I know that for some, education is a means to an end. If you’re doing Law or Commerce or something, you likely have some goal in mind: you want to be a lawyer, commerce-person, etc.
But I do Arts…
For me, education is not a means to an end, I’m not at uni to become more eligible for employment (though, please, hire me.) I’m not here to become a doctor or a pilot, I’m here because I’m interested in literature, I’m here because the history of film actually intrigues me. I would spend three years of my life at uni to end up with nothing except a good grasp of a few things and a fun time with friends.
So, what exactly is the point of assessment for someone who finds education intrinsically valuable?
I am here to learn what I want to learn, I am here to discuss what interests me, to research things I would love to read about anyway. I am not here to show anybody how high I can jump, to show anyone how quickly I can count to 100, to show anyone how well I have been listening. I am not here to prove myself, to try to be better than anyone, to do anything for anyone else.
I can motivate myself to learn, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. If I didn’t have a desire to learn things, I wouldn’t be trying so hard to get a Bachelor of fucking Arts. I don’t need people to set checkpoints for me, I’m happy to miss things, I’m happy to go off on tangents.
I’m happy to just sit back and listen to someone who is smarter than me explain something.
It rocks. I’m genuinely thrilled to understand something.
Maybe this isn’t normal, most people probably wouldn’t come to lectures if they weren’t being marked on it, I don’t know. It just seems to me that the whole reason for getting an educated has become wrong somewhere. Sure, lots more people come to uni now, probably because they’re expected to.
For me, this expectation is ruining my education. Assessment for those who can’t motivate themselves makes something which is intensely enjoyable into something stressful. I don’t want to have to worry about learning, the only worry I should have is understanding what the fuck Descartes is talking about.
If you’re one of those people who think being challenged or pushed is valuable, fine, but I can be challenged intellectually by a conversation in a much more valuable way than when I am challenged to write thousands of words about an aspect of a course that doesn’t interest me just so bureaucrats can tick some boxes.
Don’t ruin my end by adding your own means.
Your learner for hire,
TDE
Tags: arts, education, university
October 19, 2010 at 9:37 pm |
Whether you read, there is a goal behind it.
If the goal is not decided then read something mean your waste your time.
Here goal mean not to get a job or a degree. Some one read for knowledge, this is the goal for them.
The education has no end. For me education is that by which i can use full y and develop my inner abilities and skills.
Thanks,
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