Instead of examining an article, I want to break away from text and examine a video. The video is by a poet named Suli Breezy who is based out of the UK. His spoken word focuses heavily on the problems he sees in education. The one cited in this blog is titled "Why I hate school, but love education," but he has another spoken word piece titled "I will not let an exam result decide my fate." In both videos/poems, the definition and arrival of success are put into question, and Suli argues that society's idea of success undermines the different avenues through which people can accomplish goals.
In the poem, many known (and highly respected/successful) people are quoted or referenced. Some of the major figures alluded to are not formally educated but have nevertheless paved a path that we walk on today. Leaders such as Jesus Christ and Malcolm X are cited because while they did not attend a college like Ohio State to earn a piece of paper, they are responsible for theological, moral, and philosophical growth and inspiration. Steve Jobs is also thrown into the conversation as a person not formally schooled, but highly educated and innovative. Whether you are a "mac" or "pc," it is hard to not acknowledge Jobs' talent and influence on technology as we experience today.
I think that message that Suli Breezy is trying to send is that being educated transcends the walls of a school or the pages of a book. Being educated does not mean regurgitating information to only forget it, but rather mastering a task or a dream and truly pursuing it. This video plays into many of the class discussions and even plays into an international perspective on education as it is voiced from a perspective of an English student.
I think as we are situated in teaching a classroom we should think about what we define as success for our students. Does a students wayward attitude and tendency to break our rules mean they are failing students, or are their unconventional tendencies signify they are brilliant in ways we do not understand? Should we embrace our students' passions and tailor curriculum to fuel their excitement to be education in their favorite things, or should we continue to hold our standards in the comfort of a box that society has constructed for us?
I love this video. I've thought about this many times, success is defined by the beholder. Basically, everything that's being said in this video supports that. Why don't we pay more attention to all of the smart people that have come so long before us, or the ones that we learn about in our textbooks. As a society I think it's so important that we stop looking at our test scores and how well we can memorize and then forget information to ways we can make a difference. In my opinion, education is put in place to inspire people and bring out their own creativity to develop more on their own. That doesn't mean this needs to happen from schooling I think maybe some people are simply born with it. We have proof (all the people he stated in the video) that people can be extremely successful without a piece of paper from a university. My favorite part was his quote at the end that says, "there's more than one way to be an educated man". I really enjoyed this video and I plan on sharing it with as many people as I can!
ReplyDeleteThis video was really awesome. I'm glad you posted it. I think that in today's society, most people think that to be successful you have no choice, but to go to college and obtain a degree in whatever it is that you want to do. For many of us that may be true. We aren't all born with the mind of Steve Jobs or the soccer playing skills of David Beckham, but there are other ways for someone to be successful. I like what Alyssa said, "education was put in place to inspire and bring out creativity". We lose part of that inspiration and creativity in college because there are not enough professors who are there to truly inspire their students and bring out the best in them. I think its something we need to remember when considering education.
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