Early outs and late ins
Are they a good idea for high schoolers?
Originally published in the Moultrie News.
My son will have an opportunity in his senior year of high school to have an early out or late in. Is this a good idea? He says it will be his last chance to enjoy himself before entering the adult world of college. I'm skeptical.
“Early-outs” and “late-ins” are not uncommon in high schools due to compact semester scheduling and low credit minimums. The credit minimum means teens don’t have to take four years of full course loads for a diploma. Semester scheduling allows for a more spacious timeline to complete their courses. As a result, many high schoolers only need a half-day or less of coursework starting as early as their junior years.
Before discussing the merits of that, let's first dispense with your son's ridiculous argument. Unless he plans to go to school full-time while working at a job for 20-plus hours per week, college is the very opposite of “the adult world.” What's adult about spending 15 hours weekly in a class learning? Or three buffet meals a day? Or free gym and pool? All-night parties? Zero family obligations? An early-out or late-in may prep your child for such a lifestyle, but the lifestyle surely is not “adult.”
Worse is your son's suggestion that hanging out at home doing nothing is his last chance “to enjoy himself.” It’s a shame we have allowed kids to adopt this grotesque worldview. To concede that “time off” is one’s only source of happiness is to believe that one cannot find enjoyment in learning or doing a job. Kids who surrender to that bleak prospect may predestine themselves to a rather bleak life.
In fact, finding enjoyment and fulfillment in our obligations is crucial to sustaining mental health. If you believe the only satisfying parts of life are in the things you want to do versus the things you have to do, then you’re only living half a life — and studies suggest that such half-lifers have a higher chance of taking an early-out of a different kind. Mentally healthy people certainly look forward to rest and recreation, but they also look for gratification in their daily obligations.
So should kids accept the late-ins and early-outs? I can tell you how I handled this with my children. You are welcome to take it or leave it.
I first informed them that our family paid a lot of taxes over many years to give them access to a free public education, and just because the state permitted them to cut it short was no good reason to indulge. Their school offered plenty of higher-level classes and interesting elective courses to augment the courses required for graduation.
They might have argued this was their last shot at “enjoyment” before adulthood. I would have countered it was also their last shot to take free courses, and it would benefit them to get all the education they can while young.
But high school isn’t the only place to learn. Adolescents also learn valuable life lessons through part-time jobs. Jobs teach teens responsibility, punctuality, following directions, financial literacy, and many other crucial skills.
My kids worked during the summers but hadn’t really balanced school and work. So those were their options, and they were old enough to decide for themselves: either take a full course load or use the early-out/late-in for a part-time job.
It seemed a good choice that served them well because they’re both knowledgeable and responsible adults. And, despite forgoing their “last chance to enjoy themselves,” they seem to find plenty of enjoyment in life and career with no problem at all.
In life, we can see certain milestones as finales or preludes. What kids perceive as the end of childhood might be better viewed as preparation for adulthood. Treating their senior year of high school as a golden opportunity rather than a last hurrah could bode well for their future.
Jody Stallings has been an award-winning teacher in Charleston since 1992 and is director of the Charleston Teacher Alliance. To submit a question, order his books, or follow him on social media, please visit JodyStallings.com.