I don't see how raising the leaving age is going to stop the have a baby route out of school. It's been going on for a long, long time... Unless you have a lot of schools like Sydney's Plumpton High, then you're going to have a lot of kids still use the baby exit path. Do you really think the government won't pay benefits to parents under the age of 17?
I have to say from the perspective of a secondary teacher, the sooner some kids are out, the better. Some kids just aren't built for a classroom and will never thrive in that environment. Keeping them at school is hard on them, hard on the teachers and hard on the other students. If they raise the leaving age, then they damned well better back it up with alternative paths out of the education system that don't force kids to sit through another two years of irrelevant (to them) schooling. More vocational education is needed if they are going to do this.
........... but at least they will be a couple of years older with a baby !!!!!!!!!!!
(my own Mum was pregnant at 17) ... this is not my sole reason as it looks to be taken & i did mention that it's not.
Tinks ... wanna say great thread (thanks for letting us know as i wouldn't have)
.... To put it kindly i like for my own personal opinion to be voiced like everyone else but i'm not a person that debates on a topic (no offense to anyone) so i will nicely leave now ... smiles now leaving the building
but again, that's something that needs to be addressed with vocational stuff or decent career guidance. If they think dropping out to have a baby is a better option - where is the failure?
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