- A new poll by H&R Block finds that 84% of Americans say there are things they learned in school that they’ve never had to use in real life
- When asked to pick the most useless thing they learned in school, 48% of people said it was the Pythagorean theorem
- As for what they would have rather learned in school, 57% of people chose money management and budgeting, followed by how to properly do taxes (44%)
When you were in school you probably questioned whether anything you were learning would apply in the real world, and now that you’re older there’s a good chance your answer is that it didn’t. Well, a new poll finds a lot of people wish they spent their time in school learning real-world skills, and you may be shocked to find out what exactly they would have liked to have been taught.
The survey by H&R Block finds that 84% of Americans say there are things they learned in school that they’ve never had to use in real life. What’s more, almost half of people say they learned their current job skills at work, rather than in the classroom.
So, what useless stuff did people learn? Well, when asked to pick the most useless thing they learned in school, 48% of people said it was the Pythagorean theorem, followed by 40% who said it was that Pi is 3.14. Other useless things they learned in school include:
- Periodic table (40%)
- The types of rocks (37%)
- The difference between protons, neutrons, and electrons (37%(
- Mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell (35%)
- Naming the presidents in order (35%)
- Osmosis (32%)
- How to make paper snowflakes (30%)
- Photosynthesis (30%)
As for what they would have rather learned in school, 57% of people chose money management and budgeting, followed by how to properly do taxes (44%). Other lessons folks would have rather learned include:
- How to manage emotional/mental wellbeing (42%)
- Understanding credit and student loans (39%)
- How to negotiate (39%)
- Time management (35%)
- Household repairs (34%)
- How to make conversation/personal relationship skills (33%)
- Car repair and maintenance (31%)
- How to find a job (30%)