Giving back and self-satisfaction: two purposes of education.
“Honey Boo Boo Child”, aka Alana Thompson, a 7 year old girl that star’s on a reality show on TLC, “The Learning Channel, a place for learning minds”, often illicit heated controversies, not only about the child but TLC as well. Producing shows like Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, can be some what contradicting when it is associated with an educational theme as “a place for learning minds”. For example, Quadnews.net wrote an article and mentioned the Thompson family, “The Thompsons represent the worst kind of Americans: they are overweight, slovenly, poor and uneducated”. The word uneducated hit like bricks because TLC is a “learning channel”. What do people learn from Honey Boo Boo? Audiences are not learning what they should. Here Comes Honey Boo Boo does not serve any educational purpose to enhance intellectual development, rather it is for entertainment. The audience should be challenged by "The Learning Channel” in critical thinking, building intellectual skills, donating, volunteering, or simply standing up for what you believe in, things that would encourage the making of a good citizen. Thus, shows such as this, do not contribute to the making of a good citizens. If one is dedicated (TLC) towards educating minds, then building a strong solid reputation should reflect the image which is portrayed in both personal and public purposes.
This essay will discuss the purpose of both public and personal education, how a good education creates good citizens, also how each individual will find resources within arms reach to gain knowledge and the reward of self-satisfaction which follows. Both public and personal education serves a great purpose. Whatever our society has to offer, or each individual strive for, all must comprehend that both public and personal education have a distinct purpose to what it aims and both are honorable.
Making of a good citizen
One public purpose of education is the making of a good citizen. In other words, public education promotes citizens to give back to their community, taking what was learned and applying it by offering fresh new ideas that will improve society. Eleanor Roosevelt, former first lady of The Untied States, writes in, “Good Citizenship: The Purpose of Education” that, public education pushes an individual to think out side the box and to be more attentive in every area. Whichever subject is being taught, all subjects are unique and necessary for the functioning world around us. “Learning to be a good citizen is learning to live to the maximum of one’s abilities and opportunities, and every subject should be taught every child with this in view”. Not all teach the same, learn the same, understand the same, or see the same; however, as Mrs. Roosevelt suggested, public education can help the making of a good citizen. The process of learning can tend to be coarse because it challenges our intellect, but the results are rewarding. A good citizen, because of a good public education, will be an asset to the ever present society in which one resides.
Another example of the making of a good citizen is volunteer work, blood donations, voting and participation. The College Board, an organization that promotes “excellence and equity in education”, supports the idea of the making of a good citizen in their article, “The Benefits of Higher Education for Individuals and Society”. In the article, they share a report of “societal benefits” which includes: “Higher levels of education are correlated with higher levels of civic participation, including volunteer work, voting and blood donation.” Thus, public education proves that it offers society many great advantages in the making of a good citizen, where growth of the intellectual mind gives back.
Using resources and self rewarding satisfaction
The second purpose of education is the personal cause, in which the reward is self-satisfaction. One relies not on public affairs to find resources to enrich their knowledge, but searches for it by what is in arms reach. The concept of personal education catches my attention for the mere fact that one works harder for a hunger to learn because of independence; it is a deep hunger inside that craves satisfaction for a personal purpose, that drive of hunger which causes one to desperately seek until questions are answers and knowledge gained. A good example is in Frederick Douglass’, “How I Learned to Read and Write”. Douglass takes the reader through a heart wrenching journey of his life, as a young African American slave; he encounters people that would want nothing more than to see his failure in reading and writing. Though he faced adversity, he learned how to work through it for his advantage and used every resource in arms reach, he grasped that education had it own rewards. Douglass states, “The plan which I adopted, and the one by which I was most successful, was that of making friends of all the little white boys whom I met in the street. As many of these as I could, I converted into teachers”. His personal education was attained because he hungered for more; the disadvantages that surrounded him only empowered his motivation. The hunger to learn is so fine when the personal purpose of education is found to be complete within ones life; it is rewarding and brings self-satisfaction. Learning to adapt and use what is in arms reach is the key. The personal purpose of education, more than anything, is self rewarding knowing that you overcame all obstacles and gained life long knowledge. Personal education is intriguing, unique in its own beauty, which the reward is self-satisfaction.
Another example of personal education is given by Olivia Castellano, in her article “Canto, Locura, y Poesia”, she faced opposition from teachers because of words that cut, “but how did you get to be so smart? You are a Mexican, aren’t you?” She did not allow their words to infect her desire to learn. She too grasped that personal education is rewarding. Later in life, she became very successful; her personal purpose motivated her to not give up and was rewarding. Even though Castellano writes about 100 years later than Frederick Douglass, it is interesting to see how both of them encountered adversity differently yet in a strange way it is all still the same. There will always be some type of fight or struggle with obstacles that surround everyone, but all are to utilize those mishaps in finding resources to gain every advantage, there is self-satisfaction in personal education and it is rewarding.
Conclusion
Lastly, my personal purpose of education takes me from past fears to the hope of making an impact to every available opportunity possible. I seek the benefits that education reaps, one being self-satisfaction and the rewards that follow. There is a higher assurance than I, which has persuaded me to use resources within my arms reach in becoming a better me. Like Castellano or Douglass, at a certain point in life everyone will come up against a menacing situation to which all can some what relate. One of my personal experiences of a mishaps happened in the eighth grade. Like all children, I liked to talk, not excusing my actions however, a teacher came up to me with a very angered look, kicked the chair I was sitting on and said “Darlann you’ll never amount to anything” with his finger pointing in my face. Something about that moment was damaging. I found his words on repeat in my head. Years later, even as an adult, these words became a crutch for all my failures. Learning to put that fire out seemed too restless, but not hopeless. As I fight my way through circumstances, I understand in the end that all of it will be worth it! Knowing that I worked hard on my own, to prove to myself, that I did amount to something, and do have something to offer others is a reward within itself. My personal purpose of education I hold seriously and close to my heart. I love the thought that I, yes I, used every resource within my arms reach to work towards achieving a goal, and am persuaded to give my best, knowing that the out come will bring me a reward that I can be proud of: Self-satisfaction, my personal purpose of education.
