's. It's an all girl's school. The girls study English, Zulu (a language), math, art, computer studies, and geography. They wear uniforms, one for summer and a different one for winter. They also do sports at St. Mary's. School days are long in South Africa. They start at 7:30 a.m. and end at 5:30 p.m.

In Afghanistan, the schools are run by the government. The government there doesn't give schools much money so they don't have nice buildings or good supplies. The old government there, the Taliban, didn't let girls go to school at all and didn't let any women be teachers. When the Taliban was in power, some girls went to school in secret even though they would be severely punished if they were caught. Now there's a different government and girls are starting to go to school again. Some children in Afghanistan hardly ever go to school because they belong to a culture that is always moving and doesn't stay in one place long enough to go to school. Because there's been war in Afghanistan for so long, the schools still need a lot of help to get running again.

So an education is important for many reasons. No matter what kind of school you go to or where you go to school, the important thing is to learn all you can. If everyone in the world had a better education, the world would be a better place.

Citations

Websites

Picus, Lawrence O. "Education." World Book Online Reference Center. Jan. 2004. World Book, Inc. 29 Jan. 2004. http://www.worldbookonline.com/ar?/na/ar/co/ar174220.htm.

Images

Images of school, world, and teacher from "Animation Library" <http://www.animationlibrary.com/a-l/> Image free for non-profit and personal use. 
(January-February, 2004).

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