The Point of an Education

Why is an education important? I was only eleven when I felt that this is an important question, but my age brought about the need for an answer to this question that would keep my mind focused on learning rather than thinking upon abstract ideas. I was told that an education is important as I will learn how to positively contribute to society, to the world that I live in. This thought was a courtesy of my mother, and I dwelled upon the question and its answer for ages.

Eventually, that question and its answer faded away into the part of my brain where everything becomes a blur. As I started high school, the question slowly began resurfacing, but the answer, it seemed, was lost in the depths of my mind. I asked myself, “What do I want to learn?” It was apparent to me, at the time, that an education required someone to teach and someone to learn, but what do I want to learn? I was fourteen years old, and I couldn’t think of anything I wanted to learn about?

What do I want to learn?

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I decided to approach the next logical question. Why do I want to learn? Immediately, I began answering. I wanted to learn so that, one day, I will be able to make large sums of money in relatively small periods of time. I was so happy! I could use this answer to figure out what I wanted to learn; I knew that I wanted to learn more about business. At this thought, I stumbled upon a few hidden feelings within myself. I screamed on the inside! I wanted to learn more about business, but I also wanted to learn more about the sciences, mathematics, and history. This sudden want to study a variety of different subjects began to perplex me.

Among other subjects, I wanted to learn about business...

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... and astronomy

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What was the point of learning everything? I asked my father. He explained that the more I knew, the more I would be able to connect; at that sentence, he left me to interpret my own meaning. I, however, was clueless. More questions were forming, but the main question was, “What can I connect?” The answer struck me in my junior year of high school, in the middle of my AP Chemistry class. There was a formula for Kinetic Energy on the overhead projector, and my teacher showed how that formula was derived from the Physics formula for Kinetic Energy. “Wow!” Apparently, I said this out loud. Avoiding the confused gazes of everyone in the class, I sat back in my chair and thought. “Sciences… have multiplied bearings one on another… They complete, correct, [and] balance each other” (Anthology 165). At this, I thought that anything can be connected to something else.

The Dalai Lama

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And that I have found to be true. There is nothing in this world that is unconnected. The religion of one place affects the lifestyle of the people that live there, and the lifestyle of one person can be inspirational for another person. The Dalai Lama is a prime example of this. People travel thousands of miles to seek the advice of one man who has completely devoted himself to his religion. Giant corporations have started huge philanthropy programs based upon the words of the Dalai Lama. It’s apparent to me that knowledge that you learn impacts knowledge that you’ve already learned. I call this true learning, and it is absolutely vital for making connections. What my dad said was true; the more I know, the more I can connect! “All branches of knowledge are connected together” (Anthology, 165).

An example of Corporate Philanthropy

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Again, I was inspired by a great thought. This connectivity with everything around me forced me to realize that I will be able to better understand the world around me, the real world that I live in, when I truly learn new information. This makes learning a very vital experience. I wanted to learn about business and to better understand the real world, the world that I live in, so I started working with my dad at his business to start my learning experience with some actual experience (Anthology, 184). Because of my personal experiences there, I have learned, first-hand, the skills that are required to successfully manage a business entity in its day to day activities. I can take all of this knowledge to any business and help it be more successful in the real world today because I can connect my knowledge with the day to day activities of any business.

I engender a new thought as I connect my knowledge with the world, and once more, I am inspired! There is an infinite amount of knowledge present in the world today, and it is humanly impossible for one person to know everything. This signifies that the process of learning can last an entire lifetime. Keeping in mind that the process of learning is very art of education, I realized that “the journey of education is lifelong” (Anthology, 171). I will forever, till the end of my days, continue to learn, continue to educate myself. And as I learn more, I will undoubtedly help others around me learn more as well. I say undoubtedly because I am at facility of higher education. I will learn from others, as well, as I’m sure they will learn from me (Anthology, 169).

By doing this, I will contribute to the educational environment present at a University. I will learn through interaction with my professors and fellow students. I will contribute to the world around me, to the world that I live in. Right then, I remembered the answer to the question I asked my mother when I was just eleven. The value of education was apparent to me through my own personal experiences, and I realized the wisdom in my mother’s words. The point of education, the reason education is valued and the reason I’m attending the University of Texas at Austin, is to help an individual, to help shape their life in such a fashion, that they will help benefit their community, help shape the world they are a part of.

An example of you can literally shape your world!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PoeobYHQqtg