Day Three

Yesterday I promised a brief outline of my views on being educated vs education.

Don't say I never kept my word. Ever

Never.

Since lists on blogs are very popular Lets do this thing in lists eh?

I am going to clarify my terms here just a bit. By 'being educated' I am talking about the school system, particular the higher education (duh) system. Educated is a state of being. Or mind. Or something like that.

To continue.

Being Educated aka 'higher' education

1. When you are in the system you are expected to jump through various hoops. I have nothing against a well rounded education but honestly ask yourself how much you have learned from your english class? Exposure to classic literature is a great thing. How often are you interested in it though. Ask yourself, you graduates and current students, how much information you retain from your 'core' classes. Think about some class you only studied to pass the tests. Did you care then? Do you care now?
   
2. That leads me to my next point. Tests. Test are used to measure how much information you are retaining and sometimes (not that often sadly) what you can do with it. I have seen hundreds of people in dozens of classes, all spending thousands of dollars just to be there, only learning the material enough to pass (or ace) the tests. How well do tests prepare you for real life? Yeah, you may have to come up with some big report or project in real life but you get input throughout the process. You can do research *during* the project/paper/etc.
   
3. It is all a game. That is right, I said a game. You pay to play just like a casino. College is quite a bit like a casino in fact. Think about it. Getting a degree is no guarantee that you can get a job. I know a guy with two degrees and he is fluent in three languages. Can't get a job for the life of him. Where as I am degreeless and have a rather nice part time job making good money, enough that I dont need another job leaving me free to pursue my own projects and 'education'. Have fun 'winning' that piece of paper. Or lambskin or whatever the hell they make those things out of. Hmm, maybe I should learn that tomorrow.
4. Ok, so there are a number of pluses to going to school. I will admit it. Once. It is a great social place. It is a great place to figure out what you want to do for many people, that is until they graduate and panic. I want engineers, doctors and lawyers to go to college, there is value there but you have to really work for it. Real life and really doing something will teach you more than just about any class. Why do you think they have co-ops and such?
5. Last point for now. Being educated is passive learning. You have a teacher guide you through lessons and textbooks. My girlfriend is graduating with a degree in science ed and she is a good teacher. (+1 brownie points) There is a need for teachers, to get you started learning and to give you a good foundation. Beyond that it is your call. Pick something and go learn it. There is so much out there that they don't or can't teach you without your determination to learn.
   

Education aka Real Life

1. I have seen right around a hundred people graduate in the last few years and just about all of them struggle to find a job or even pick a career path. College simply doesn't prepare most people for real life. In real life you have to sink or swim. Ok it isn't quite that bad, there is a lot of grey in that area and there is always welfare. Don't overlook welfare. In college there is a pass/fail line. There are As Bs Cs Ds and then Fs. In my experience I have learned more from my failure at business, relationships and every other part of life. I have learned from my success too but failure is a great wakeup call and a great motivator.
   
2. Education doesn't stop when you leave college or at the least it shouldn't In college when a class is over unless you have another class along the same path that is it. You are done. That never made sense to me. I took classes and if I liked it I kept studying it beyond the end of that class. Why not? I paid to learn the shit, might as well learn more and possibly put that to use.
   
3. Having education versus being educated gives you an open ended feeling. I wake up (almost) every morning and ask myself what I want to do or learn today. That started when I quit college. Before that I was to hemmed in with papers and tests and classes to attend and on and on. Working on my own education gives me the freedom to work outside those little ticky tacky boxes. Life is too short to be limited and there are enough limits put in place by society as is.
   
4. Education versus being educated (using my own definitions thank you) can be scary. I want to live a very comfortable life, beyond comfort actually well past rich. Most people aren't rich. I had to ask myself if I wanted to be like most people. That was pretty easy. I am not saying that everyone should quit college, but it seems that for right now I don't and don't want to belong in college. I am going my own way and hopefully that will be good.
   

Hopefully all that made sense. That was kind of stream of consciousness so forgive any incoherence.

To end this admittedly biased discourse I leave you with one of my favorite philosophers.

Only the educated are free. - Epictetus