How Schools Inadvertently (Or With Malicious Subtlety?) Encourage Innocent People To Join Cults*

    It's the class projects.

   That's it, TLDR right at the get go.

   Kids are subdivided into smaller groups and told to work together as a group in order to accomplish a compulsory goal.

   And if you, as a kid, reject the idea of having to be in a group in order to succeed, you are written up for it, as in "doesn't play well with others."

   That right there is the first glowing ember of cult recruitment. 

   As kids progress from grade to grade, the group projects become more and more important grade-wise, and participation is closely monitored.

   "C'mon Jonesy, where's your school spirit?"

   Until, eventually, you are being dinged on your report card for not participating, and in the comments section your teachers start writing "not a team player, does not exhibit a desire to cooperate with others."

   We will teach you how to be one with your fellows indeed.

   At the college level it amps up to eleven making it a graduation requirement, essential to the actual awarding of the degree you so assiduously have been working toward by requiring you to volunteer with some group or other. 

   Of course, the college labels it "community service" and states that it's necessary in order to develop valuable life skills and may even be beneficial for your career progression, but the truth about community service is it's just cult prep.

   Take a look around you and do a little research into how cults recruit, and then tell me I'm wrong.

*Look, I'm being half-assed sarcastic here...let's not take anything I write too seriously, eh?