I feel that we are very lucky to live in a free country, although students are required to attend school from the ages of 6 to 16. To some this may seem to go against our freedom of living here in the United States. I believe that it is very important for everyone to get an education and the only way that some people are going to get this education is by requiring them to go to school. Also some parents are also too lethargic to make their kids get an education, therefore having education as law enforces the concept of children to attend school. At a young age children are too young to make the decision whether they should go to school or not. I know that if I was able to make this decision when I was younger I would have never started school in the first place. It takes the majority of kids at least till the age of 16 to make responsible decisions about their education and future. By the age of 16 students will be able to read, write and do simple math. Hopefully if they choose to quit school at this age they will be educated enough to suceed in the real world, and have the skills necessary to do their job whatever it might be. In addition in our society today, education has become a requirement.Kids need to attend school to have a good paying job. So although this may not sound free to some people, to others it seems necessary.

I agree with what Brad has said in his post. Yes, we do live in a free country. But saying that we live in a free country does not mean that we have absolute 100% freedom to do whatever we want whenever we want. Let's look at it like this: I really want a new TV, but I can't afford it. Does that mean I can walk into WalMart and take one? NO! That would be stealing, and that would be a crime. Obviously our country is governed on a certain set of fixed rules that mantain order and country. Therefore, even though we are a free country, we are not entirely free.

The same idea applies to the educational requirements for children age 6-16. If children were not forced to attend school, our society would no longer be able to function. Imagine the chaos if only 50% of our country could read and write? Children do not have the same rights adults have. They are not allowed to vote, drive a car, or drink a beer. Therfore, they are also not allowed to quit school at the age of 7. Children require guardians, and adults require guardians as well. We are the guardians of our children, and our government is our guardians. If we do not send our children to school, our children will not learn, and we will go to jail. This keeps our society running smoothly and ensures that children are being cared for and are receiving the education they deserve.

With total freedom would come total chaos.

I agree with the other two. We're a "Free Country" with guide lines. For most people without an education, it's all about survival. Education is dispensable. So for most people they would work for the things they needed at the moment and not go to school. If their kids could help them benefit in the survival then ofcourse going to school was out of the question. My mom is from Laos and when she was growing up she had to work in the fields while richer children went to school. Her family needed her to tend the fields for food. Going to school wasn't going to fill their stomachs.

If America did not make the law to go to school, then Americans would stay in the cycle of making a living only by farming. There would be no doctors or government. Though it is law to go to school in America, the law is to benefit Americans in the future not to hurt them.

I want a better life then my mom. I don't want to work in the rice fields all day and see half my siblings die because they got sick. I'm glad the government put me in school at six. Compare to my moms childhood, this is better then any dream my mom could have ever imagined.

I agree with the other three, with total freedom people would become lazy and not make their children attend school because it would possibly get in the way of whatever the parent is doing. Or because they don't want to have to fight with their child and would give into what the child wants. Having guidelines is a good thing because without guidelines people would be lost. Children in America do not realize how lucky they are to have public school. Other countries do not have a system like we do and they charge for children to receive an education. My one grandmother was only able to go up to school to a certain age because their school was bombed by the Germans. One of the reasons my grandparents came to the United States was for their children. They knew that America was the place of opportunity.
I was able to go on a mission trip to Mexico two summers ago and the group I went with stayed at an all boys orphanage. They were such an inspiration to see how grateful they were to the orphanage and just so happy to have the little bit that they had. One thing that they had been extremely grateful for was the opportunity to get to attend school. They loved to study and had big dreams and talked about how lucky we were for living in the U.S.
The only problem I have with requiring children to go to school is that makes the child not want to attend school because they have to. People in general always want what they can’t have… When you look at the children from around the world they want a chance to learn, you have to think if they had the same type of system that we do if their viewpoints would start to change.

I can only imagine what our lives would be like without education. It is my belief that our education is what links us to our freedom. Without an education many life long opportunities would be un heard of. Yes we may be a free county, but freedom is not meant to be restrained, yet it is to be flourished. I believe that for one to have any level of education is free within our society. Just because we are a "free country" doesn't mean we can end there. I agree with the other postings that although we are free, we still follow the laws and guidlines that have been placed for us; for not only our saftey but for the opportunity to have well rounded lives. Children who attend school are only providing a better future for themsleves. If children had the option to attend school based on their own discrepencies, you can only imagine what our society would be like. I feel that attending school shouldn't be viewed as an enforcement, but as an opportunity. Yes we are free, but "free" doesn't mean we can ignore the guidelines and qualifications of life, (such as attending school), yet they are simply necessities of our societies well being and ability to overcome chaos.

Even though the laws concerning mandatory school attendance make our freedom seem false to a certain extent, I believe that that very education is what makes our freedom possible. If no one knew his or her rights and how to respect the rights of others, how could freedom exist? Also, education gives us freedom of choice. It allows us to choose what we want to do with our lives by giving us the means to accomplish our goals. If a lot of people did not attend school because they decided that working or other things were more important at that point in time, they would often become trapped. They would have no freedom to get more skilled jobs or improve their socio-economic status. Also, history teaches us how to maintain our freedom and prevents us from making a lot of mistakes that have been made in the past, a freedom to move forward.

I think that education of any kind is a privilege and a necessity for becoming productive and successful members of society. Yes, we live in a free country, and we should be proud of being here where we have so many rights. I think that it is doing an incredible injustice to what our country was based on to not do all we can to not only receive an education, but as future educators, do all we can to produce productive and enlightened members of society. Children's minds are most influenced and malleable between the ages they are required to be in school. When a student is in school, not only are they learning standardized material that they have to learn to pass to the next grade, but they are learning life skills that they will carry with them for the rest of their lives whether they realize it or not. Not only are children learning academics, but in a lot of cases, being in school keeps children out of situations and trouble that could otherwise hurt and hold them back. Granted, there are situations and schools that may hinder students more than help them, but if education is done right and if teachers do what they should, then there is no question to me as to whether or not schooling should be required. We can still call ourselves a free country and have limits. If we were completely free to choose, then I imagine this would not be a great place to live. There would be too many choices presented, and too many bad ones made.

Although we consider ourselves a "free" country, why do we have to attend school from age 6-16? We are free in the sense that we have certain freedoms, privileges, and rights that are not offered in other countries such as freedom of speech and religion. So we are free but to a certain extent. I feel that the reason we have to attend school is the same reason we have laws in our country. Our society cannot function without some form of government and laws. Our society also needs individuals who have some form of education in order to provide guidance, leadership, and knowledge to the next generation. How do we know we are a free country? By learning about the history of our country and how we became "free", is provided by education. Other people have been discussing what would happen in a totally free country. And I completely agree with them. It would be chaotic and I doubt society would not be able to function in that sense.

We say we are a free country, if thats the case then why do we require children to attend school from the age of 6 to 16? I do believe we are a free country in some senses. We still have rules that we have to follow but they are the ones that help make us safe. When it comes to education I do not believe we are free but it is for our own good. Children need to be motivated and made to go to school because at the age of 5 and 6 children do not know what is best for them. As parents and citizens we need to make this decision for them and get a jump start on their education. When they get to the legal age to make decisions, if not being an intellectual person who aspires to great things and a wonderful job, then that is their decision but until then we have to be there to inspire them to want to learn. Freedom comes with age and responsibility and until a child makes mistakes, learns lessons, goes through hard times and has to do something themselves, it is our right as parents, teachers, and citizens to push them along and help them come the person that they will one day know they want to be.

We say we are a free country, if thats the case then why do we require children to attend school from the age of 6 to 16?
I feel that we are a free country but like with any situation you need rules and guidelines. I think that it is good to make children go to school because it gives them the opportunity to learn no matter where they come from. It allows the child a chance to make the decision for themselves if they want to be in school or not. I know kids that just live to come to school that way they are able to get out and do something and eat lunch and be around people that care about you. I think that if their was not this rule that parents would just tell their kids not to go to school. Then I think that we would have a bigger problem with people being uneducated.

Children are required to attend school from the age of 6 to 16 so every student is given a chance. A chance to learn as much as they want, the chance to either stay in school or drop out, and the chance to help each student to become what he/she have always dreamed of being. Without being required to attend school parents would not make their children go. Allowing children to be able to not go to school allows many students to not be educated. All children at a young age need to have rules to follow and education should always be one. Having children to be required to go to schools makes them learn about the past, how to do math and write regardless if they want to or not. Even though many students hate going to school, I think he/she would hate it even more not knowing how to do everyday things like pay for something or reading a book.

The United States is a free country to a certain extent. As Americans, we live our lives free from religious and political tyranny and have multiple privileges that many nations are without. One of those privileges is public education. Thankfully, our country has a strong belief in educating every American. Therefore, the fact that children are required to attend school is a freedom in itself. Being forced to attend school is a freedom in that it provides freedom fromignorance as well as an opportunity to pursue dreams and accomplish goals. I feel certain that if Americans were not required to attend school between the ages of six to sixteen, the vast majority would still choose to have their children educated. However, there would also be a large amount of people who wouldn’t take their children to school. Whether the reason be financial or otherwise, I realize that there are people who do not value education and its importance to a society. There would also be a lot of children dropping out of school at very early stages due to frustration with progress. This is why it is so vital for children to be held in schools until the age of sixteen so children can have the chance to succeed even if it's not at first. Forced education is something that makes our freedom more tangible. Without an educated America, no one would even comprehend just how free we are as a nation.

Although we are a free country, we still have to have rules and guidelines to live by. As a free country, we have the right to vote on the laws in which we live by everyday. One of these requirements being that students attend school from age six to sixteen. I believe this is a good requirement because at the age of five or six, children are unaware of the importance of education. I think sixteen is a good age as well because teenagers make irrational decisions at times and education is key if you want to be successful in our nation. Even though numerous kids complain about going to school, doing homework, taking tests, and everything else that goes along with school, I think they would hate not knowing how to pay for a meal, read the newspaper, and other every day tasks that are learning through school. I think freedom comes with age and responsibility and without a solid educational foundation, students are not going to know the real meaning of freedom and what our nation stands for.

While America is a very free country, there are still many guidelines that we must follow. Education is one such thing. Children are required to attend school from the age of 6 to 16. I find this a very valuable aspect to our freedom. While kids in school may think it unfair to make them attend school these kids really don't understand how lucky they are. I'm sure in countries where schooling is out of the question unless you are in the upper class of society the kids would love more than anything to attend school to broaden their horizons. I believe that requiring children to attend school at least for this amount of time is a very wise decision. It is something that should be greatly appreciated by these kids and while they may not appreciate it right now, they will one day.

While we live in a free country, students are required to attend school until at least age 16 before they can make the decision to drop out. While that doesn't sound like freedom, getting an education allows us to have freedom as adults. A lot of kids hate school and that's unfortunate, but it would be worse if the drop out rate sky-rocketed because we suddenly allowed students to have the freedom of choice to quit. I think it's great that students are made to attend school because it gives those who graduate high school more incentive, passion to continue their education further. Plus, it's a hard life for those that didn't graduate from high school.

We’ve all heard on the news or in our education classes about a parent or child complaining about the law that forces them to attend school until the age of sixteen. After this time they are allowed to drop out of school and going about doing something else. With this law how can we be considered a free country? I firmly believe that as a country we should be grateful to be able to have the opportunity to attend school. It would merely be an act of stupidity to not want any child to be exposed to having an education without numerous exceptions and an alternative to schooling. Honestly I believe the dropout age should be extended from age sixteen to age eighteen. Of course you would still have students that would drop out within a couple months before graduation, but what about the students who would of dropped out at age sixteen but held on and were able to walk across the stage an receive a diploma? I believe the dropout rate in the United States would see an immense decrease and there would be more students graduating if the dropout age would be extended to age eighteen. Finally this law should always remain because children are often times blinded by knowing what school is truly about. Most students do not realize that going to school means having the ability to become an educated member of society and with this law requiring them to stay in school it will enable them to become educated.

I agree that the drop out rate should be extended to 18 so that students are encouraged to finish high school. I do not believe that by having a drop out rate for school that it makes our country not "free." Our country had many rules and madates such as the drinking age and license age. Countries must have rules in order for society to succeed. I think the school drop out rate should stay 16 or be extended because education is one of the most important factors to help citizens become successful and to help our country to be more successful. Education is something that each citizen should value and be thankful that they are able to recieve an education.

Just because we are a free country does not mean that we shouldn't have laws and rules to live by. Its the extent of the laws that make us free. If there were no laws, this country would be totally chaotic. There are laws that you cannot kill people or rob banks. These laws protect people and our society as a whole. There is also a law that says we must attend school from ages 6-16. Even though it may feel like this is a way for the government to control us, it helps us all in the long run. Children who hated school will maybe eventually become doctors or find a cure for a disease. Children don't like to do a lot of things they should do (like eat their vegetables), however, in the long run it will be beneficial. Until they have the capability to decide what is best for themselves, the government will enforce laws the require them to go to school. I believe this is a way for the government to allow every child, no matter their SES, to attend school and become responsible adult citizens.

I feel that the consensus is yes, we must have rules in our free society and I totally agree!! If the government did not "force" certain rules and guidelines for us, what kind of society would we live in? Children do not know their abilities at the age of 6 and many still do not know when they reach 16. The education law (more or less) is required or we would have an unusually high number of illiteracy in the US. We have illiteracy now, but if the government did not make our children attend school between the ages of 6-16, they would not even be able to work anywhere!! You must be able to read and write to merely survive, and if they weren't given the opportunity to do so then the US would turn into a version of a third world country simply because of the poverty rate.

We live in a free country, but we are required to attend school until we are at least 16 years of age. I do not believe that this requirement takes away from freedom. I am a better person today due to my attendance in school. Schooling is what has made America what it is today. Without education and people willing to learn new things, we would not have any of the conveniences of our everyday life today.