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Education Is:

Hawkeye10

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The ability to conduct ones self correctly independently of the herd combined with obtaining the skill of using this life to max advantage.




Discuss.
 
You'LL notice that I dont require any University credential, which should shock you none at all, because the University has failed.

COMPLETELY
 
All-caps interjections aside, let's actually think deeply about this for just a second.

The problem with redefining education in a way that removes a central/higher authority from it, is that the latin origin of the word is educare - it boils down to the phrase "lead out," and an authority figure or mentor figure is implied by the word. Independent learning is all well and good, and many important figures in American history were self-taught, but the term educated simply does not refer to such individuals.

All that said, language does evolve, and with a society that seems to be rapidly progressing away from central authority in areas of culture and information, from the development of alternative systems of teaching like Khan Academy, to independent art movements made possible through the internet & crowd funding, maybe it is time to redefine the word "educated" away from being a primarily institutional term.

Oh, and before we get ahead of ourselves, here's the first definition of "education" you get from Google:

the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction, especially at a school or university

I propose a simple, straightforward alternative definition for education: proficiency in a field, due to accumulated knowledge of relevant subjects. This definition would cover people who developed a talent or trade through self-teaching just as it would those who learned the same from a trade school or college. It also avoids the ideologically driven and ultimately meaningless claptrap in Hawkeye's post about "correct behavior independent of the herd," a phrase that has little to no bearing on much of human knowledge, such as art, with several terms that cannot possibly be measured objectively, like "correctly." And frankly, defining any word through informal slang like "the herd" is just plain ridiculous. No offense intended, Hawkeye. You had an interesting idea here, but you might want to shake off your buzz before continuing further with it.
 
All-caps interjections aside, let's actually think deeply about this for just a second.

The problem with redefining education in a way that removes a central/higher authority from it, is that the latin origin of the word is educare - it boils down to the phrase "lead out," and an authority figure or mentor figure is implied by the word. Independent learning is all well and good, and many important figures in American history were self-taught, but the term educated simply does not refer to such individuals.

All that said, language does evolve, and with a society that seems to be rapidly progressing away from central authority in areas of culture and information, from the development of alternative systems of teaching like Khan Academy, to independent art movements made possible through the internet & crowd funding, maybe it is time to redefine the word "educated" away from being a primarily institutional term.

Oh, and before we get ahead of ourselves, here's the first definition of "education" you get from Google:



I propose a simple, straightforward alternative definition for education: proficiency in a field, due to accumulated knowledge of relevant subjects. This definition would cover people who developed a talent or trade through self-teaching just as it would those who learned the same from a trade school or college. It also avoids the ideologically driven and ultimately meaningless claptrap in Hawkeye's post about "correct behavior independent of the herd," a phrase that has little to no bearing on much of human knowledge, such as art, with several terms that cannot possibly be measured objectively, like "correctly." And frankly, defining any word through informal slang like "the herd" is just plain ridiculous. No offense intended, Hawkeye. You had an interesting idea here, but you might want to shake off your buzz before continuing further with it.

In your telling only the specialists can be said to be educated, which is a bias against the generalists, which I reject.

My claim that education is the acquiring the ability to navigate the universe independently of the herd maximizing out time in this life is not revolutionary or weird at all:

Chomsky, whose thoughts on education we’ve featured before, tells us in the short video interview at the top of the post how he defines what it means to be truly educated. And to do so, he reaches back to a philosopher whose views you won’t hear referenced often, Wilhelm von Humboldt, German humanist, friend of Goethe and Schiller, and “founder of the modern higher education system.” Humboldt, Chomsky says, “argued, I think, very plausibly, that the core principle and requirement of a fulfilled human being is the ability to inquire and create constructively, independently, without external controls.” A true education, Chomsky suggests, opens a door to human intellectual freedom and creative autonomy.
Noam Chomsky Defines What It Means to Be a Truly Educated Person | Open Culture
 
In your telling only the specialists can be said to be educated, which is a bias against the generalists, which I reject.

My claim that education is the acquiring the ability to navigate the universe independently of the herd maximizing out time in this life is not revolutionary or weird at all:


Noam Chomsky Defines What It Means to Be a Truly Educated Person | Open Culture

Did you read my entire post? What I quoted was the official legal definition, and what I suggested as a theoretical alternative had nothing to do with institutional education.
 
Did you read my entire post? What I quoted was the official legal definition, and what I suggested as a theoretical alternative had nothing to do with institutional education.

I did..
 

Where do I suggest that generalists are uneducated?

Sorry I didn't think to include this before posting that short reply, but proficiency in general knowledge does work for my definition, arguably moreso than your original definition - using a skill to max advantage, to my mind, implies heavy focus on a specific area.
 
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Where do I suggest that generalists are uneducated?

Sorry I didn't think to include this before posting that short reply, but proficiency in general knowledge does work for my definition, arguably moreso than your original definition - using a skill to max advantage, to my mind, implies heavy focus on a specific area.

I propose a simple, straightforward alternative definition for education: proficiency in a field, due to accumulated knowledge of relevant subjects

That's a specialist, it takes learning a very narrow band of truth over a long period to become "proficient in a field"...they do that rather than look at the big picture and understand how the parts go together as generalists like myself do...your definition is biased against generalists so heavily that you refuse to admit that we are even educated.

I AM INSULTED
 
That's a specialist, it takes learning a very narrow band of truth over a long period to become "proficient in a field"...they do that rather than look at the big picture and understand how the parts go together as generalists like myself do...your definition is biased against generalists so heavily that you refuse to admit that we are even educated.

I AM INSULTED

I edited my post at #7 to give a bit more context to why I thought my definition worked fine for generalists. I'm in the process of editing this post too, so give me a couple minutes.

Someone with general knowledge in a variety of fields is likely to be blown out of the water by anyone who has focused their career on a single subject, in terms of that subject, but they are likely to be more proficient than that expert in a great many things.

The word proficient, after all, does not stipulate a specific degree of skill in a field; merely that there is an amount of skill in a given field. The definition, just to get us on the same page, is merely "competent or skilled in doing or using something." That leaves quite a bit of room for interpreting one's degree of proficiency.
 
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I edited my post at #7 to give a bit more context to why I thought my definition worked fine for generalists. I'm in the process of editing this post too, so give me a couple minutes.

"Being a Generalist is fine so long as you dont do much of it" is what you are saying and I say screw that.

If it helps humans and oneself then the skill is useful, because humans come first, our job is to look out for ourselves, just like every other species main job is to look out for themselves......anything that works to get that done is a skill, knowing about the right tool for the job and the right jobs to do is education, regardless of the lies the herd tells in its schools.

How bout that, do you like that better?
 
The ability to conduct ones self correctly independently of the herd combined with obtaining the skill of using this life to max advantage.




Discuss.

No, that's not what education is. Check it out: words have meanings.

Please try again.
 
No, that's not what education is. Check it out: words have meanings.

Please try again.

That's What we are doing here, brainstorming a definition...the best definition.

If you want to participate you know what to do.
 
That's What we are doing here, brainstorming a definition...the best definition.

If you want to participate you know what to do.

Dude, I just....

Sign.

Several definitions already exist. They're all correct and accurate. Your need to redefine the world will not change that.
 
Dude, I just....

Sign.

Several definitions already exist. They're all correct and accurate. Your need to redefine the world will not change that.


A conversation on the essential qualities of education, on what education is for, can be a lot of fun in the right crowd, but if you dont want to be a part of said fun then you know what to do.
 
The ability to conduct ones self correctly independently of the herd combined with obtaining the skill of using this life to max advantage.

Discuss.

How many members of the Rebellion does it take to solve an equation?

None, they just scream at the equation that WE USED TO BE SMARTER!
 
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