most people I know remember things from high school. not the details, but they know the broad ideas
This.
And the people that don't tend to remember the stuff from high school tend to be the dregs of society, so they aren't exactly shining examples to use to prove "high school isn't important." From my perspective, those are shining examples to use to prove why paying attention in high school is important.
I seriously cant remember ONE thing Ive learned in high school. At all. High school was where you joke with friends, play video games, play pranks, and mess around. Most of my classes, the kids didnt just sit there and listen. I cant remember anything useful in school like ever
And that's why I asked: what do you do for a living? What do those other kids now do for a living?