James, High School Student, CA
I think the most important thing I'm learning in school is probably how to function in society, and how to handle myself in certain life situations - like in a job interview or working with younger children when i grow up.
James is a high school student in California. He was interviewed by a fellow student, Emily, as part of a #schoolpartnership #studentvoice project with REENVISIONED, in which students interview each other and adults in their lives, and reflect together on school and what makes a good life.
Tell me about yourself.
I think I'm kind of an adventurous person who likes to do things - like outdoors things, just to have fun. I think my friends would describe me as amusing and compelling. My family would say I'm a little lazy but I get my work done.
Now imagine your all grown up, let's say your 30, what are the 3 essential things that you think would make a good life?
Three essential things that I think would make a good life would probably be like a good steady job that I enjoy and am good at so I could stick to it, and a good clean house that I buy to live in that keeps me safe cozy.
The last thing would probably be that I'm happy or satisfied with the life that I created for myself so I feel some kind of tranquility.
What would you like school to do ideally to help you get to that life goal?
I think school should help me learn more about what's after high school. So I know how to get my life on track when I'm out. School should also get me a high school diploma if I try hard enough, so I can help get a job that’s steady enough for me to live on with my life after school.
Do you think that this school will do it for you - why or why not?
Yeah, I think this school will do that for me. It has smaller classes, which makes it easier to get the credits.
Why do you think we have schools as a society?
I think we have schools as a society so we could help kids learn about what they like so they know what they want to do when they complete school so they can start the beginning of their life as an adult - so they’re not like strung out or doing anything bad.
In order to have a functioning community the people within it will have to be able to work together so that they have a good life and job.
What do you think the most important thing your learning in school?
I think the most important thing I'm learning in school is probably how to function in society, and how to handle myself in certain life situations - like in a job interview or working with younger children when i grow up.
10,000 Stories. One Shared Vision.
REENVISIONED is a national movement to redefine the purpose of school. We believe schools should foster flourishing individuals and a thriving democratic society. But what does it mean to thrive or flourish?
To answer this, we're building the world's largest collection of stories about what it means to live good lives and the role schools should play in helping create them: 10,000 stories from people across the country. We'll use the stories to learn about our shared values and dreams and to create a new vision for why we send our children to school.
We work with people like YOU across the country: Catalysts - individuals, classrooms, schools, and community organizations - who interview people in their communities and foster empathy nationwide by sharing the stories on our website and social media: Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook (@reenvisioned).