Dear next president,

I am Kirsten Lau, a senior of San Marino High School in Southern California, and I want to talk about giving students the choice to learn what they want to learn about. In our current school system, we have mandatory subjects that students learn, and then are tested on. These subjects take precedence over the students own interests, thus quashing their own motivation to learn. Students like me have so many interests we want to learn about. 

This issue is very important because I want to learn about computer coding, but I have no time to do so because my time is spent on learning mandatory subjects. The rest of my free time is spent studying for these subjects or sports and music. I have not been as motivated to learn about the required subjects as I have with coding. If given the chance to learn something I want to learn, I would take it in a heartbeat. And I know my fellow students would too. 

By giving students the choice to learn what they wish, their motivation to learn would increase. Their willingness to overcome difficult tasks would increase, and the new generation would be more motivated to do things. Encouraging students to pursue something they wish to learn may also help them learn what they wish to do in their future. As a senior in high school, I see a lot of my peers struggling to think of what they want to do in their future or even what they want to major in in college. Giving students the choice of what they wish to learn could help them figure out the answer to this impending question of what they will do with their lives. 

However, I am aware that too much of a choice could make deciding what to learn too confusing. I believe that for students to find what they are interested in, they must gather knowledge.  Thus, I propose that the mandatory subjects be taught until middle school, and then in high school, the students have a free choice of what to learn.

Students need to have a free choice in what they learn. Their motivation to learn will be increased because they are learning about something they care about. I want our school system to change to incorporate the student’s free choice.

Thank you,

Kirsten Lau

Period 3, U.S. Government