Thirty- something speaks
I want to be a professional pencil fighter

Mike Maddock

In another attempt to rescue our public school system, the S.C. legislature has decided to put the future of our great state in the hands of middle school students. Beginning this academic year, eighth graders will be required to create an Individual Graduation Plan (IGP) as part of the state's Personal Pathways to Success program brought forth by the Education and Economic Development Act (EEDA) passed by the legislature and signed by the governor in 2005.

According to the website www.scpathways.org, an IGP is a way of choosing coursework based on education, career, and employment goals. So "Personal Pathways to Success empowers youth by making education relevant to their aspirations and abilities, promising a better economy and quality of life for everyone in S.C." That sounds wonderful, unless of course you are the pimply- faced eighth grader with the crackling voice and a worldview consisting of PlayStation 2, MTV, and Clearasil. Our government is telling 13 and 14- year- olds to quit screwing around and decide what they want to do for the rest of their lives.

I'm 37 years old, and I'm still not sure what I want to be when I grow up…these kids are supposed to decide before they can drive?

Maybe today's kids are different, and I'm just thinking about myself as a gangly, metal- mouthed, confused ball of hormonal awkwardness. If someone had forced me to choose a career path back in 1984, I'm pretty sure I would have either been a professional pencil- fighter or a surfer, neither of which would have paid my bills or promised a better economy and quality of life for everyone in S.C. Who needs that pressure?

If eighth grade were the point at which I decided what I wanted to do in life, then I'd still be sporting a mullet haircut and a Member's Only jacket. I'd be playing basketball every day and trading marbles, and I might still think Michael Jackson was pretty cool. I'd be wearing painters' caps in the summer, not because I was a professional painter, but because I liked paper hats with little, plastic bills. I'd still be hanging out at the Magic Attic in a Panama Jack T- shirt, parachute pants, and Ray Bans jamming with Sugarcreek. Kind of scary, huh? Is this the kind of person that should be laying out a career path? I don't think so.

Middle school age children should be forcefully banned from making any decisions about their careers. They have more than enough to worry about as it is. Strange things are happening to their bodies, and they're starting to notice the things happening to other people's bodies. Girls are becoming women and boys are becoming drooling idiots. These kids don't know whether they're supposed to watch Disney or Cinemax, and our government wants them to declare a major. It's absolute madness!

The website promotes this program as a way to give students a reason to stay in high school and address our 53% graduation rate. The website also says 30% of S.C. eighth graders scored below basic reading levels in 2005. Is it just me or should we be teaching them how to read before we send them to the classified section?