Carly's Ramblings Blog - Style

Tiered Educational Paths & My NaNo Novel's Plot Background

Today's blogs....

Blog City – Day 236

What do you think of a two-tiered system. Is it the solution to our education woes? Were you told college was the only solution to a good career or were you told that a trade was more important?

When I was in high school there were several tracks you could take. Advanced academic level classes had you heading off towards university. The next level down was more applied level classes that geared students toward community college and a more general education. There was also another level which was more remedial in nature. It allowed others to get a credit but not advance beyond post secondary education of any kind. It was easy to transfer down, but not so easy to transfer back up.

I think it is important to really consider your options before embarking. Being locked into the wrong track and wanting to change later may be a challenge. I liked school and knew where I wanted to go, I would worry about those smart students who want an easier go of it and drop down to avoid the work, they may regret it later. For me, I wanted to go to University so it was a no brainer, of sorts.

Having worked with three students from my ECO class going into high school, I have a bit of an idea how it works. It is much as it was when I went. We worked with the student and his family and my special education consultant to find the best fit for my students. These particular students were high anxiety students, some with Asperger's. One went to a remedial program at his local high school. One went to the ECO program at the high school in Kitchener that was the only one in the area and the other one, that could not handle the long bus ride to that program, transferred out to the Catholic School Board. The two in the public school system are still doing well - and being in the same school board we can find out that information. But the boy that switched to the Catholic high school, that integrates all their special education students is not doing as well. He would have flourished if he had gone to the ECO class.

The ECO class is Enivonmentally Controlled Opportunities class generally reserved for students with severe allergy concerns, but it also has students with high anxiety that need a place to do their studies without the full class experience. Many have fallen behind because of their allergy or anxiety issues so we often cover several grades of curriculum work to get them back up to speed.
I am curious to know what others have to say on this as the American system is probably different.

30 Day blogging Challenge

Creative Saturday - This is the plot background of my NaNo novel.

I need to work on my Plot Background Story This is what I am up to creatively.
I am writing a romance - one that I started last year and want to finish. My characters are Brynn and Dylan.

Heartache can etch into a person and split them. Heartache in youth can shake the very foundation of that young person's development for future love and relationships. For my story both of my main characters have come through experiences that have shaken them.

For Brynn, at sixteen she was beginning to date her first serious boyfriend just before her father died right before her very eyes. The trauma of that experience pulled a bleakness into that time that her young boyfriend was unsure how to handle. He slowly eased out of her life and she did not concern herself with the heartache, as her family loss was too great. Over the grieving process, she has refrained from getting involved with anyone else. Once she got to university she is overwhelmed by guys who are only interested in getting sex. As she is still a virgin, she is not interested in getting involved without developing some kind of relationship and the guys don't want that, so they have moved on. She refuses to get intimate unless it is serious. Most guys can read this vibe and keep their distance. She focuses on her studies instead.

For Dylan, he was seriously dating a girl in high school for a number of years. Melissa was important to him and their relationship had developed to an intimate level. Melissa was nice enough, but certain quirks had Dylan's brother and sister not liking her. She was not interested in interacting with his younger brother and would barely speak to him. His sister Lizzie just didn't like her. She felt that Melissa was a stuck up little rich girl who was only interested in her brother because he was good looking and attentive to her. Melissa liked the control she could wield as Dylan believed he was in love with her. She liked the status being his girlfriend gave her. He was captain on the high school football team and an overall popular athlete, she was quite the athlete herself. He was always far more serious than her. She would laugh at his more intellectual pursuits, but because he was an athlete; he was able to carry that and not be seen as a geek because of it. When high school finished, Melissa was gifted with a summer vacation to tour Europe with several of her girlfriends (one being Brynn's roommate Jacqueline). This trip allowed her the opportunity to meet other young men and she took full advantage of the situation. Dylan was unaware of her infidelity.

Their time apart did open his eyes to what he was missing without her there. He started assistant coaching his younger brother's soccer team. He worked and hung out more with his buddies, Ned and Dan. By the time Melissa returned, he was not feeling the closeness he once had. He felt a little guilty that he had not missed her as he had expected. He also started to notice those things that bothered his brother and sister - her distaste for being in their company. It began to bother him and he began to contemplate the end of their relationship.

On a day at the university he noticed another girl in a way that stirred his blood. He had never experienced that with Melissa and he felt guilty about the burst of immediate attraction to a girl he only laid eyes on in a coffee line, but it was another thought to consider in possibly ending his relationship with Melissa.

When Melissa is caught flirting and kissing another man in the club where Dylan works, his decision is made for him. He will not accept infidelity, but the shook and betrayal of the incident pushes him into himself. He breaks it off and decides to focus on his studies. Dating and relationships are no longer something he considers.... until he meets that girl again years later.