The Purpose of Education by Juliana
Julianaof Little Rock's entry into Varsity Tutor's April 2015 scholarship contest
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The Purpose of Education by Juliana - April 2015 Scholarship Essay
The purpose of an education goes beyond just learning a marketable skill in order to secure a well-paying job. It entails learning all aspects of how to function in a social setting. Right from when a student starts kindergarten through to all levels of higher education, one constant is the need to learn to get along and coexist with others in a way far beyond what a family setting can provide.
Focusing on early learning, the initial goal is not just to impart as much knowledge as possible to young minds but also to instill in them the value of being a part of a community and the fact that each individual plays a vital role. For instance, from the first days of school, you learn that your teacher is in charge (hierarchy), that each person’s participation is valued (raise your hand to speak, take turns), that order is critical to everyone’s happiness (form lines, a time for everything), and so on. As the children grow, so does the content of complexity of what is being taught. As human development changes take place - puberty, adolescence, young adulthood - allowances have to be made to accommodate associated behaviors and personality changes, educational material includes information on how to navigate such changes, and so on.
By the time a teenager heads to college, it is understood that the knowledge and skills acquired up to that point have prepared him to tackle more education independently as he prepares to be a valuable contributing member of society.
Thus far, the focus has been on formal education. This does not in any way discount all other forms of “informal” education. With the proliferation of online education, a lot of what is considered formal education can now take place in isolation. But there is still something to be said for what has been the norm for formal education thus far. There is a marked difference in the behavior, personality, understanding and outlook of someone who is formally educated than someone who is not.
