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Educationisnotpreparationforlifeeducationislifeitself.
JohnDewey.Notmany
individualscanadmittohavingtheprivilegeattherighttoaneducation,mostlyduetotheir
misfortunes.Manyindividualssufferallaroundusandwecannothelpthem,becausewehaveto
helpourselvesfirst.Everyindividualhastheopportunitytoaccomplishtheirgoalsinlife,even
thosewhosuffermorethanothers.Thosewhostrugglemorehaveanevengreaterabilityto
accomplishtheirgoalsbecausetheyhavegonethroughtheworstinlifeandaimtoprove
themselves,butcantheyprevailiftheydonoteventry?
Myfatheroncesaidtome,Donotfocussomuchonyourjobandfocusmoreonyour
schoolwork,becausetherewillalwaysbejobsintheworldbutyouracademiceducationisnot
somethingeveryonehastheopportunityat.Whenyoufinishyoureducationwhodoyouthink
willhaveabetterchanceintheoutsideworld,youortheindividualwhodidnotfinishschool?I
learnedonthatdayIwillneversufferinlife,becausemyparentssufferedformeandmysister
sowewouldnothaveto.Myparentsstartedasrefugeeswithlittlemoneyandprogressed
throughtimeasbusinessownerswithoutaneducation.Myparentsneverstruggledtopaybillsor
feedmysisterandIbutyetsomeindividualslivinginAmericadid.Ifoundithardtobelievebut
Ilaterlearnedtheydidnottrytomaketheirlifebettertheywerefinewiththebareminimum.
EverytimeIhearsomeonesaytheyarefailingagrade,arenotgoingtocollege,orare
flunkingschoolitpainsmeinsidebecauseIknowmyfamilyinBosniaarewillingtodo
anythingtostartanewlifeinAmerica.Someindividualsdonotappreciatewhattheyhaveand
donottaketheopportunitiesthatcometheirwayanditallendsupgoingtowastewhensomeone
elsecouldbenefitfromit.Otherindividualshaveprioritiesbutitdoesnotmeantheyshouldnot
tryinlife.Everyonehasthesameamountoftimeinaweekanditalldependsonhowtheyuseit,

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butnoteveryonehasthesamenumberoftimeinlivingsowhynotusethetimetogetaheadand
dosomethingmeaningful.
LiteratureReview
Individualsdonottrulyknowhoweducationcanaffecttheirlives.Itdoesnotjustteach
thembutitalsohelpsacquireanewsetofskillstobenefitfrom.Althoughnoteveryonereceives
ahigheducationbecausetheycannotaffordit,therearealwayswaysaroundit.Theindividual
mustwantaneducationinorderforthemtogetfinancialassistance.Otherindividualsmightnot
receiveanyeducationatallbecauseofthegenderdisadvantagesindevelopingcountries.
AlthoughgenderdisadvantagesineducationdonotapplymuchinAmerica,itisstillamajor
problem.
PovertyCycle
1in6newbornsarebornintopoverty.About50%willspendatleasthalftheirlifein
poverty,childrenwhospendhalftheirlifeinpovertyare90%morelikelytoentertheir
20swithoutahighschooldiploma.Theimprintingthatbeginswhenachildisborn
continuesthroughouttheirlifeastheyobservetheirsurroundingsandlearnedwhatis
expectedofthem.Schoolsinlowincomeareaswillneedtofocusonbreakingthe
mentalitybyexposingthestudentstoaworldoutsideofwhattheyseeeveryday.Inorder
toshrinktheeconomicequalityinAmericathenextgenerationmustknowthatitis
possibleforthemtohavemorethantheirparents.
Wecannotsucceedwhenhalfofus
areheldback,
MalalaYousafzai(LeeandBurkam,2015).
Alowincomepersoncannotsuccessfullyattendschooliftheyarehomeless,or
depressed,ortheyhavechildren.Furthermore,consequencesformakingthewrongdecisionsare

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catastrophicwhentherearenofinancialandemotionalbufferstofallbackon.Underextreme
andpervasiveemotionalstress,resultingfromlivinginpovertyandinviolentcommunities
executivefunctionsarecompromisedandimpulsesareextremelydifficulttocontrol.Many
individualslivinginpovertyfeelisolatedfromasenseofcommunitybecausetheylacktrustand
socialcohesion(Rossiter,2014).Parentswithloweducationalattainmenthasshowntopredict
persistentpovertyfortheirchildrenmoreconsistentlythananyotherfactorssuchassingle
motherhood,familyunemployment,youngageofparentsorlivinginaninnercity
neighborhood.Childrenwhoseparentsdidnotgraduatefromhighschoolarelikelytodropout
too.Thosewithoutahighschooldiplomabyage20aremorelikelytohavepatchy
unemploymentinyoungadulthoodandbepoorasanadult(Baker,2012).
GenderDisadvantages
Lackofeducationisnotalwaysrelatedtoscarcityinschools.Italsoemergesfrom
attitudes,expectations,andbeliefsincommunitiesandfamilies.Inmanydevelopingcountries
womenareportrayedjustashousewivesandreceivelittleeducation.Theforemostfactorin
limitingfemaleeducationispoverty.Itcostsmoneyfortuitionfees,uniforms,textbooks,and
transportation.Femalesarethefirsttobedeniedschoolinginfamilieswithmanychildren.
Womenindevelopingcountriesreceivelesseducationandemploymentopportunitiesandtwo
thirdsoftheworld's875millionilliterateadultsarewomen(Patel,2011).Muchtimehaspassed
andmorewomencanexpandtheirhorizonsbutnotallofthemcanduetoreligionandothers
expectationsofthem.
Notonlydowomenhavedisadvantagesinlearningbutsodomen.Atcampusesacross
thenation,womenmakingupabout60%ofthestudentpopulation,areearning170,000

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morebachelordegreeseachyearthanmen.Girlsarereadytoacquirelanguageskillsat
age5,boysarenotcognitivelypreparedatthisage.Theareaofthebrainresponsiblefor
languageacquisitiondevelopsinboys2yearslaterthaningirls.Whenboysareplacedin
anenvironmentthatisnotsuitedtotheirlearningstrengths,theyactoutandarelabeled
asdisciplineproblems.Boysaccountforthe70%oftheDsandFsand90%ofthe
disciplinereferrals,ingradesK12.Thegeneralizationthatgirlsmaturefasterthanboys
hasbeenstatisticallyproven,andboysarepayingtheprice.Whengirlsarefallingbehind
itsalarmingbutwhenboysarefallingbehinditisignored(Bolan,2014).
WealthandStatus
Incomeissomethingthatisdirectlytiedtoeducation.Getmoreeducationandyouare
likelytobepaidmoreforyourworkandskills.Between1989and2013,thegapbetween
theleastandmosteducatedfamiliesinwealthwideneddramatically.In2013,households
headedbythose40orupwithoutahighschooldiplomahadamediannetworthof
$37,766.Whichwas44%lessthanthosewithoutahighschooldiplomain1989.Those
withwithahighschooldegreereceived$95,072,whichis36%lessthanthosein1989.
Individualswitha24yeardegreereceived$273,488andiftheywerebeyonda
bachelor'sdegreetheyreceived689,100.Thosewitha24yeardegreearemaking3%
morethanthosein1989andindividualsbeyondabachelor'sdegreearereceiving45%
morethanthosein1989.Amongfamilieswithagraduatedegree,thechancesofhaving
atleast$1milliondollarsisoneinthree.Familieswithoutahighschooldiplomathe
chancesareoneinahundredandten(Diep,2015).

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Adultswhoattainedhigherlevelofeducationaregenerallymorelikelytoportraygreater
satisfactioninlife.Educationcanbringsignificantbenefitstosociety,notonlythroughhigher
employmentopportunitiesandincomebutalsoviaenhancedskills,improvedsocialstatus,and
accesstonetworks(OECD2013).Bettereducatedindividualsaremorelikelytogetinheritances
orgifts.Bettereducatedwageearnersarelikelytobehealthywhichcorrelatestolongerwork
lifeandfewerhealthexpenses(Diep2013).Adultsthathaveattainedhigherlevelsofeducation
aregenerallymorelikelytoreportstrongercivicengagement,intermsofvoting,volunteering,
politicalinterests,andinterpersonaltrust(OECD2013).Educationhasthepotentialtobring
significantbenefitstoindividualsandsociety,whichgowellbeyonditscontributionto
individualsemployabilityorincome.Skillsareimportantchannelsthroughwhichthepowerof
educationismanifestedinavarietyofsocialsettings.
ManyindividualsgothroughlifewithnothingandmyfamilyandIwereoneofthose
manyindividualswhohadtogothroughthathardshipinlife.Howeverinsteadofremainingin
thelowerworkingclassmyfamilyhadacquiredtheirfullpotentialtomoveonupintheworld.
Imnotashamedtoconfessthatmyfamilyhadtousefoodstamps,andbuyclothingfrom
GoodwillbecausenowIdonottakeanythingforgranted.Myupbringingtaughtmevaluablelife
lessonsofwhatitisreallyliketosufferinthisworld.Itisnoteasyforindividualstomoveupin
socialclassesbutmyfamilydidanditisalwaysmademewonderwhyotherswouldnotwanta
moresuitablelifestyleforthemselves.MyfamilycametoAmericaasrefugeeswithonly500
dollarsandweneverstruggledtopayrentorhavefoodtobringhometo,andyetindividuals
whoactuallylivedinAmericaalltheirlifestruggleeverydayanddonotdoanythingaboutit.
Theychoosethatlifeforthemselvesbecauseitiseasierforthembuttheyareonlyhurting

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themselvesbynotlivinguptotheirfullpotential.Aschildrengrowoldertheytendtofollowin
theirparentsfootstepsandtheyarenotgoingtobebeneficialtosocietyiftheyarelivingon
welfare.Thistendstostartacycleonlyafewcanbreakfrombutmoststayin.
Iworktwojobsandamafulltimecollegestudent,andIhavewitnessedmanyteenagers
andevenadultspoorlyattempttosucceedintheirworkplace.Howaretheygoingtoprosperin
lifeiftheycannotevenkeepajob?Iftheydonotattempttocontinuetheireducationthenthere
willbenothingleftforthemandthentheirchildrenwillsufferalso.Itisjustanendlesscycle
thatmanyindividualscannotbreakanditdoesnotbenefitsocietyoreventhemselves.Iam
forevergratefultomyparentsforbringingmetoAmericabecauseiftheyhadnotIwouldhave
endedupasahousewifeonafarmwithoutavoice.BecauseofthemIhavemanyopportunities
andgoalsIwishtoaccomplish.Ijustdonotunderstandwhysomeindividualsdonotwantbetter
forthemselvesthanwhattheirparentshad.Therearesomanyinspirationalindividualsoutinthe
worldthathaveusedtheirmisfortunesinlifetohelpguidethemtowheretheyareinlifenow.
Nowadaysindividualsdonoteventrybecauseittakestomuchtimeandefforttoinvest
themselvesinsomethingrisky,butitdoesnotmeanlifewillbebetterforthem.Societydepends
onindividualsinordertothriveandprosper,andifcertainindividualsarenotmeetingtheirfull
potentialwherewillitleaveourfuturegenerationtobe?
Itissaidthechoiceswemaketodaywillaffectourfuture,butwhathappenstothefutures
ofthosethatdonotevengetachoice?ComingfromadifferentcountryIcanabsolutelysay
thereliesnofutureforthewomeninBosnia.Somegirlsbecomewivesattheageof16while
othersattempttoeducatethemselvesbyactuallygoingtocollege.Whentheysuccessfullyearn
theirdegreesitbecomesonlyawastetothembecausetherearenojobsforthemandinorderto

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getonetheironlychancewouldbetomovetoadifferentcountryinEurope.Theywastedtime
andmoneybecausetheywouldhavetolearnanewlanguageandacquiredocumentsthatare
hardtoreceive.Forthewomenthatprimarilybecomehousewivestheytrytochoosementhat
haveachanceatreceivingdocumentsforuneducatedjobsinothercountriesinordertohavea
betterlifeforthemselves.Theydonotevengetachancetoachievetheirdreamsbecausetheir
dreamsarebrokenfromthestart.
ItisnotsoeasyforthemeninBosniaeither.Everyafternoonwhentheyarefinishedwith
schooltheyhavetoworkhardlaborontheirfarminordertomakemoneyandbythetimethey
finishitdoesnotleavethemenoughtimetofocusonschoolwork.Asworkbecomestheir
primaryfocustheylosefocusoneducationanddonoteventhinktwiceaboutattendingcollege.
Theyareinstantlyburdenedwiththestressofbecomingtheonlyproviderfortheirfamilyand
havenochoicebuttoworkhardlaborinothercountriesbutonlyiftheygettheirdocuments
processed.Theyareconstantlyputtingstrainontheirbodiesandastheyagetheysufferthe
consequenceswithpoorhealthoutcomes.Theydonotevengettopicktheiroccupationbecause
theywilldowhateverittakestoprovidefortheirfamilynomatterhowstrenuousthejobis.
WhenIlookintomyfamily'seyesIseesadness,weariness,anddedication.Everydayisa
struggleforthemandIcannotdoanythingtohelpthem.TheyadmirethewayIhavebecomea
strongandindependentwomenwithoutamaninmylife.TheyareamazedIhave2jobs,attend
college,knowhowtoworkoncars,cook,knowhowtodrive,andhavegonefishingand
hunting.AlthoughsomeofmyfamilyisstilloldfashionedandbelievesomeofthehobbiesIdo
aremasculine,Ijustignorethemandstriveformore.Tohavesomethinganindividualhasa
righttobetakenawayisunbearablesoIcannotimaginewhatmyfamilyinBosniahastogo

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throughandevenotherindividualsofdifferentculturesthatdonotevengetachoiceofhaving
aneducation.Ihaveahardtimeacceptinghowsomeindividualsthathavemanyopportunities
andchoicesdonotwanttofurthertheireducationbutjustsettleforthebareminimum.With
everyopportunitythatcomesmywayIalwaystakeitbecauseIknowitwillbenefitmeandnot
everyindividualwillhavethesameopportunitysoIwillnotwasteit.
After19yearsoflivingasrefugees,myparentshaveaccomplishedsomuchanditdrives
metosucceedevenmoreinmylife.Myfatherisamechanicandasuccessfulbusinessowner
andmymotherisanemployeeatTyson.Witheveryobstacletheyhavefacedtheyhavealways
managedtofigureitoutforthebestofmysisterandI.Everydecisiontheymadetheythoughtof
howitwouldaffecttheirchildren.Witheveryyearthatschoolpassedtheyalwaysprovidedus
withnewclothes,books,andsupplies.Theyhadtolearnanewlanguageandfigureouta
differentcultureallontheirown.WhenmyfatheropeneduphisbusinessIwassoproudand
toldhimhowsuccessfulhehasbecome.Hisreplywas,YeahIhavecomefarbutIamnot
successful.EverydayIhavetocometoworkandgetdirtyandforwhat.IwishIhadthechance
ataneducationsoIcanworkahigherpayingjobwhereIcandressniceandnotcomehome
filthy.Yourmotherstillhastogetupat3AMinordertohelpprovideforourfamily.Just
rememberwewouldneverwantyouoryoursistertohavethiskindoflife.
Myfatherhadtogrowupwith7siblingsandneverhadanythingofhisown.Healways
receivedpasseddownclothingandhadtohelpwithfarmwork.Whenhewasabout18yearsold
hewasdraftedforthewarwithalltheothermenandsayingnowasnotanoption.Afterthewar
endedtherewasabsolutelynothingleftforhimtostaythere.Hewenttoapplyforasylumbuthe
wasnottheonlyoneandtheycouldnotgranteveryonerefuge.Hehadtobesmartabouthowhe

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presentedthemwithourinformationandhadtoobtaincertaindocuments,sohebasicallylied
throughhisteeth.Weweregrantedrefugeestatusandwecouldalsobringarelativewithusbut
noonewantedtogo.Notoneofthemwantedtoleavetheirhome,friendsandfamilybehindand
takeariskatabetterfuture.Theywouldratherhavestayedinacountryfullofpovertyandhard
laborandpassitontotheirchildrenbecausetothemitwassecureandtheydidnothavetoput
effortintosomethingtheyknewwasnevergoingtohappenorsotheythought.Oncetheyfound
outhowsuccessfulofafutureAmericahadtooffertheyallwantedtocomeoratleasthavetheir
childrenfindalifethere.Itwastoolateandeversincethatmomentourfamilieshaveneverbeen
thesame.
Wealleventuallyhavetogrowupandmakeimportantdecisionsthatimpactourlives
andwhenitcomesdowntoitfamilyistheonlythingthatmattersmost.Eventuallyweallhave
toleavesomethingsbehindinordertomakeprogressbutitdoesnotessentiallymeanwewill
forgetaboutthem.Myparentshadtoleavetheirfamily,friends,andhomeinorderfortheir
childrentohaveabetterlife.Notmanyindividualscangothroughwhattheyhadtoandthatis
whyIlookuptothem.Myfathercomeshomeeverydaywithburnsandcutsonhishandsandit
onlymakesmeworkharderonachievingmygoals.TheybothgavemysisterandIsomething
theyneverhadandthatismanypossibilitiesatanythingweaspiretobe.AllIwantfrom
individualsisforthemtoapplythemselvesinsomethingtheyarepassionateaboutandmakethe
mostoutofit.Weallonlyhaveonelifetolivesowhynotmakesomethingoutofourselves
becausewhoknowswhenanopportunitymaystrikeusagain.

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