Saturday, September 19, 2015

Cake...and it's many lessons.

My son and I were talking about college today, and we came up with a good analogy for what schooling would mean for him.  We decided that it was like cake.  I have been on a cake trip lately, but that is a different story all together.

The problem with cake, is that most of the time people want to know what kind it is before they will commit to having a piece.  If there are two types of cake, with one being labeled and the other unknown, more than likely people will go for the one that is named.  They may think the second cake looks really good, but not being sure of what it is, presents a gamble.  The cake that is labeled, is more of a sure thing.  It may not be better tasting than the cake that is unknown, but at least there is knowledge of a sort of what you are getting.

I told him that a college degree is kind of like that too.  In some respects it does not mean that you are better, smarter or more qualified for a particular job, but it does give a prospective employer a certain set of expectations that you should meet.   A certain base of English usage and math that you should be able to accomplish.  A set of experiences that you should have at least been exposed too.  

I think he found this encouraging.  A different way to look at school, so that instead of a pain, he sees it more as a stepping stone.