Teenagers 'oppose leaving age plan'

In the never ending saga of the government putting it's hands in everything it can, we get this:

Teenagers oppose the Government's plans to force them to stay on in education until the age of 18, research has suggested. A poll found 71% of 13- to 18-year-olds wanted to keep the right to drop out of education and start full-time work.

But wait! There's more:

And few parents want teenagers to be "criminalised" for failing to attend school or work-related training after the age of 16, according to the study for the Learning and Skills Network (LSN).

So let me get this straight. Teenagers who skip classes or drop out altogether will be "criminalised"?

The reasoning:

He believes that raising the compulsory leaving age is necessary to make sure young people are qualified for work because there will be far fewer jobs for unskilled workers in future.

That sounds like a noble goal, but oftentimes noble goals do more harm than good. You can't imprison people who, for reasons more complex than this guy can apparently imagine, stop attending school. Instead if punishment, these teenagers need to be getting support and assistance.

But I had to keep reading:

A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said: "Our own research shows there is overwhelming support for the Government's plans. Nine out of 10 people support the idea. And two thirds of respondents agree that staying in education until 18 should be made a legal requirement.

Apparently, I'm in the minority on this issue.

It saddens me that the solution to this problem has to be punishment. Thus, this really means using fear to manipulate teenagers. That will breed resentment. One can not force someone to learn something. Instead, the possible drop-outs have to be shown the value of learning and getting an education. Just because they are imprisoned in school doesn't mean they are learning anything. Many will view it as serving a sentence and will be counting the days until they are released.