Not knowing closes doors

The Hardscrabble Childhood was an informative yet difficult video to watch. It made me appreciate the opportunities that I have available and question what I've been taught in school. For example, in one scene the students are saying the pledge of allegiance but I wondered if they knew what they were saying. Memorizing the words and actually understanding the meaning behind it are two different things. This ties into the discussion that we were having in class about how rich students should be taught about people that live in different economic statuses. What exactly are our students learning in school that they can apply to daily life or are they being taught how to memorize things such as the pledge of allegiance without being taught exactly what they saying. I also feel that the students in the video weren't giving a chance to get out of their situation. When the 12 year old boy was talking about going to college the only option he mentioned was joining the armed forces. He didn't mention trying financial aid, scholarships, or loans. That part could have been edited out of video but if it wasn't this kid has twice as many hurdles in front of him because no one is even giving him some kind of help or showing him different ways to pay for school besides the air force. The children in this movie aren't given some of the basic and essential tools to help them excel in life but instead are being told that they will never do anything in life.