Young people who left school before graduating from high school are often labeled as "dropouts" by society. Stereotypes assume that these young people are deficient and simply disengaged-lacking the competencies of those who graduate.
But what is Stereotype?
Stereotype is a fixed, generalized belief about a particular group or class of people. By stereotyping, we infer that a person has a whole range of characteristics and abilities that we assume all members of that group have.
There is one advantage and disadvantage in the process of stereotyping (McLeod, 2017). One advantage of a stereotype is that it enables us to respond rapidly to situations because we may have had similar experiences before. However, one disadvantage is that it makes us ignore differences between individuals; therefore, we think things about people that might not be true (i.e. make generalizations).
Based on the recent study conducted by "America's Promise" for out-of-school youth, in their analysis it revealed that young people who left school expressed the same competencies as those who have been found for young people that are academically successful. While not always the ideal, the competencies of young people who left school before graduating enabled them to pursue and successfully reach their goals. More often, these goals were focused on circumstances that are dissonant with attending school, such as caring for a family member, surviving violent and/or abusive situations, and financially providing for themselves or their families.
A brief framework developed by "Collaboration for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL)", which indicates that the following core skills of an out-of-school youth are:
Responsible Decision Making
Self Management
Relationship Skills
Social Awareness
Self-Awareness
Now How to Navigate Stereotypes?
Dealing with stereotypes is not easy. Stereotyping someone causes a lot of problems like lack of self-esteem, disappointment, and discouragement. On the contrary, there are some effective ways to overcome stereotypes such as the following:
Assess Your Biases. Never let yourself get easily affected by what others say about you. Don't judge yourself. You are still young and there are many opportunities awaiting you.
Keep Yourself Accountable. Praise yourself. Be productive in a way that you know wherein you are accountable for your actions. For as long as you are doing right - you will not be lost.
Be Open and Accept Yourself. Regardless of status, gender, race, and personality you have, you should learn to be open-minded and accept who you are. Remember, your failures don't define you unless you dwell on them. Open up with your feelings and talk about it with optimistic people.
Get Family Support. It's understandable that not all parents can provide us what we need as young people. Oftentimes, some young people were forced to stop their studies due to financial difficulties. However, our parents played an important role in achieving our dreams. Perhaps most parents can't provide us financial support, yet for sure they can give unfailing moral support for us to believe in a hope. Moral support from a parent is the key to absorb inspiration and encouragement.
Surround Yourself With People You Admire. Having people who encourage you to believe in yourself, and tell you that you're doing great is a real soul-uplifting. It's important to keep positive people in your circle because their mindsets are contagious that can influence you to the same.
As an out-of-school youth individual, I truly believe that when you simply categorize the people around you and put them in boxes with labels, you're not adding value but instead you're discouraging them. It's essential to be a good example to everyone whether you're academically educated or not, for as long as you see the goodness in your surroundings-you're inspiring a lot of people. Furthermore, young people need proper guidance, and words of encouragement go a long way in equipping the youth to persevere to succeed despite being educationally disadvantaged.
