There’s a story about a boy named Carter, he lived in Carter had just had his 18th

birthday, and life was going well. He was in the middle of the first semester of his senior year.

High School was a breeze for him. He had good grades and everything he wanted. But he knew

that his time in highschool was rapidly coming to a close. He kept putting off the thought of

leaving highschool. He told himself day after day that he could figure it out, but he just didn't

need to yet. He never told himself the true reason. He was scared. He liked his life as it was,

and he didn't know what he wanted to pursue in the future. As each of his friends committed to

different schools he became more terrified of the future. Most of his friends committed to the

local university. They wanted to pursue medical careers and the local university was a top

medical school. Carter wanted to go with his friends but he didn’t want to go into the medical

field. He was still unsure about what he wanted to pursue in the future.

Unfortunately as his senior year came to a close Carter succumbed to the pressure and

decided to play it safe and go to the local University. He didn’t have a better idea or a different

path to take. Carter never got the chance to explore what he truly wanted to be. You might be

asking yourself right now, why doesn’t he study something different at the University? In the

U.S. all Universities have multiple programs and General Education courses don’t they? Well

Carter is not from the U.S. This story takes place in China, and Carter’s real name is Donghai.

In China students must be ready to take the next steps of their lives the moment they leave high

school. General Education courses are not offered. This has led to citizens choosing career

choices that are not the best for them. This has greatly affected depression and suicide rates in

China. Many people in the U.S. believe that our education system should look more similar to

China's and get rid of General Education courses. They claim it would be more efficient. China’s

system might be more efficient, but it is not an improvement on society. We should not take our

General Education courses for granted. Just ask Donghai.