The world is getting more and more inhospitable to people who lack
that "magic piece of paper." More than ever before, that diploma is
opening doors. More than ever before, doors are slamming shut to
people who lack that high school degree. It's never too soon to start
letting your youngsters know that their diploma may ultimately be as
important as the air they breathe. Regardless of the age of your
students, now is the time to let them know that diplomas are becoming
essential to survival.

Perhaps it is because the world is becoming so hostile to dropouts that
we have been getting so many comments about our dramatic, provocative,
tells-it-like-it-is "Drop Out, Lose Out"
series of posters. (Our site link is below if you want to see them.)
Without a doubt, these posters capture how grim and difficult life may
be for today's youth if they lack a high school diploma. The facts cited
on the posters have drawn so much comment, that we will provide a
synopsis of those grim statistics here so you can easily pass on the
information to your students.

If you just want those chilling facts, then you just have to scroll down a
bit. If you also want additional specific, ready-to-use ideas how to
convey the bad news more effectively and powerfully, you can adapt and
use the surprising methods shown on our "Drop Out, Lose Out" posters
Here are two ways to immediately use the methods used on the posters.
First, you can do the activity pictured. So, for example, on Poster #12,
you see stacks of money being rejected. Get stacks of play money
and a stamp that says
"rejected." You may also want to get a stamp that says "accepted" to give
the activity a potentially positive twist. Second, you can verbally convey
the images shown on the posters. So, for example, on Poster #14,
you see a complex job application on a computer monitor. You could
quiz students verbally on how to complete such a complicated
application. This activity could be a
very potent way to demonstrate that job hunting could be difficult or
impossible without education and a diploma. So, as you look at the posters,
decide whether to actually do the action portrayed, or to verbally capture
it. Either way, you will be gathering additional ideas to powerfully and
persuasively convey the bad news about dropping out. The goal of all
these rather tough techniques is to absolutely convince your youngsters
that life without a diploma is like Minnesota in winter.

Here are 10 Bitter Cold Facts About Dropping Out:

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Cars
After paying for necessities, a dropout with one job may be able
to afford 0 new cars.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Housing
A dropout working one job is typically able to afford about
2/3 of a very basic place to live.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Money
When dropouts reject free education, they also reject
$329,000 of additional income that graduates earn.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Understanding
Because dropouts miss a lot of school, they often have
problems understanding what nearly everyone else can.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Finding Jobs
Jobs open to dropouts are rapidly disappearing as more
and more jobs require diplomas to even apply.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Keeping Jobs
Dropouts are typically the first fired and the last hired.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Surviving Physically
Jobs open to dropouts often lack health insurance and
paid sick leave, making basic and even emergency health
care unaffordable or impossible to access.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Desirable Jobs
Most jobs, the military, and most jobs commonly considered
desirable or high-paying, require a diploma to even apply.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Financial Survival
Typically, dropouts working one job will not earn enough money
to pay all their basic housing, food, heat, light and water bills.

Drop Out, Lose Out
on Essential and Free Benefits
Jobs open to dropouts usually do not include paid
vacation, sick leave or retirement, making vacations,
illness and retirement difficult or impossible.

We Have More Motivation-Making Resources
Consider passing on our "cold facts" to your students now. Yes, these facts
are harsh, but better that your students are exposed now to the
increasingly harsh realities facing dropouts, than they live out those realities
for the rest of their lives. Our site http://www.youthchg.com has
hundreds more free strategies.

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