Nice conversations, but it doesn't change the question or propose a solution about how colleges choose their incoming class from the masses with similar scores and grades. I don't think they will take a letter from Tallulah saying her kid is good, flexible, interested and interesting. All relative terms. And in 10 years, they may come up with a psyche test that determines your interested quotient.
And with those increasing numbers of people that account for more PG, there is also a bigger increase in numbers of average intelligence people that want solutions to provide them with jobs that allow them to have families and homes etc.
I govern my parenting by the goal that I want my kid to have choices. Not a path, but optional paths. What I see is that kids today have less choices when they grow up. Just like Howler mentioned philosophy or history not having the most stable employment outlooks. But this is my nature. I worked on Wall Street looking forward to what looked promising, what didn't.
And I think it is next to impossible, if you don't come from an immigrant family where kids are nurtured with a hunger to do better and have success, to push your kids and develop mastery in something they really don't want to do. I tried with piano, which is her best talent. But she didn't want to do the work. So now she just keeps the piano going. And focuses on dance, which she loves. Not so much the ballet, but she gets that ballet is the foundation for mastery in dance and she works at it. And in pushing for mastery, she is developing good work habits. Habits that translate into doing a little better at school. School is too easy and I noticed it was getting sloppy for a while. She had a social studies project on Chinese holidays that had to be done in computer lab. She did this amazing presentation with graphics and animation.
Maybe I am wrong with linking the two, but so far, reaching for mastery in something you like can translate across the board in motivation for excellence. I hope anyway.
