DAY 22 – BASIC REQUIREMENT: EDUCATION AND KNOWLEDGE

I am watching a documentary about how children learn. It begins with young children sitting in a classroom and listening to their teacher. It continues with teenagers discussing life with their parents, other adults and friends. In both cases children everywhere are learning different things that will benefit them throughout their lives.

No one comes into this world with the prerequisite knowledge that will give them the life that they want to have. Everything we need to know that enhances life each of us has to learn. Some of it we get in school and the rest comes from outside the school setting.

At the age of six, and often younger than that, children begin formal education. We initially learn how to read, write and do arithmetic. As we get older we are taught about historical events, science, politics, religion, art, music and a myriad of other subjects. Once out of high school we either go to work or get a more advanced education that enables each of us to specialize in a specific area. All of this is intended to help human beings to go into the world and make a positive contribution to society.

While we expand our horizons through an educational system, the challenges each of us have to face in order to successfully navigate through all aspects of life requires deeper insights into everyday situations and events. We need to understand more about how the human body and mind functions and what we do that will enhance one’s own physical and mental well-being. We also need awareness about how to develop harmonious relationships with our fellow human beings, whether it is with the people we love or those in far off lands. Our ability to be consciously aware of how the earth functions and how each of us can contribute to creating a clean and sustainable earth is also of great importance.

The advice we get while growing up from our parents and other people is invaluable in every person’s evolution into becoming a responsible and caring human being. It is also up to every person as they become a mature adult to pursue the type of knowledge that they can use to achieve a personally better life and to positively contribute to creating a better world. While the previous generation could gain insights into life by reading newspapers and books, listening to radio programs and watching television shows, people living in the first part of the twenty-first century now have the benefit of an expansive cable television network and an internet that opens up the entire world to inquiry.

Never before have human beings been able to immediately access any type of knowledge they want to have by just going online. Think about how easy it is today to learn about any subject or issue a person might be interested in. Anyone with a desire to go beyond what is taught in school can look up more information than what was discussed in class. Anyone can find more in-depth insights into life by accessing the internet. The only limitation to acquiring new knowledge is what a person places upon himself or herself.

With more information available on the internet humanity now has access to books with profound ideas, an ability to learn about enlightening concepts and inspirational speeches that cross time periods. The possibilities to attain the type of knowledge that prevents personal and societal problems from occurring as well as how to quickly remedy existing difficulties is out there. All of this can be easily passed on from person to person and generation to generation because like minded people who have a real desire to create a collectively better world is now able to connect with one another.

While watching this documentary I now realize that my formal education has helped me to become a productive member of society. I am also a better human being today because of the deeper insights into life that have been shared with me by other people and the life enhancing concepts that I have sought out.