The Importance of Family and Consumer Sciences in School by Rachel

The Importance of Family and Consumer Sciences in School by Rachel - November 2021 Scholarship Essay

Many would say that school is useless in real life and that the quadratic equations you learned in algebra will never be applicable in your future career or everyday life. Although I often believe that is true, Family and Consumer Science classes prove to be both practical and useful in your everyday life outside of the school setting. FACS classes deserve more emphasis in school because they provide valuable life lessons, are beneficial in teaching household management, and teach students financial independence and job readiness.

We all learn lessons throughout life that stick with us and prove to be helpful. Many of these lessons can be learned in FACS classes. The most valuable lessons taught include life and parenting skills. Most of these students care for their younger siblings at home and often themselves when their parents are not home. Lessons like safe sex, how to develop and hold a healthy family relationship, and childcare relationships all provide helpful lessons to carry with you in life. These classes also teach how to achieve optimal quality of life by providing resources, recreating scenarios, and doing labs and activities to demonstrate real-life situations.

Although these life lessons previously discussed are important, household management is also crucial to learn in school. When you do graduate from high school, you will likely not live with your parents anymore. That means that your mom won’t be around to pick up your dirty socks, cook your dinner, or do your laundry. Picking up after yourself, doing the dishes, and preparing nutritious and healthy meals on your own is necessary to learn now. Learning these things and many more while you’re in school, will help you smoothly transition from home life to living outside of your home.

Household management will also affect your financial independence and job readiness. Luckily, you can also learn these two things in FACS. In Family and Consumer Sciences, something that is also heavily emphasized is how to properly write a check, balance a checkbook, and create a budget. With these things, financial literacy is becoming a popular trend throughout school and has broadened students views on how financial independence proves to be of importance. Alongside financial independence, job readiness and career preparedness are also being taught. Students are learning how to prepare themselves for an interview, how to give a proper handshake, and they are learning workplace etiquette. Students are being taught these skills now to help them become hardworking and professional employees for their future aspirations. Regardless of your career, these skills are needed throughout life and all jobs you may come across. These items will take you far in your career and job and are very important to learn early on in life.

So why exactly does Family and Consumer Sciences need more emphasis in school? It’s simple. Out of all the classes taught, the valuable life lessons, household management skills, and job and financial opportunities that FACS provide will prove to be most important in life.