To put it bluntly, we're educating our youth into unemployment. For those who leave school with minimal qualifications, jobs they might have been able to apply for - say 10 years ago - are now being done overseas or by computer. As a result youth unemployment runs at double the national average, and in some areas is as high as 40 per cent. Some will say that this is their own fault for not working hard at school and that it's probably a result of their upbringing. Increasingly such talk of "generational welfare dependence" is used as an insult rather than being seen as the canary in the mine that it represents. Whether you feel school is about preparing kids for the workforce or reading the classics; instilling discipline or empowering them to change the world, what do you make of the statistics from the OECD that shows 20 per cent of our 15-year-olds feel that they don't belong in school?

Or research from Gallup that shows that by year 5, 25 per cent of students have disengaged from learning (that's not to say they're not turning up - they had to be there to take the survey) and by the time they reach year 12 that figure is one in two. Bear in mind these are national statistics so in many schools these figures are much higher. Research suggests that if we were to focus on engagement and wellbeing in schools, outcomes would improve. But it's clear that in far too many schools the focus is on outcomes at the expense of genuine engagement and wellbeing of students and staff. Our system is being guided by a perceived need to "compete" with Finland and our Asian neighbours in the education "race". This leads to systems focusing heavily on comparative scores in standardised tests, which in turn puts pressure on teachers to get children "across the line". The sad point is, for a great many of our students there is little for them on the other side of this line.

But what about the other end of the spectrum, the children who do well at school? Let's imagine your child studies hard at school, gets a great ATAR, heads to university and graduates with a law degree. You may be forgiven for thinking they're set for life. But I think it's time we let these children (and their parents) in on the joke. You can work your socks off for years and graduate with a law degree to find that - oops - there's no job there for you either! Boom-tish! According to an Australian Financial Review article in March this year, some law firms report receiving more than 2000 application for a handful of clerk positions.

That's not to say the unsuccessful candidates end up unemployed, but their career in an alternative field is borne out of necessity, not choice, and that certainly isn't the story they were sold - usually at a high price - at school. And it's not just law. Last year, 20 per cent of dentistry graduates were unable to find full-time employment, while this year, one in six medical students will be unable to become fully qualified doctors because the oversupply of graduates has overwhelmed the post-graduate training system. While political and ideological debates dominate the education discussion - private v public, Gonski, deregulation of university fees, NAPLAN, MySchool - the question "why school?" is seldom asked. What is the purpose of our education system? Education reform is not what is needed here. As United States educator Heidi Hayes Jacobs says, "We need a new form of education". We need an education system that is equitable - not necessarily equal. It must be devoid of silos, rich in partnerships that bring together the corporate, academic, research, not-for-profit, community and education sectors to design a model that best suits the students in their care. Teachers must be empowered to go into schools to do what they went into teaching to do - help children - not to beat Finland.

If we don't address this, as well as underemployed university graduates, we can expect to see rates of youth unemployment, social disconnect and welfare dependence continue to rise. Dan Haesler is an educator, writer and consultant.

Twitter: @danhaesler