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AlexsMom you always make me laugh.

But a serious response to the original poster, if you read around in many of these threads many of us are parents that are trying to make sure that the situation you are in and how you feel doesn't happen to our kids.

I guess you should take a practical approach and figure out what you don't like, prioritize it, consider any practical solutions and present them. I don't know what you've tried already but if it was more vague (not that it's a criticism, because I've learned from experience) the people you are appealing to will be less likely to take it seriously.

I'm a "grown up" and I've had to learn this while advocating for my child. People that you are advocating to do not necessarily connect the dots. Present them with a plan and they may punch holes in it, but at least you can take it, tweak it, and start again.

And the online learning thing is a great idea, maybe looking forward to that for this summer will cheer you up.

Things always look more dismal when you're a young person, but there is a big world out there and the fact that you took the initiative to post here shows that you're already on your way. You should feel really good about that.

I find that a little compassion goes a long way sometimes.

Sometimes, stuff seems pointless because you still don't see the big picture of why you're learning it. You can't yet, because you're still learning the basics. Some math books try to tell students why subjects like geometry and algebra are important, but from what I've seen, they mostly miss the big picture.

I, too, wondered if I'd ever use geometry when I took it, but by a few years later, I had really started to see how a solid foundation of mathematics could help me in many areas. The logical way of thinking I learned in geometry helped me learn how to structure an expository essay when I was a freshman in college. Solving lots and lots of geometry and algebra problems helped me understand statistics with greater speed and accuracy than would have been possible otherwise. And of course, statistics are really important in psychology.

Not to mention that you need to learn the difference between "degrade" and "denigrate."

I'm sorry you find your current work pointless, and I wish you were able to enjoy what you have. But there's no rush to get to college - finish as much as you can while it's free! Life is not a race, it's a journey.

I do think that geometry was one of the most important classes of high school. Learning how to do a rigorous proof didn't only help me with my engineering Ph.D., it helped me with my JD. And statistics is absolutely vital to your chosen path of study.

For students who are smart and motivated enough, there are cheaper ways to get a college education than to spend four years at a residential college, but for many career paths they still need the B.A. credential. Clarence Page has written some columns in the Chicago Tribune about alternatives to the B.A. I have posted articles about MITx (still under development) and other online schools.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/ct-oped-0311-page-20120311,0,6116617.column
A GED for college?
March 11, 2012

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/ct-oped-0325-page-20120325,0,3490586.column
Has college become too easy?
March 25, 2012

http://www.theatlantic.com/business...han-college-not-going-to-college/255073/

Found this appropriate for the conversation ...

I saw that article, ABQ, ands found it interesting but potentially somewhat wrong-headed. Here is a good comment someone posted:

(below is from the article)

"Statistics like this are a good reminder that, even though college
tuition is famously outpacing median incomes, there is still something
more expensive than going to school. Very often, that is not going to
school."

(now the comment)

The most expensive, of course, is going to school and not finishing. If, say, 70% of marginal college students wouldn't graduate (currently half of students don't finish their program in 5 to 6 years- http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/p... - and there's probably a selection effect that means the marginal students would do worse), how does that change the rate of return?"

We are at the stage now where the entire debt origination structure of college and graduate education is beginning to roll over because the costs of debt are making it a poor financial investment.

This is happening in the law school complex.

I don't think it's quite to the undergrad complex yet, but it's really trashing law students, who generally have over $100,000 debt that cannot be discharged in bankruptcy.

I think that college is still a good deal, but it's rapidly moving toward a bad deal.

Give it a few years.

I think I agree, Jon. I have really revised my expectations and opened my mind re: my kids and college. DH and I both went to expensive private colleges that we really loved, but I can't see saddling my children with that kind of debt in this economy....even with high-ability kids, I'm wary (though I reserve much of my opinion till they're college-age). We may strongly push for an honors college at a state school instead. I feel a little sad about the idea, but more sad about the idea of them having to spend so many years getting out from under their loans. I know a LOT of people my age (pushing 40) who are still saddled with a mountain of debt (usually grad school, though not always). Some are just starting out in their careers, and they generally have kids to put through college and a retirement to save for. It looks nightmarish, and I'm very grateful that my own small loans are long paid off and that DH's grad school was entirely subsidized (he's a scientist). This has given us so much freedom. We both have relatively low-earning but interesting service-oriented jobs in government, which suits us. If we had mega-loans, we'd both likely be working in corporate America. I used to freelance for pharma companies who paid me much better than I'm being paid now, 15 years later, but I hated it.

From the failed students' perspective, it is a disaster. Had they taken a skilled trades approach, they would have a paying job and marketable skills and much less debt.

From a social perspective, it is a disaster. Lives delayed and capital sunk with zero return.

Most people do not need to go to college.

Are you aware of the financial aid policies of the Ivies? Don't assume that they will be more expensive for your child than a public university. Plug your data into a financial aid calculator and find out.

http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/09/harvard%E2%80%99s-record-166-million-financial-aid-program-will-increase-aid-to-low-income-students-and-provide-a-new-financial-aid-calculator-for-students-and-families/
"As students from the Class of 2016 use the calculator, they will see that families with incomes between $65,000 and $150,000 will contribute from 0 to 10 percent of income, depending on individual circumstances. Beginning with the Class of 2016, families with incomes between $150,000 and $180,000 will be asked to pay slightly more than 10 percent of income."