“High school does not teach kids anything they need for real life”. I’m sure that statement is something everyone has heard other people say over and over. Whether it be said by kids in high school, people who recently graduated, or by adults who are reflecting on their past in high school; many feel that what they learned in high school never really helped them with future jobs or life.
Want to be a fashion designer? You can forget about learning that in school. First, you must learn math, science, and social studies. The closest thing that any student may get to learning about design is sewing some buttons in home economics class.
Luckily, there are schools starting up now they are specified for certain career options. One place is the Apex Friendship High School. This high school has their own fashion curriculum that allows students to make and design clothing and then run a fashion show. This school only opened last year and is off to an amazing start, proposing two different courses that offer training in marketing, merchandising, marking, and constructing of clothing.
Their goal is to involve the students in real life situations that they will face within the fashion industry. The curriculum goes further than just teaching them how to design clothes, it allows them to learn what will be expected of them while working in fashion. The teachers help them develop different skills and disciplines to pave the way for the students so that they have a bright future in the business.
They teachers also feel the importance of having the students be well rounded in all aspects. They show the the importance of science to be a chemist and create different textures of garments as well as how to be a stylist and photographer. There are so many other parts of fashion than just designing the clothes.
The hands-on experiences that the students get to experience is a huge step in allowing them to see how it all works. In their very own student-run fashion show, students get to see what it is like behind the scenes; from doing the hair and makeup, to dressing the models and then seeing them head on the runway. It is a totally different experienthanhen sitting in the audience watching the show.
Kids who attend this school have such a strong passion for fashion and are ready to turn it into a career. They can really now see what their future will look like if they stick to their dreams.
As this curriculum continues to grow, the school hopes to add more technology into the program. In the future, they see the addition of things such as 3-D printing and the use of electronic pieces in clothing.
The school hopes to bring awareness of fashion to the local area and get young people more involved in the classroom. They know that school is about learning all different subjects but want students to be able to focus in on what they want to be doing in their future.
There are other specified curriculums in the school in hopes of helping students get real life experience in deciding what they think the best job is for them. Too many times students go into college with a major in mind and end up changing it because they never experienced it before heading off. This way young kids are able to get real life experience before making the huge step into choosing their major for college and career for their future.
