by Michelle Andrus

Created on: March 08, 2008

Adult education is a topic that is near and dear to my heart. I feel everyone should experience some kind of training or classroom study as an adult. The classroom is not as boring, the topics are much more interesting and getting a good grade is so much more fulfilling. I hold this topic in high esteem because I work in a high school for alternative education and adult education, and have also been a college student in my thirties.

Adult education in the high school setting is so important. There are so many teenagers who drop out of school for a multitude of reasons. Drugs, poor home life, low grades, lack of motivation etc. However, what if they want to come back? What if they want to get an actual diploma and not just a GED? Our school has a 85% graduation rate and it keeps rising every year. That is one reason an alternative education high school is necessary. I hope someday there is at least one alternative education high school in every county. Not to replace the regular high school but to give adults a way to go back to school and not feel ashamed of being a drop out.

The students who come to us are so eager to learn and to achieve that ultimate goal of a high school diploma. Thank goodness we are there for them. We offer a no questions asked atmosphere, they do not have to explain why they dropped out and do not have to prove themselves because they did not finish high school. We offer flexible hours, and both structured and unstructured classrooms. An unstructured classroom is when the student can come and go as needed. The teacher is always there for help, but a student works at his or her own pace and all the assignments are given at the beginning of the year. How fast they get them done is up to them. This is especially good for single parents or people who are working full-time.

The structured classes are similar to a normal classroom, except we have smaller student to teacher ratio's and a more relaxed atmosphere. I am so proud of our high school and adult education program. My particular area of expertise is childcare and I teach classes in child-rearing, child development and also run a childcare and preschool center on-site for the students with children. Talk about rewarding experiences!

In order to do the job I have right now, I had to go back to college in my early thirties. Let me tell you, that was hard! I found myself to be a single mother of two at the age of 29 after a long drawn out divorce, and I needed to be able to support the three

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