If you graduated before the year 2000, there’s a good chance you took a home economics or home studies class—especially if you were a girl. These classes focused on teaching valuable domestic skills, which are just as relevant today as they were then. Now, with the shifting roles of men and women in managing the home and family, it’s widely accepted that both genders should know how to handle essential life tasks.
Unfortunately, home economics classes are becoming increasingly rare, with fewer schools offering boys and girls the opportunity to learn practical life skills. Many argue that these classes should be brought back, as they teach lessons not typically covered by subjects like Math or History.
In today’s fast-paced world, where parents often work long hours, many teenagers return to empty homes after school. They’re expected to cook, clean, and manage their own space, but how many of them actually learn how to do this at school?
There’s no denying that home economics fosters independence. A recent study showed that 62.7% of the 3.1 million high school graduates in 2020 in the U.S. enrolled in college. For many of these students, leaving home for a dorm room means they’ll be fending for themselves for the first time. Cooking nutritious meals, doing laundry, and keeping a living space clean are much easier if they’ve had the right guidance.
Thankfully, societal expectations for women at home and in the workplace have evolved. Women are no longer expected to be solely responsible for domestic tasks—unless they choose to be. Men and women alike benefit from knowing how to cook, clean, and perform basic first aid.
Moreover, home economics could expand beyond traditional domestic tasks. Imagine if students were taught practical skills like changing a tire, filing taxes, or replacing a lightbulb—basic tasks that many adults still struggle with today.
It makes sense to have a dedicated space in school to teach these real-world skills, yet subjects with less practical application often take priority in school curriculums.
When schools don’t offer these lessons, parents can still step in to teach their children essential life skills, but a structured educational approach would benefit everyone.
