Ryan McCue is author of next 2015-2016 MLHS senior student editorial
The Benefits of Education
Two years ago I thought geometry was the worst class ever. When would I even need to know the laws used to prove how a triangle was real and all the confusing formulas? I believed geometry could not be transferred into the real world and was something I would never use. My class groaned and griped over the class every day, asking, “When will we ever use this?” or giving smart remarks such as, “This is stupid.”
Two years later, I have seen how geometry is used in the real world and how valuable it is. Through tough PSEO (Post Secondary Education Options) classes, I have realized that the value of education is not based on what grade students get, but how much they are able to learn, recall, and use in the future. Education helps prepare people for the future by pushing them to develop their own perception of the world, teaching them how to make decisions, and opening doors to a brighter future for them.
Have you ever looked through someone’s pair of glasses? It is hard to see the world through their lenses. Similarly, education prepares students to see the world in their own way, differently from how others see it, by helping them develop their own perceptions and opinions. Although students follow directions from teachers, our brains interpret how we proceed to carry out these directions. Basic building blocks educate people and allow them to form their own opinions by setting a foundation for their thoughts.
For example, in kindergarten, the teacher begins teaching kids how to write properly by following strict rules, but as people mature and expand their knowledge, they develop their own style of writing and topic choices. As we develop basic building blocks and share ideas with one another, we begin to form our own opinions about ourselves, controversial topics, or school-related activities.
As we grow, decision-making plays an important role in our lives, and education helps us form the foundation for making the right decisions. Our lives are full of decisions every day, ranging from simple, split second decisions like if I should eat out or make some food, or long, difficult decisions such as moving to a new town.
According to the website quora.com, an adult will make about 35,000 decisions per day. That is a lot! Children have to start making decisions at an early age, and making decisions in school helps develop critical thinking skills later in life.
A question I often thought about as an elementary student was, Do I really have to do my homework, or can I play with my friends longer without getting trouble? Are my friends worth more than obeying my parents,? I wondered. I weighed my options and decided to do my homework first. I had to pick what was worth more, a concept that is also associated with decision-making.
In addition to guiding us in making decisions, education also prepares people for the future by providing information that will open doors for them to be successful. Education opens doors in people’s brains, lives, and daily interactions. As we recall memories (good or bad) from learning situations, people are able to solve problems in their lives and open doors to new areas and hidden potential.
After college, young adults hit the world, and the world hits them harder, pushing adults to rely on their education to figure out where they belong. Every math problem, English story, history question – whatever it may be – could be used to solve a problem with a building design error or interpret a news article. Every ounce of information we have learned and stored in our brains can be used to open a door, and every door can help lead us to potential. As we learn more information from experience, we expand our knowledge and understanding, which we can turn into potential.
In conclusion, education is the basis for gaining an understanding of the world and the key to life. The information we receive prepares us for the life we will live. The value of education is not getting an A+ on a paper, but learning how to write a paper and use that skill in the future, whether it is for a job or a newspaper article. Grades are a good way of measuring the learned material, but the real value of education is recalling the information to help us develop our own perception of the world around us, help us to know how to make decisions, and open doors to a brighter future.