Why We Should Be Required To Stay In School

President Obama once said, “The stakes are too high – for our children, for our economy, for our country. It’s time for all of us to come together – parents and students, principals and teachers, business leaders and elected officials – to end America’s dropout crisis.” Many education officials in the government support the fact that students with a high school diploma have a future with more opportunities than high school dropouts. Students should be required to stay in school until they are eighteen years of age. Staying in school leads to an increase in graduation rates and higher earnings, even though some people believe that staying in school has negative social effects. Students should be required to stay in school until a later age, and there will be an …show more content…
Although raising the age limit will not prevent all dropouts from occurring, it will have a positive effect. For example, Paul Leather, the New Hampshire Deputy Commissioner of Education, describes how changing the dropout age will help when he states, “... it sets the moral imperative so that students, parents, and educators, become committed to the idea that each student will in fact graduate.” If the dropout age were to be risen, then the students would believe that they will graduate, and they will not even consider dropping out as an option. Another example of raising the dropout age is that it has more positive effects for both the student and the country. For instance, Leather shows the positive effects of raising the age when he states, “... when you raise the compulsory age of education, the graduation and retention rates will in fact increase.” If all states raise the dropout age requirement, then there will be an overall increase in graduation rates. While increasing the dropout age may increase graduation rates, it also allows students to receive higher