
Competent young people deserve the chance to compete where it counts, and many will surprise us. - vlad
http://www.psychologytoday.com/rss/pto-20070302-000002.html
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vlad
" _What can be done?_

"I believe that young people should have more options--the option to work,
marry, own property, sign contracts, start businesses, make decisions about
health care and abortions, live on their own--every right, privilege, or
responsibility an adult has. I advocate a competency-based system that focuses
on the abilities of the individual. For some it will mean more time in school
combined with work, for others it will mean that at age 13 or 15 they can set
up an Internet business. Others will enter the workforce and become some sort
of apprentice. The exploitative factories are long gone; competent young
people deserve the chance to compete where it counts, and many will surprise
us.

"It's a simple matter to develop competency tests to determine what rights a
young person should be given, just as we now have competency tests for
driving. When you offer significant rights for passing such a test, it's
highly motivating; people who can't pass a high-school history test will never
give up trying to pass the written test at the DMV, and they'll virtually
always succeed. We need to offer a variety of tests, including a comprehensive
test to allow someone to become emancipated without the need for court action.
When we dangle significant rewards in front of our young people--including the
right to be treated like an adult--many will set aside the trivia of teen
culture and work hard to join the adult world."

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Wait, so instead of creating across-the-board age limits, you judge the
competency of each individual... individually?

