Academic Qualification Enthusiasm for Learning

Discuss about the Academic Qualification Enthusiasm for Learning.

There are various factors that make a person educated. One can be educated due to their high academic qualification. However, the question is whether an educated person is the one who holds a degree or what is the best criteria for determining whether an individual is educated?  On my own view, an educated person is the one who positively impacts the lives of the others.

Being educated is much more than the mere content learned in school. As a matter of fact, many people forget what they have been taught at school within a year or less (Stewart). Education can be acquired from peers, friends, parents, professionals with whom we interact with, through apprenticeship or it can be anything studied for the enthusiasm for learning. Learning never stops and an educated person is the one who still gazes at the world with wonder and gets the desire to know more.

The view that people are educated due to their ability to study and graduate from various learning institutions is debatable. Assuming that someone decides to study the same textbooks studied in the school and acquires the same knowledge individually (White). This person is also educated because he has the same knowledge as those in the schools.  Educated are the people who have acquired vital knowledge which makes them knowledgeable.

An educated person is the one who has developed good habits of the mind such as creativity, problem-solving, analysis and criticism. Education that doesn’t liberate the mind of an individual has no value. A person who is educated ought to possess the capacity for self-love, love towards others and the surroundings (Stewart). The individual should possess the ability to hold a good balance between his/her own needs and the needs of others. Teachers and scholars are not the only ones responsible for educating kids. Education is a complex field which is not only acquired in school but also in other life endeavors.

It is evident that we cannot really generalize the concept of “an educated person” by considering the academic qualifications. As seen in the previous parts, some people might be well-educated because they hold a degree or any other certification yet they are not knowledgeable about many things. An educated person is the one who brings change in the human society by applying the acquired knowledge and skills. It is only through education that a person should understand the personality differences of fellow humans and gain the knowledge of dealing with everyone. Education should be used to change the world and not just acquiring the papers.

References

Stewart, Mary Amanda. "What Is “Educated” In The 21St Century?". Phi Delta Kappan, vol 94, no. 7, 2013, pp. 57-60. SAGE Publications, doi:10.1177/003172171309400718.

White, John. "WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE WELL-EDUCATED?". Think, vol 10, no. 28, 2018, pp. 9-16. Cambridge University Press (CUP), doi:10.1017/s1477175611000078.