Task 3

Leon Botstein states in his essay, “Let Teen-Agers Try Adulthood”, that “…the American high school is obsolete and should be abolished” (205). I’m still torn between his essay for the simple fact that I highly disagree with points he makes throughout the essay but their were also some points I found myself agreeing with him a little bit. At one point the makes the statement, “The team sports of high school dominate more than student culture” (Bostein 205). I’ve experienced this first hand in high school. I’ve always been a student athlete for as long as I can remember. I specifically remember my teachers treating me different just because I had a “big” game that day or needed a certain grade in order to play. I know this is extremely unfair and even though I got special treatment I still didn’t agree with it. Bostein’s point has been proven true in not only my case but I‘ve also seen it happen to my friends as well. On the other hand Bostein states “We should entirely abandon the concept of the middle school and junior high school”(206). I highly disagree with this statement. Kids need time to mature and this takes time in order to happen. During middle school is generally when kids start to go through puberty. By eliminating middle school, this would put them behind. Graduating at the age of 16 seems unrealistic. I could not imagine heading into college when I was 16. I would not have been fully ready and mature to handle the“real” world at such a young age.