What Does It Mean to Be Well Educated
Gregorio Roblesvelez
Prof. Hartless
English101
04 April 2013
What Does It Mean to Be Well Educated?
What does it mean to be well educated? To be well educated it is a balance between academics and practical knowledge. Throughout this paper I will show that one does not necessarily need a college degree to be deemed as well educated. I will explore both aspects of academics and practical knowledge and how it affects individuals.
Practical knowledge is the knowledge that we acquire as small children and from our parents and from friends. This is also known as “street smarts”. This is the knowledge that tells us to look both ways before crossing the street and that something is hot or cold. This knowledge can go much deeper than this. This is the knowledge that also tells us that something is wrong. The knowledge that tells us that someone is following us or we are in danger.
Some individuals do not possess enough of this practical knowledge. Somehow it has been suppressed. Either it was not given to them as a child by their parents or their upbringing was very different than others. Then there are those individuals that have too much of this knowledge brought on by their upbringing.
Academics is an area that we all are given, but what we chose to do with is another matter. Some individuals tend to do better in this area than others. Some individuals excel in this area and continue on to college and pursue other degrees and credentials. Unfortunately, when this happens their practical knowledge is lost. Kohn states in his article: “No one should offer pronouncements about what it means to be well-educated without meeting my ex-wife. When I met her, she was at Harvard, putting the finishing touches on her doctoral dissertation in anthropology. A year later, having spent her entire life in school, she decided to do the only logical thing . . . and apply to medical school. She will, however, freeze up if you ask her what 8 times 7 is, because she never
Prof. Hartless
English101
04 April 2013
What Does It Mean to Be Well Educated?
What does it mean to be well educated? To be well educated it is a balance between academics and practical knowledge. Throughout this paper I will show that one does not necessarily need a college degree to be deemed as well educated. I will explore both aspects of academics and practical knowledge and how it affects individuals.
Practical knowledge is the knowledge that we acquire as small children and from our parents and from friends. This is also known as “street smarts”. This is the knowledge that tells us to look both ways before crossing the street and that something is hot or cold. This knowledge can go much deeper than this. This is the knowledge that also tells us that something is wrong. The knowledge that tells us that someone is following us or we are in danger.
Some individuals do not possess enough of this practical knowledge. Somehow it has been suppressed. Either it was not given to them as a child by their parents or their upbringing was very different than others. Then there are those individuals that have too much of this knowledge brought on by their upbringing.
Academics is an area that we all are given, but what we chose to do with is another matter. Some individuals tend to do better in this area than others. Some individuals excel in this area and continue on to college and pursue other degrees and credentials. Unfortunately, when this happens their practical knowledge is lost. Kohn states in his article: “No one should offer pronouncements about what it means to be well-educated without meeting my ex-wife. When I met her, she was at Harvard, putting the finishing touches on her doctoral dissertation in anthropology. A year later, having spent her entire life in school, she decided to do the only logical thing . . . and apply to medical school. She will, however, freeze up if you ask her what 8 times 7 is, because she never
Cited: Kohn, Alfie (2003, March). What Does it Mean to Be Well -Educated? Retrieved from http://alfiekohn.org