Originally Posted by Bostonian
Originally Posted by 22B
Anyway one on one mentoring is a terrible idea. It's much better to benefit from the collective wisdom of a large group.
I'm no bleeding heart but recognize that there are, unfortunately, children who don't have parents who care much or who care but have no idea how to navigate the sometimes complex U.S. educational system, especially the college admissions system. I read newspaper articles about high school students who only find out in 12th grade that they ought to take the SAT if they want to attend a selective college. I am not planning to volunteer as a mentor, but I am glad there are people who do so. I hope that forums such as this, freely available to all, help youngsters who are not well advised by their parents, even if they browse but never join. There are various ways one can contribute, and different people will find different ways of contributing more satisfying.

What you are describing is a situation where mentoring/volunteering/charity may fill some need, but this is far from optimal. Basically if a mentor/volunteer is doing something like this then there is a problem that needs to be fixed. Someone should be employed to do a job like this.

More generally, the existence of a mentor/volunteer/charity should (sometimes) set off alarm bells that something has gone wrong, and that there is a need in society that could be served in a much more efficient way.