Ask a teenager at Neshaminy High School the Wi-Fi password and they have it memorized off the top of their head; ask the same teenager about the major issues of civil war and unrest across the ocean and they might ask you “Where, like, even is Syria…?”

There is only so much one can blame it on. It can always be seen as an overall societal issue. It could even be a personal issue of adolescents today. We are often focused on day-to-day things, from how many ‘likes’ their latest Instagram picture got, to the overlapping of senior week and graduation. The fact of the matter is that action needs to be done, so we do not fall behind in knowledge.

As of right now, Neshaminy High School offers a Government and Current Issues course, a senior elective. Mark Petrucci is the current teacher of this class and the existence of the course may be in jeopardy for the 2015-2016 school year.

Current Issues focuses on different levels of government, agencies, immigration, emergency management planning and terrorism. It has roughly 25-30 students and is one period a day.

“The problem is that students don’t go home and watch the news. They aren’t necessarily interested and have other priorities to take care of,” Petrucci said.
Yet, this class teaches these students that it is important to keep track of what is happening in the world because a lot of the policies taking effect now will be important to us as adults.

The class brings upon the students to participate in group discussions, presentations, verbal and written communications – skills that will be beneficial as adults.

Now only if this class were mandatory – then we would have more than just 25-30 students leaving Neshaminy with knowledge of present worldly affairs.

A survey was conducted in which 197 students of Neshaminy, were asked “How well informed are you on the current state of Syria?”The results from this are an unfortunate, yet expected truth. nine percent of students were ‘well informed’, 45 percent basic understanding and 46 percent stated they knew nothing.

For this generation more than anywhere, a global awareness is becoming paramount. This generation will find itself working in an increasingly global community; it is no longer an option to reject global awareness.

That is to say if the issue is indirectly affecting our lives– many of the unknown or under-known topics have a greater effect than any of us acknowledge. Although some may refute its existence fervently, global warming is a topic that is oft-studied and constantly changing.

Scientists continuously investigate for the purpose of informing us; the least we could do is absorb that information knowing very well it carries great significance in our lives. Not all of us may believe it, yet all of us should know what is being said. Despite this, most of us do not have beyond a “basic understanding”.

It is dire for students to comprehend what is occurring globally. We must defeat our self-absorbed minds and focus on the world around them to benefit their future endeavors. We can blame many aspects for our lack of knowledge. Whether it be our media-based society, education curriculum, or just ourselves– we can still take the initiative to make a change. Students must begin to adjust to a global society– much more than outside our little bubble.