In society, education is an opportunity to open doors to new opportunities in life. Education has and continues to have given those willing to learn the ability to have many choices and opportunities, such as the freedom to evolve outside of parental influence, have the right to choose, have strong self-mastery, and think critically. In literature, throughout history, research, and people’s opinions, this is displayed; specifically, it is displayed in Educated by Tara Westover, a memoir written about how she grew up in a Mormon survivalist family, preparing for the world to collapse. When Westover was raised, it was with no education, making her life mainly consist of helping her mother with her herbal medicine and midwifery and working in …show more content…
He speaks of this from his own experience and the way his world changed when he was able to have his own perception. Munakata then continues speaking about parents, stating that "mothers in a hunter-gatherer society regretted when their children cut themselves while playing with knives, but they thought the cuts were worth the freedom to explore" (Munakata). This is a mindset Gene Westover needed to have. Instead of letting his children have the freedom to learn and make mistakes (like the mothers in the hunter-gatherer society), he held them back and limited their freedom with his opinions, ideals, ideas, and choices that were all forced on Tara and her siblings's lives. He did everything in his power to have them make decisions that he agreed …show more content…
Tara’s father needed to stop trying to control and shape her; by doing so, he became extremely disappointed when her present and future were out of her control after he went to visit her and, in the dorm, accused her of being possessed. Because she was not living by his ideals, he assumed the only reason she did not turn out how he tried to shape her was because he went to extremes, but she had finally gained freedom, making it too late. Tara writes that she “was not thinking of my father at all”. I learned to accept my decision for my own sake, because of me, not because of him. Because I needed it, not because he deserved it'' (Westover 328). She freed herself from being held back and oppressed. By doing so, Westover gained her freedom. Oppression has been seen in many other cases as well, which relates back to education being a gateway to freedom. The right to education is the right to personal freedom; by prohibiting one from pursuing education, one is forcefully taking their
Pashtana said she would rather die than not go to school and acted on her words. Her education is limited and she doesn’t have all the recourses to make school easier, yet she still loves and wants all the knowledge she can get. While I sit in my three story private school, a clean uniform free of holes or loose seams, my macbook air in my lap, the smell of cookies rising up from the cafeteria, wishing to be anywhere else but there. No one has beat me because I want to go to school, no one has forced me into a marriage, I’ve never put my life in jeopardy for the sake of education. Pashtana’s life and choices made me take a moment to stop and reflect on my own life and how fortunate I am to have what I have. We dread the thought of school because to us it is a chore, it’s a hassle, it’s something that messes with our sleep schedule, it is something that gets in the way of lounging around and binge watching Netflix. Pashtana doesn’t take her school and education for granted because she does not have the same liberties we do. While we enjoy driving into the city and shopping over the weekend, Pashtana unwillingly makes wedding arrangements with her cousin. While we complain about our mom nagging us to clean our room, Pashtana is getting beaten by her father because she wants to learn more about the world. While we have stocked fridges and pantries and
However, the same could not be said about the narrator. The narrator loved school, but every day his mother would tell him to drop out and continue the family tradition of becoming a fisherman. He tried to do what his mother pressured him to do, and now every night he wakes up “at four o'clock in the morning with the terrible fear that I have overslept” (1). The narrator now wakes up in the middle of every night because he has anxiety after experiencing a traumatic experience which was caused by his mother’s constant pressure and expectations for him to do what she feels is right for him. Also, my parents would suggest that I attend a prestigious university after graduating high school because they hear exceptional things about those certain universities and associate success with them. This makes me feel rushed as they are constantly bringing it up, and I also feel like I have no choice but to apply to the schools that they recommend. The narrator’s mother would also make him feel as if he had no choice but to become a
to accept this undesirable assignment causes her to become a rebel against the abuse, pain
The importance of attending an institute of higher learning continues to grow as the job market becomes more competitive, and a diploma is essentially required to compete in it. However, with the growing demand for college and university successful students the concept of education has become clouded. In two commencement speeches, one by David Sedaris and the other by David Wallace, this concept of what education means and how it is viewed by the individual student is discussed as well as the process of thinking. David Seders, in his speech What I Learned, writes in a satirical format based on how education is being viewed. David Wallace in his commencement speech addresses the process of thinking and being self-aware with a college education.
Newman says that the scope of education should broaden and encourage more learning outside of the career track, while Freire says how the material is learned should be broadened and laid out where it is learned for its entirety and not just its basic ideas. They feel that “the learned professions altogether... [are] the most popularly beneficial and… most intimately divine of all human pursuits” (Newman, 57). Simply said, education is something of high importance that should be desired and acquired by all. If one does not embrace education, he or she will not gain knowledge or understand its importance. Fredrick Douglass, a famous slave that worked to gain knowledge, and ultimately helped abolish slavery understands this concept. In his biography, “Learning to Read,” he describes his struggle of learning to read and write. He says, “I wished to learn… [and] after a long, tedious effort for years, I finally succeeded in learning” (Douglas, 50). As a slave, being educated was a difficult task, but Douglass understood its importance and desired to pursue it. At first, he despised, the education, “while they [(the arguments in the Columbian Orator)] relieved me of one difficulty, they brought on another even more painful than the one of which I was relieved,” but it eventually lead to his understanding of “abolition” and helped him free “[him]self and fellow-slaves” (48,49). The education Douglass learns from the Columbian Orator and local newspapers, among other places, is a prime example of liberal knowledge. He learned it “for the sake of knowing it.” Douglass’s example solidifies Newman’s idea that liberal education is valuable because it is proven to have “value and dignity” (Newman, 58). His example also exemplifies Freire’s point that “Liberation is a praxis: the action and reflection of men and women upon their world in order to transform it” (65). Freire believes that one
“Your beliefs don’t make you a better person, your behavior does.” This quote comes from a picture found on flickr and makes me think about my younger days as I learned how to be a leader in scouting and it’s similarities to the poem, “A Little Scout Follows Me.” The moral of the poem is that there are always younger eyes watching and learning from those they look up to, even those that don’t realize they are being watched. When I think about the value of education, I first begin to think about the connection it brings between that and it’s community.
Horace Mann addressed several issues before the Massachusetts Board of Education in 1848. His vision revolved around the idea that a successful schooling system would enable people to transcend social class. Among the issues he discussed were physical, intellectual, political, moral, and religious education. Mann believed that modern science put control of one’s well being in their own hands, and people must learn to care for themselves adequately so that healthy habits are ingrained into our culture and subsequently the upbringing of children. Intellectual education, perhaps the most important issue, as it is the one predominantly aimed at enabling people to move up in social class. Mann deemed “vast and overshadowing private fortunes” as...
In the short story “River of Names” by Dorothy Allison, violence replaces education. The family in the story, which represents uneducated and poor lower class citizens, continues through a cycle of death and abuse throughout generations. Without proper education, improper actions and thoughts are hard to overcome. For example, the narrator’s sister, Billie, promised herself that she “wasn’t going to be like that” (Allison 170). The narrator and Billie swore they would break away from the pattern of violence within their family; however, their natural instincts leaned toward violent actions. Billie expressed violence towards her child’s cries while the narrator expressed her violence towards Jesse. The narrator of this story had more experience with educated people and therefore had more control over her actions by distinguishing right from wrong. Education aids in the use of moral sense. Although some lower class citizens have access to education, it is not the same quality education the upper class receives. In the short story “The Stolen Party,” Liliana Heker creates a scene of comparison between the education of different classes. Rosaura, the maid’s daughter, and Luciana, the daughter of the high class employer, worked on their homework together every day after school. Rosaura thought she was “a friend of Luciana” because of this; however, Luciana’s friends looked down upon Rosaura because she did not attend the same school as Luciana (150). The lower class faces discrimination due to the elite education of the upper class. The refinement and delicacy of higher class education provides them with knowledge of how to prepare their future generations for greatness instead of violence or
Every parent wants their child to go to college in order to gain a higher level of learning, but is this truly the best option? In recent years, many have begun to question whether or not a college education is necessary in today’s world. It’s not. College is not worth its cost because of its financial burdens, lack of teaching hands on experience, and its very particular methods that don’t work with some people.
During the essay the author lost her innocence but graduated to a deeper appreciation and clarity of who she is and who she could become. In her school with no visible fences keeping the children within the schoolyard, there were the invisible fences of racism that tried to limit them from reaching their full potential. The author concludes, "I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death" (841).
All over the world, people have always sought for power, they have struggled to defend their culture; they have worked beyond imaginable to obtain economic prosperity and political freedom. A matter of fact equality is something that nowadays we are still fighting to obtain. Education has always been the key to power. In the twenty-first century education means a way to obtain the American dream, in other words, to achieve success. However, schools were never intended to empower people to think for themselves or to help them succeed. At the beginning of the American school, different groups of people wanted different things to come out of schooling, one of those things was to facilitate reading the bible in the text it states that “Schooling became important as a means of sustaining a well- ordered religious commonwealth” (Spring 22).
Education has always been in existence in one form or another. As each child is born into this world regardless of who or where they are born, life lessons immediately begin. He/she will learn to crawl, walk, and talk by the example and encouragement of others. Although these lessons are basic in the beginning they evolve as the child grows. However, the core learning method of a child does not change. Learning from others, they will watch, listen, and then act for themselves. Thomas Jefferson believed that an education would lead men and women to the ability to be self-governed and become positive contributors to society (Mondale & Patton, 2001). Today, we can see how true this is by the examples of others. Those that are given the opportunity for education are more likely to find jobs and develop skills that not only improve a community, but influence the economic growth of their nation (Ravitch, Cortese, West, Carmichael, Andere, & Munson, 2009, p. 13). On the other hand, if an education is not provided to individuals, they can become a hindrance to that nation’s growth.
Different ideas were being expressed through The Second Great Awakening. The religious focus was now turning to God’s mercy and benevolence, which sparked other beliefs and ideas. People started believing that they could control their own fate. Worship services consisted of singing hymns and personal testimonies to make it more emotional. Many found religion as a soft comfort during the difficulties of this time period. Charles Finney was one of the most effective evangelists of the time. He entertained and edified, preached on conviction, repentance, and reformation (DOC B). The belief that parents could contribute to their child’s salvation led women to want to spiritually educate their children. Spiritually educating led to the belief that education was important. Schools were started to educate children while they were young. Many lower-class families had to go to high extremes to put their children in school. Children were needed to help work in the homes, but families saw that education was important, and they would allow their children to attend half a day or more of schooling (DOC E). Religion and education was becoming better known throughout society. America saw they needed to apply higher principles to gain benefits of the highest physical, intellectual, and moral education in order to be a gre...
When I was born, my family had just migrated to California from Mexico. In a new country, my father worked in landscaping earning less than $4 dollars an hour, while my mother relied on public transportation to take her newborn child to and from doctor visits. In the land of opportunity, my family struggled to put a roof over our heads. But never discouraged, my parents sought to achieve their goals and worked tirelessly to raise my younger brother and I. From a young age, I was taught the importance of education; this became a major catalyst in my life. My desire to excel academically was not for self-gain, but my way of contributing to my family’s goals and aspirations.
The greatest woman I’ve ever known always told me that education was important…and she was right. I came from a small town in the suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri prior to becoming a teenager. At the time, education was abundant in St. Ann, where I lived. I attended a decent elementary school and made good grades, despite mathematics not being my cup of tea. I have