Should the 12th grade be done away with in the US?

Our state has fiscal problems because of the economic slowdown and a legislator is suggesting eliminating the 12th grade so as to save money.

They have already cut down the work week to 4 days for state employees so as to save. I think they work 10 hour days but they save money on the expense of using an office. The employee benefits because they only have 4 commute days.

So since we have a lot of educators or parents on this list, I was wondering if anyone has any objections/thoughts. I don't, but I have heard that the last year of high school is a waist of time because they are just sitting around and waiting for the G. day.

I screwed around most of my last year of high school.  Quite literally.    I had an Austrian boyfriend who was 19 and on exchange. 

As long as I passed everything, my folks were pretty liberal, especially as I'd already lived in France for a year without them.

I ended up having no finals, just projects, so left for Austria to travel around with boyfriend and skipped graduation - just got diploma in the post.

It was a waste of time.  I skivved as much as possible.

It wasn't a waste of time for me...I spent my Senior year up to my eyeballs in AP Calculus, AP Physics, AP French, AP English Lit and AP History and managed to get out of 2 years of uni because of those classes & exams!...Oh and I was in Concert Choir and Jazz Choir. 

I think it is sad when they start cutting funding to schools. I remember that the behind the wheel training got cut when I was a freshman so my parents had to pay for my driving lessons before I got my license and when we did endless fundraising so we could keep our performing arts...very sad.

As far as the 4 day work week...I did this as an alternate work schedule when I worked in California...but it was a full 40 hour week...4 days a week at 10 hours a day.

Personally I think the last thing they need to do is get rid of the 12th grade...if you do any waste of time will just be moved to the 11th grade. It is the nature of the beast that there is a transition time when people are winding down one thing and preparing for the next. I think ending school when I child is 17 would be far from beneficial all around.

Yikes. I couldn't imagine or support eliminating 12th grade. I think for most students it is beneficial.

How old are British kids when they finish? I know they start earlier there, but do they finish earlier?

Currently it's 16 in the UK, but that is set to go up in the future.

I was 17 when I graduated from HS in the US.

Currently it's 16 in the UK, but that is set to go up in the future.

I was 17 when I graduated from HS in the US.

Children in the UK who are currently in year 8 or below (about 13 years old or below) will be required to stay in education until 18- at this point it is unclear what that will look like though-- it doesn't seem that it will be a continuation of high school but a requirement of some kind of further education.

And what the hell do those legislators think those  (ex) students will be doing if not for going to school?  It's not like there is an abundance of well paying jobs for just-barely high school graduates!    And really, has anyone with half a brain ever said that education and investing in a country's youth is a bad thing (well obviously this git of a legislator...)

I was like WebyJ - spent 12th grade taking AP classes and doing extracurricular stuff like drama.

I was 16 when I graduated. 

As far as I know, there has always been an option to graduate a year early if you complete whatever course requirements you need to graduate.

That's fine, but schools shouldn't reduce the requirements for graduation. You should still have to take the same classes - if you can finish them in three years, good for you. If you can't,you can't.

I would also hate for the option of taking AP classes to be removed. 

What happens with college applications? Would a student who came from a state where they were forced to leave after 11th grade be disadvantaged compared to someone who had the opportunity to stay another year and take extra classes?

People have to join the real world soon enough, let 'em enjoy being a teenager. 

Like a few others on this board, I spent 12th grade studying like a *mad person* and taking *many* AP exams on top of also getting my IB (international baccalaureate) diploma! I was also working at a vet clinic and sorting out applications for University. I can't imagine how people would finish in time to get all these kinds of things done, if that's what they want to do anyway.

Am I the only one who sat APs and IBs in 11th grade?

I guess because things are different in America vis a vis university, it'd probably best to keep 12th grade in.

England and Wales will be changing to keep everyone in education until they are 18, dunno about Scotland.

In Scotland parents have the option to delay a child's start at primary school until they are 5 if they have birthdays in later Autum or early Winter, so some don't start until they are 5, and they don't force the child to go up a year because they started early.

Am I the only one who sat APs and IBs in 11th grade?

I guess because things are different in America vis a vis university, it'd probably best to keep 12th grade in.

No, I also took them in 10th, 11th, and 12th grade. Does anyone else recall 'Senioritis?" Personally, I remember 11th as one of the worst, if not, the worst year of my life thus far in reference to stress and workload (yes, it was that bad). 12th grade was a bit of a slack-off year, but as my English teacher said, "Junior year is the year of massive amounts of school work, Senior year is the year of massive amounts of work outside of school (college applications, scholarship applications, SATs, ACTs, college visits, fafsa, etc!)" I could NEVER EVER imagine finding the time to do my college applications during Junior year...I shudder at the thought...

I decided over the summer between 11th and 12th grade that I was going to University of Texas at Austin, so after sitting all those exams and stress in 11th grade, I didn't have applications save one or visits to do in 12th grade, I had automatic entry based on SATs scores and grades.

I did the APs/IBs to get out of freshman-level coursework.

So I did a lot of tutoring as a job, taught ballet to little kids, worked three or four evenings a week doing dictation in a law firm and screwed around.

I was never the driven type, though. 

Am I the only one who sat APs and IBs in 11th grade?

Nope. I took AP US history in 11th grade.  I actually didn't take any my senior year, the only one I wanted, AP Calculus was cancelled because I was the only who wanted it. I went to a very small school so I think they only had a total of 3 AP classes- AP US history in 11th grade and then AP English, AP Calculus in 12th grade.

AP English. Shudder.  No thank you.

I didn't have senioritis though, I tried really hard my senior year of school and had lots of hard classes.  

I dunno, I know a lot of kids are mature, but for me, I would have definitely not been able to get away to University at 17, I couldn't even call my 4-H leaders to see if we had a meeting (people I had known for years and years), I couldn't go into a shop and ask for something on the shelves, couldn't call to make a doctor's appointment, etc.  That extra year at home, senior year did me a world of good- afterall I moved to the UK by myself!