When your in high school like ninth grade can you drop out?

Question

My cousin, wants to drop out at 15!! shes in ninth grade. can she actually do that. and next year when shes 16 shes going to get her G.E.D. can shes do this? by the way we live in Florida i think the laws are different in each state. Please enlighten me im lost. I want her to stay out of trouble but yet i think her plan is better high school is no good anyways.

Answer 1

First of all, dropping out and homeschooling ARE NOT the same thing, so this really doesn't belong on this board.

Some states require you to be 18 before you can take the GED, but really, that is not the issue. She really should continue her education through the 12th grade, this could be done through a brick and mortar school, or through homeschool, but it isn't a very good idea to just quit.

Answer 2

Yes she can. She can drop out of school at any age and it is legal.

I don't know what the law says about it in Florida, but she may be unable to get the High School Certificate. It is not a big deal, anyway, as there are many different ways to enter to College or University if you don't have an official certificate.

I suggest she does some research: she can ask a school counsellor about her options, or she can visit a local library or write/visit her school board.

She also will need a plan. There are many ways to "complete" the high school. Some are DL (Distribute learning) that usually are taken online or with distance courses. Another way is to study following a curricula, and yet another one is to stydy freely, as she design (with the help of her parents maybe) her own schedule and what she will learn.

Homeschool is very flexible and open.

And you are right, High School is sometimes a h**l-on-earth for students. It is all about competition and fitting, about how you look or how much do you have. And less and less about knowledge, learning, sharing or even having good friends.

Hope she can find her way soon. Good luck

Answer 3

Stop for just a minute and consider what you're saying.  Her idea is good?  Not a chance.  A GED is frowned upon.  It screams "I can't commit to anything, don't hire me!!"  Think about it, what kind of a loser does it take to not make it through 4 years of incredibly easy schooling?  

There may be some circumstances where a GED is acceptable...long term illness is the only one that comes to my mind though.  

Tell your cousin that if she drops out she is going to be a failure at life.  Nobody will hire her, she will never have a respectable income and she will likely end up barely scraping by.

If you can't even push yourself to make it through 4 years of high school you are truly pathetic and deserve no respect.  Period.

Answer 4

She'd be better off learning about the homeschooling laws for Florida and earn her high school diploma through homeschooling rather than dropping out.

I don't know about the laws in Florida. I could look them up, but it'd take me the same amount of time as it'd take you.

Answer 5

It does depend on the state requirements.

In most states it is age 16.

I would however ask you not to refer to people as "drop outs" when they choose an alternative to conventional schooling (high school).

There are many other forms of schooling available to students; parents are often not aware of these because going to a school is how it has always been done.

Deciding to go a non-traditional route, GED, home schooling, or on line are all valid alternatives; conventional schooling is not for everyone either.

A GED will work just fine for both employment and college.

Actually if she gets her GED she could go to work part-time, and start community college classes as well, or take a break before returning to the classroom, and work full time.

Only your cousin, and her parents can make the final decision on what is best for her, and her future.

People who choose another option are not quiting,they are changing gears....

Answer 6

Most states is 16, some 17, a rare few 18.

Unclear if you can take the GED at age 16, but certainly by 18.