The Oxford dictionary defines education as “the process of teaching training and learning, especially in schools or colleges, to improve knowledge and develop skills.”
As such, the education we receive is always dependent on the individual and their ability to be transformed by what they have learned.
Socrates stated the following: “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of the vessel” and “the only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.”
But what is the value of education? And how does one know if they truly learned something new?
In a TED Talk which was held in March of 2017, a student and researcher by the name of Seshu Iyengar, tried to answer the question “What is the value of education”.
According to Iyengar, the value of education can only be measured once it is challenged and tested.
Stephen Covey, the author of the best-selling book “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People”, addresses the importance of vision. Whether it be on a personal or enterprise level, having a vision determines the outcome of any project.
But having vision alone cannot make a vision come alive. It is the proactive steps that one takes which determine the fulfillment and completion of the plan.
According to Abraham Maslow, an American psychologist, life can be viewed as a Hierarchy of Needs and thus can be divided into different tiers such as:
physiological needs, security and safety, social needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs.
These needs form the basis of an individual’s life. Aiming at self-actualization before meeting the lower tiers can derail and throw a person off balance.
In line with Maslow‘s observation, Covey also highlights the importance of personal leadership.
In his book, he illustrates this by the symbolism of the ladder of success in which one may reach the top but can be utterly shocked to discover that the ladder was leaning against the wrong wall.
It is through education that we should learn to place the ladder on the right wall.
By Adina Sarah Abraham
