Not everything is beneficial to learners

A benefit is an advantage or profit gained from something. By going to school you benefit a lot. Dropping out of school and focusing on marriage or searching for gold won’t benefit you at the moment.

As a student, know why you are going to school. Students take school for granted in most cases. They are no longer seeing the value of going to school, which is dangerous. Young people are now involved in crimes such as murder, prostitution, stealing, etc. Young people are dropping out of school and engaging in these dangerous acts. They are all over the forests mining gold.

Benefits of going to school
Schools teach social skills: School is the first setting where you learn to socialise with others outside your family. You learn to make friends, listen to teachers and work through problems. Learning these social skills early on gives students an important foundation for their interactions in society.

Studies have shown that education can increase what’s called “learned effectiveness,” which includes traits like self-control and cognitive ability. Students also learn “soft skills” like good communication, teamwork and flexibility.

Going to school doesn’t automatically teach social skills; it’s still the responsibility of teachers and other adults to encourage healthy socialisation. When they spot unhealthy socialisation — like bullying — they intervene appropriately.

Schools can teach empathy
Empathy, which is the ability to understand another person’s feelings and experiences, is one of the most essential “soft skills” a person can have. Schools can be the perfect environment for teaching this to kids, starting at a young age. They’re learning to interact with other people, understand different perspectives,and develop good communication skills. Teachers can teach empathy by modelling it, talking about emotions, encouraging community activities and integrating listening activities into classwork.

Students benefit from school extracurricular activities
Schools are more than just classrooms. Many also offer sports, clubs and other extracurricular activities. Some of these can lead to scholarships, which give students access to higher education. Even if a student doesn’t thrive in a classroom setting, they can find something else at their school that benefits them.

Education reduces poverty
Education is an essential part of reducing poverty around the world. When children receive an education, they’re able to access jobs with higher incomes. Other factors (like gender) impact what kind of a job someone can get, but it’s generally true that as a person gets more schooling, their income potential goes up. That benefits their whole families and can end cycles of generational poverty. According to a Unesco policy paper, around 60 million people could escape poverty if all adults got just two extra years of schooling. If all adults finished secondary education, it would lift 420 million people out of poverty. If a country wants to reduce poverty, it should invest in schools.

Schools encourage critical thinking
Critical thinking is an essential part of any subject in school. Whether they’re studying literature, science, or history, students can develop critical thinking techniques. They use these to absorb the material, form ideas and express themselves in writing and speaking.

These skills translate to every area of life, whether it’s in academia, the work setting, or relationships. How do schools teach critical thinking? It needs to be intentional or schools run the risk of just teaching kids how to memorise facts. Teachers can improve their students’ critical thinking skills by asking open-ended questions, encouraging students to think for themselves, presenting real-life problems and encouraging interaction between students.

Mining gold or going to South Africa should not be the first priority. You should not rush to get married or drop out of school. Go to school first. Education is a good foundation for your future success.
n Dr Msongelwa is an author, teacher and youth coach. He can be contacted on +263 771 019 392