Education Guidance

Over the course of the summer, I had conversations with dozens of students and parents on various topics related to high school education. These were students and parents with a wide range of backgrounds and academic standing. Overwhelming majority of students and parents, I have found, do not have proper guidance through the sometimes confusing terrain of education.

Like in any other field, the people with the best and up to date information are the ones that are actively engaged in it. There are many good doctors, but the best ones are those that continue to educate themselves, to be enlightened on the latest research and newest techniques through the various channels available to medical professionals. Education is an enterprise like any other, it does not stay static; it continues to develop, grow and innovate. This can make things difficult for the average working parent. It often leaves behind even the best intentioned students and their parents.

Every school of course has a guidance counselor. They are not, however, micromanagers and are limited in the effort that they can allocate per student. I will not and can not judge if the guidance counselors allocate their scarce resources wisely. Some are better than others as some doctors are better than others. But one word of advice to every student and parent interested in cultivating their “education investment portfolio”. Get to know the guidance counselor at your school. I mean continuously pester (in a friendly, pleasant way of course) him or her. No matter how good or not so good the school guidance counselor may be, he or she is probably more plugged into the latest in college admissions, career planning, and other education trends than a parent will ever be. It’s their full time occupation.

This may be one of the greatest benefits of being in a small school. The guidance that each student receives at a small private school is something that can not be overvalued. Regardless which school your son or daughter currently attends, go give your child’s guidance counselor a phone call, set up an appointment, meet to discuss your child’s future. And while you at it, meet up with other staff members there too. Do not wait until your child is a high school senior. Start as early as possible. Put it into your calendar; talk to the folks at the school on regular basis.