We have some schools now that do (Netherlands) including growing food, but yeah, those are important survival skills

Cute - but I don't think anyone can teach you how to fix a broken heart. (: I learned the rest in school though. I didn't necessarily RETAIN it but that's not the teacher's fault.

I don't know when you graduated from high school, Steve Barnett, but nowadays schools do a little bit of everything. And I don't know where you are from, but here in the USA where I live, each state's legislature decides what the schools teach instead of the people who actually know about education and learning. If you live in the USA, then instead of griping about what you didn't learn, try to get involved so that you can be somebody who decides what gets taught, thus saving others from your sad fate. I'm sorry for being nasty, it's just that I'm tired of schools getting blamed for what lacks in their curriculum because people just don't understand the school doesn't get to decide what is taught. It sucks.

That's the parents' job.

You know, I'm a mom now and my daughter is learning a lot more life skills than I ever did in school. She is being taught to understand mathematical concepts, not just memorize them. She is discussing real-life issues like racism through books. She's learning what it means to be a part of a community. She's only 7. I think there's still way more skills that should be tsught (finances being a major one!!!) And I know how broken the system is at its core. I studied to be a teacher and we live in NY and, at least from where I stand, we are growing, little by little.

Doing dishes, vacuuming, cooking, and the most important of all missing schooling in America: Critical Thinking Skills!!

In Middle School (US, grades 6-8), we had Home Economics (cooking, sewing, nutrition) and Industrial Education (basic tool use, fun industrial projects). In 10th grade we had General Business (letter writing, banking, budgeting, basic laws, comparison shopping).

I had to take a Personal Finance Literacy course in my sophomore year of high school. I thought most schools offered that, but if they don't, I agree that they should.

Like.... vocational high schools. Yep, they do teach you these things, if that's part of your major. For example, my high school major is tourism commercialist (roughly translated) and I literally had those subjects in school.

My daughter's homeschool curriculum already includes that. She's 4. She likes doing math problems involving a Very Silly Person who gets more and more credit card debt buying toys he doesn't need. :)

That would be life skills, health, shop, and home-ec.

It would be nice if they taught the 3 'R's for a change instead of ... what are they teachiing now? Not a damn thing buy how to be petty and pissy about what someone's wearing or how those 'in charge' can throw their weight around.

And critical thinking skills!!