Here's an exceptional essay that incorporates many of the thoughts I've had recently on the value of education. The best section:
Of further concern to the groom’s critics was the fact that it appeared his education would be wasted; that it would not be put “to use.” But in what sense can education be used? Is it not the same as saying that love should be used or hope should be used? Education can be used no more than the sun can be “used” by a plant in its growth. The sun is a natural and integral part of the flourishing of a plant. It is not “used” to grow a plant—it is not imaginable that a plant could flourish without it. It is the same with human flourishing. Education is as essential as the sun. It may be formal or it may be informal, either way it is essential. Education is not money; a commodity that can be exchanged in the market place. Education is an integral part of life—it is an aspect of being human. To demand that education be used is on par with demanding that people be used, and that demand is not uncommon in our age.
|