Education, a
simple word that in nature is defined in its general sense, is a
form of learning in which the knowledge, skills, and habits of a group of
people are transferred from one generation to the next through the process of
guiding, teaching and instructing. Education can be taught through the guidance
of others or through educational systems such as schools, institutes and
universities. It is not a matter of privilege or right for an individual to
attain education in the position on which you learn from a professional, for
you attain knowledge and wisdom even from the very people who have raised you,
yet the knowledge on which you attain is limited and may not be able to fully
develop or progress itself when not nourished with following factors to further
advance your knowledge in society, politics, linguistics, mathematics and many
more subjects and courses you desire to take up. But that is a different story,
it is not a matter if education is a privilege or a right, for in this essay, I
have a topic to discuss which is in the same sense as that, yet overlooked by
many as time moves on for it has already changed the view of schools and
universities, and most of all, the people.
When you say you want to
study, what are the possible objectives you have and what courses are you
willing to take up in order to attain these objectives? Secondly, when you ask
your parents why they are willing to let you or have you study, what are the
things that they will say? “In order for you to have a better future.” “We want
you to study in order for you to get a job and live as you please.” These are
common answers you will get from them because it is how they view education,
which is not wrong in any sense or perspective, yet they view it as a necessity,
a need or requirement of the youth as if it were the pass or clearance in order
to accomplish a good and valuable future. As I was on the process of creating
this essay, I took the time and liberty to randomly ask a few students of the Adamson
University whom I did not know, why they are currently studying and what are
the reasons or goals they have in mind when they are able to graduate. I did
not write any document about it or create a survey as if it was a project; I
simply asked them as a fellow student and child. According to most students in
a valid tally of 20 from Adamson University, 12 students have straightforwardly
answered that they are currently studying in order to attain a diploma or
degree, 4 have replied to the question with the answer of just graduating and
finding any job available, while the last 4 have told me that the only purpose
was to reach or achieve their desired jobs or professions. Which were also not
wrong, but in a sad circumstance, they are missing the point of what education
is and what is its sole purpose in our lives! But in order to fully understand
the controversial issue of this, we must first differentiate the two.
Is Education a Necessity or
Instrument of Progress? In some sense, you may say that these are two different
things in manner, yet, in my perspective, these are just two stepping stones on
which one is accomplished, while one is failed to be done. As we all know,
education is the foundation of any nation. It is a necessity for all. This is
simply explained because as an individual with no education or lack of
education cannot be active in the society. People grow with a better
understanding of their immediate environment, for education creates awareness
as it regenerates the way of thinking of an individual as they attain more
knowledge because one understands what to do in order to enhance good living
and alternatives to things that lack. But let us further open our area of
discussion to the current state of our country, including politics. Poverty,
corruption, and lack financial stability, these are some of the many factors
that affect a person’s understanding of what is education and its role in the
society, and with that, we start to discuss education as a necessity. With the
current state and well-being of our government, the lack of availability for
jobs, financial problems and difficulty in the economy, education has become a
form of escape for most people! They say with a diploma or degree, you will be
able to find a job or respectable profession. This type of perception of
education encouraged competition and individualism. It has become a means by
which one avoided manual gullible labour or any form of disrespectful
occupation. Education has become a passport to the cherished white collar job
such as accountants, engineers, architects and other careers that has a high
pay and security, most of all, a status. In other words, it was a means by
which one rose towards more valued positions and rewarded in society. This way
of education had an important social mobility function which was still well
known to parents all over the world, thus, becoming the major motivation force
of educating students. Education is similar to technology, in a point where it
does not stop in progressing and widening, it continues to evolve as science
does and has no actual permanence for many more things are created and
discovered as time passes. So, the values and attitudes that prevailed in the
past are difficult to be entertained in this kind of contemporary world. Now in
the era of economic development, the education system has changed, from
designed to select the good and supress the bad behaviours, it has grown to
become a newspaper, only to update us on what is modern or discovered in our
world that will bring much help to us in the following centuries or
generations. Going back to the topic of education as a necessity, it has a
modest summary: When we regard education
as a necessity, it only serves to prepare people for change. These changes may
be in politics, economy or society in general. Education in a viewpoint on
where it is a necessity in life, only serves the purpose to satisfy interests,
hobbies or simply a past time and are only goal points to achieve a financially
secure life. Especially with the current nationwide problem of job
unavailability in the country, the educational system, in most people’s view,
only has one purpose, to allow their children to have a decent job.
When we regard education as
an instrument of change in this context, we mean that the school should help
children or fellow students to accept and develop values that are appropriate
to our kind future; this means that our children or fellow students must accept
pragmatic values of education. In this particular part of the discussion, we
are now referring to education as an instrument of progress. This now serves as
a second stage of necessity, for some students, sometimes education itself is
not really enough for one tends to create change itself, or nonetheless be a
part of it. When one is likely to partake in this kind of path in life, they
take a step forward. As I have stated earlier, these are just two stepping
stones on which one is accomplished, while one is failed to be done, because
when you have achieved education in a reason of necessity, most would stop at
that point and will disclose to the idea of further development because they
have already attained what they needed to have a good and fortunate life. But
as one takes a step further in the path of life, they are now vulnerable to
what lies ahead and open in the arms of victory of success! When we view education
as an instrument of progress, we are able to accomplish and conquer various
objectives. The education system can do several things to help students or
youth to adopt education for change values or social progress: It can create
unity and cooperation instead of individual advancement in the organisation of
its various activities, because one cannot create a difference alone, for you
require several hands and support. Through the educational system, a determined
individual is able to facilitate the development of a spirit of teamwork,
neighbourhood and quality amongst people. The education in schools must help to
destroy intellectual pride, to create a society in which the privileged
educated do not look down upon the less educated and those with no special abilities.
This should be done because arrogance has no place in a world of equal
citizens. Education should help produce divergent thinkers who can make
judgments and help discover solutions of the community problems in the peculiar
situations. It must help to produce people who have special skills which
contribute to society’s development and general good of the world. Going back
to the topic of education as an instrument of progress, it has a certain
summary: You do not study because you want to live a comfortable life, you want
to study because you want to change the lives of many, in a sense it is for the
well-being of the society. No more corruption, inequality and other various
reasons that contribute to the fall of our economy or status of the country,
most of all, in order to demolish the negativity and indecent commentaries of
other countries upon your own. With this type of goal in mind, you are not
thinking little with your view only to the people around you, you are now able
to think bigger and aim higher! Teachers teach us history for a reason, it is
for us to keep track of the change and mistakes we have done in the past in
order we do not repeat these mistakes, because we need to know and appreciate
the different stages through which our community passed to be where it is
today.
Education as a necessity or
an instrument of progress can also be clarified through the example of a
critical essay. When a professor asks you to create a critical essay regarding
the controversial issues of the society, in what way or method will you create
it? Through simple writing of words in an understandable and undeniably safe
way on which it will help you complete a requirement because it is only
necessary of you that you create and pass an essay? Or through creating it with
countless hours of research and devotion in truly criticizing the controversial
issue and defending your answer for the professor to be enlightened and be able
to understand your viewpoint on the particular topic even amongst the
criticizing and disagreement, as long as you prove your point and have a
deserving grade?
In my opinion, education
should be and must be viewed as an instrument of social progress because it is
something that the people have overlooked and forgotten due to the current
instability of our economy. People no longer have the need to further their
knowledge due to the fact that the present is far more important than the
future. I hope I have cleared my opinion on why I have chosen that education
should be an instrument of progress, and I have made it understandable why it
should be that way. Many people have their obstacles and problems regarding
attaining education of course, but as long as you are willing to do it, there
is always a way, no matter the circumstances. Life may be unfair but it has the
benefits when it involves hard working people. Education can be attained
through various ways as long as you are determined to create a change in your
life and how you live, not by simply wanting to have something to eat at the
table, but thinking of various ways to have something to eat. Education
continues to evolve, and so must we, it is our mission to create a better life,
not only for ourselves but also for those we cherish and those that are around
us. Knowledge is passed on from generation to generation, and it is a privilege
to have stored such knowledge, so we must continue to pass it and they will add
their own part to it, thus widening their perspective and allowing them to have
bigger dreams.
What about you? How have
you viewed education so far? Is education a necessity or as an instrument of
progress?
