Unfortunately, children with vocational abilities, but who have difficulty passing an exam, are likely to be cast aside if they don't have a paper qualification. I've spoken with parents who accept that a school-exam pass is vital for their child, and believe their child won't succeed without one. Self employment is rarely considered as there are too many bureaucratic obstacles in the way. The employment system in Spain is inflexible and has been slow to adapt to modern needs.
Like a breath of fresh air, I've now read about Ingvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA, who has just died at the age of 91. He founded his Swedish company when he was 17, using a monetary gift from his father after passing a school exam, despite being dyslexic. The exam pass may have accessed him money from his father, but I very much doubt that the exam result was an essential part of his success. He was a true entrepreneur; even from the age of 5 when he was selling matches. He moved on to selling fish and Christmas decorations whilst still at school and, I'm sure, wasn't concerned about failure. He started his company and named IKEA using the initials of his name, plus E for Elmtoryd, the farm he grew up in, and A for Agunnaryd, the village nearby. His first sales were flat-pack replicas of his uncle's kitchen table. Kamprad was a pioneer and expanded his range, concentrating on simple designs that gave value for money. The rest is history and the company now has 389 stores with retail sales in excess of €41billion per year. Like it or not, IKEA is a great success story.
Ingvar Kamprad should be an inspiration for any young person with ability. He was a man who never stood still, always looked forward, and had a motto "things remain to be done". If any child can do, then they should be given every encouragement to follow their dream, even without a piece of paper from school.