I’ve been teaching college for over ten years, and for the most part it’s been a great experience. I’ve learned a lot from my students and the course material, and it’s especially rewarding when I come upon a student excited about learning. Unfortunately, they’re not that common.
Most students seem to be taking courses to earn a degree. I applaud and understand this. As I’ve pointed out to my daughters, a job can be taken away from you, but a degree cannot. A degree helps build career security, a much more valuable commodity than job security. A degree is of great value to the individual.
But it seems to me that just as important, if not more so, is the value of an education. The dictionary defines “educated” as well taught, cultured, and knowledgeable. Someone can possess a degree and it may or may not be apparent; when one is educated, it shows. An education is of value to the world, not just the individual. An educated person has learned something, and learning means changing behaviors. It’s about what you do just as much as it is about what you know.
Thankfully, there are many ways we can and do become educated, and ideally the process never ends. Increase your value to yourself, your employer, and the world by doing just one thing today to become more educated.