Jimmy was restless. No matter what his teachers did, they could not keep him interested in the classwork. Numerous calls to his parents did nothing but upset them as they did everything humanly possible to get Jimmy working in school.When Jimmy turned 16 he did what he wanted, he legally left school. His parents, teachers, and guidance counselors told him his life would be ruined without that little piece of paper. He didn't care. Jimmy liked the outdoors and was not afraid of hard work so when he was offered a job laying asphalt, he jumped at it. It was hard work, unbearably hot in the warm summer months but he persevered. He learned that he liked what he was doing and got interested in other construction projects. Little by little he not only learned every job, he mastered them.
Jimmy is now approaching his 60th birthday. He owns his own company and has 100 people working for him. He just built an 8000 square foot house complete with two swimming pools, the inside one filled with salt water and a gym. He also owns a house in Florida which he visits every 6 to 8 weeks and vacations in the Caribbean several times a year. Jimmy is ready to retire but doesn't want to leave his workers in the lurch so he agreed to keep on for several more years, giving them a chance to find other employment.
Test scores weren't so important when Jimmy went to school but if they were, he would have been a major mark against the school he went to. This shows how insignificant these statistics are. Jimmy makes more money and has a better life style than the people that would have marked him a failure and he is probably doing a lot better than most of his classmates who went on to receive advanced education.
Jimmy, well read and self educated happens to be one of the brightest people I have ever met.
