Thomas Jefferson believed that universal education would have to precede universal suffrage. The ignorant, he argued, were incapable of self-government. But he had profound faith in the reasonableness and ability of the masses and in their collective wisdom when educated. As one of the founding fathers, Jefferson in fact set the precedent for American education: reading, writing, mathematics, the Classics, and European and American History. That his beliefs were focused on all male citizens receiving a free education, and a sign of his times for, in 1789, the first law was passed in Massachusetts to reaffirm the colonial laws by which town were obligated to support a school. Jefferson would not have recognized the drastic changes that the 21st century has brought -- but clearly, his ideas of valuing the educational process are even more valid in this global world as they were during the 18th century.
One might ask, what is education? What is the value of education? This is a seminal question that has been raised since ancient times. Certainly, the ancient Greeks (Athenians) had an idea of how education worked -- take your upper class males, teach them to read, write, quote literature, play and instrument, and become a proficient athlete. As society evolved, so did the need for education. Of course a...
Indeed, it may sometimes consist of a fragile nexus of vague attitudes, tentative beliefs, complex and even contradictory dispositions, and ideologies perhaps only semi-congealed. Still, in any belief and value complex, there are certain notions (or planks, if you will) more deeply entrenched and elaborate that have been with me since
childhood.
My earliest memories, in fact, are of completing jigsaw puzzles with my
Mother. We would spend hours, sometimes days, on one puzzle because we had a very specific routine. I especially loved the idea of emptying all the pieces onto the table and feeling that overwhelming challenge, not of impotence, but of a hill to climb. Together, we would flip the pieces right side up and complete the edges then fill in one line at a time -- in a perfect spiral. And, the more time we spent on a puzzle, the more
personal value I felt. Once finished, we would lacquer, date, and frame the puzzle, then hang in my room.
I believe these early experiences were
metaphors for my
love of the challenge of learning. It is, as Aristotle once said, "not the destination, but the journey" that teaches the most. Life, education, and indeed individual subjects are like that puzzle -- it is all a matter of
learning the keys to the puzzle, and the joy along the way, that provides the tools towards attainment of an educational, personal, or professional goal.
Of course,
college is the
place where the "life puzzle" becomes more complicated and each successive educational opportunity even more so. No longer do we clear the table and pour out the pieces to unravel already pre-cut with a template to follow. Instead, the road becomes murkier as we create…
