Education
Education is perhaps the most important right and responsibility of every citizen in our world. We believe that through education, individuals can better understand themselves, their world, and the relationship between the two. Through this understanding they can find happiness in this world.
Due to the restructuring of our society, we now can commit tremendous resources to education at all levels. There are no crumbling schools, teachers do not have to beg for basic supplies. But the greatest change is that individuals who never would have considered a career in teaching now gladly do so because it is a revered profession and there is no financial disincentive. Our teachers teach because they are good teachers, and they love to teach.
Children enter school at age five, as in the Old World, and progress from Kindergarten through grade twelve. All schools have similar access to resources but there are many local charter schools with unique, often experimental, approaches. Standardized tests are used to compare the charter schools to the traditional model schools and depending on those results, changes may be made to the Standard Curriculum. The charter school administrator is accountable for the school's performance; if the students do not fare well, she may be replaced, or the entire school's curriculum may be changed to another design.
There are church run schools as well. These schools must still offer the core curriculum, and their students must perform acceptably on standardized testing. If these schools fail to meet standards, the church may be required to change the school's director, or risk having the school shut down by the Board of Education.
The core curriculum includes, even in Kindergarten, philosophy, logic, music and art appreciation, and chess in addition to reading, writing, and arithmetic.
Even in our world, there are students who, either due to lack of interest or lack of abilities do not complete their education through grade twelve. All children are required to either attend school, whether standard, remedial, trade, or religious, or a youth commune until the age of eighteen years, at which time they may begin their adult lives. Even students with behavioral problems that are disruptive are educated in some setting until the age of eighteen.
All students completing the twelfth grade are eligible to attend a university. There is competition to attend the more prestigious schools, and so only the best scholars are able to attend there. Athletes similarly compete for openings in the more prestigious schools; naturally a ballet dance student would wish to attend a good school of dance, and a basketball player would want to attend a school that can best prepare him for a career in professional athletics.
While attending school full time, students and athletes are excused from mandatory work hours. Part time students are expected to work, unless they also care for one or more children under the age of five years. After eight years of post graduate education, students are required to begin working even though they may continue to take courses.