Things We Should’ve Learned at School

You're not alone if you've looked at someone doing something and wondered, "Why was this not taught at school?" It's time for a reality check -- you're asking the wrong question. You should be asking, what else have I NOT been taught at school but should know?

Education, in my belief, should not solely serve the purpose of helping us find jobs. Here are a few things I wish I were taught in school.

HOW TO HANDLE FINANCES

There is no point in buying 10,000 watermelons like they do in math problems if we don't know how to handle the bills for the 10,000 watermelons. To avoid being cooped up in jail one day on account of being in debt, it would be nice if we were taught how to fix a budget ahead of the month, or year, in order to spend and save accordingly. Even the people in math problems buying thousands of tomatoes or potatoes would not have been able to do so if they were broke before the end of the month due to miscalculation of finances.

EATING ETIQUETTE

Salad forks and dessert forks are apparently two different forks? And then there's the "spork". Holding them properly is hard enough, now I have to know which food is for which fork?

HOW TO PAY TAXES

This is similar to a very boring math class, but one you keep failing on account of having no clue how it is done. Remember kids, not filing your taxes correctly when you're an adult is illegal and could land you in jail.

KNOWLEDGE OF THE STOCK MARKET

So that we can understand any stock market drama without having to Google in order to understand what is going on. It is also necessary since it might inspire others to incorporate this knowledge in their careers, but more so because googling the context can take the fun out of memes.

HOW TO MAKE IMPORTANT DECISIONS EFFICIENTLY AND PROMPTLY

This might even help solve the age old dilemma of, "What shall I eat today?" and may potentially help sustain friendships and relationships since you won't be constantly switching your order with somebody else's.

HOW TO CONDUCT YOURSELF DURING AN INTERVIEW

Vital, because referring to "How interviews are conducted in movies" are never a good idea. They're scripted!

HOW TO HANDLE REJECTION

If we were taught this, perhaps we would have understood that cutting or dying your hair or making drastic changes to your physical look is not a solution to your problems and would have saved ourselves from plenty of pictures we now have to hide. We would also know how to respond to romantic or other rejections in healthy and non-problematic ways.

BONUS: UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BEING ABLE TO SPEAK IN A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE AND BEING INTELLIGENT

It is absurd enough that I am having to explain this, but while multilingual skills are definitely a plus point, it does not mean you're better than others at doing things. If you're bad at something, you'll remain bad at it, just additionally in another language.

What do you wish was taught in school?

Bushra Zaman likes books, art, and only being contacted by email. Contact her at bushrazaman31@yahoo.com