OBL asked us to expound on education a couple of weeks ago. Coincidentally my husband brought that subject up last night, so I will start with him.
Part One, GrandpaDaddy Experience rather than education lead him to his career
GD’s family emphasized work (mostly farm work) over education. Never much of a student, that was okay with GD. In his younger years he had the same lousy grammar school teacher for several grades in a one room schoolhouse. After high school he took a couple of semesters of general studies at a community college. During the next 20 years he worked at a meat packing plant, then a filling station/contractor as a bulk fuel delivery driver and pipeline installer, then as a shop manager at a tire store and finally as the store manager at the tire store.
Each job for him was a step up, and he started pretty much at the bottom, maybe not pay-wise but definitely physical work-wise. He said, “I never could have walked off the street and been hired to do this.” He’s probably right. His strengths are in understanding numbers, being enthusiastic about whatever product he is selling and in customer relations. Had he taken courses in business, he might have started where he is now, but as it is he has valuable experience in mechanics and working with tires. He doesn’t wander out to the shop in his Dockers and penny loafers to point stuff out to his employees; he crawls under the truck and shows them the easiest way to do the job, (and thank God he has a uniform service to do his laundry). He plumbed and wired our addition. He can fix our furnace and vehicles. He did take propane classes, but he learned everything else the hard way.
My husband was not a great student; he wasn’t likely to complete the course to become a vet tech. I think education is what you make of it. Sometimes you can study hard and get a degree in your dream field and end up doing something completely different. Here are some other course changes I know of:
– degree in political science now works with computers
– degree in education now politician
– master’s in psychology now cleans houses (and counsels people)
– degree in finance now a receptionist
– degree in finance now rancher/museum curator
– degree in microbiology also museum curator
– degree in agriculture/wildlife now a teacher
– degree in agriculture was delivery company manager now the guy who checks scales around the state
– degree in agriculture now mother, wait I still deal with diets, poop and herd dynamics, maybe it isn’t so far off after all
Part Two, Wildflowersp Education opened the door, curiosity led her down the hall
I was lucky. I did not know what I wanted to be when I hit college but the Range Department made a practice of offering naïve freshmen $50 to declare Range then take a beginning course on the topic. It was exactly what I wanted; I just didn’t know what to call it.
Somewhere along about my sophomore year in college everything began falling together. We studied photosynthesis in general biology, one of my range classes and also in botany. It made studying easy that semester. But most of my professors, in soils, general bio, and chem, assured me that their field of study was integral to, possibly solely responsible for the very function of the Earth and existence of life itself. I became concerned my badminton teacher would try to impress on me the importance of racquet sports on the future of civilization.
It is likely that I have used some information from each of my classes in my everyday life, with the possible exception of chem. I had two lousy teachers (one for two classes) so I managed to come out of my education with little knowledge of chemistry, however if I don’t know something, I am not afraid to learn about it.
I am still puzzled by the fact that I never took creative writing in high school. An extra English/writing course really would not have fit in at college, in fact somehow I escaped Sci-Tech writing, but I have no excuse for high school. Because I was on the speech team my major prof let me skip Public Speaking too, and that turned out okay, I am a fearless public speaker.
So my college resume reads: a bachelor in science from one university, an odd range class from a state college, an art class, two writing classes and a computer class from a community college and a welding class from another community college. I could go broke getting official transcripts! I look at the community college pamphlet every semester when it comes out, waiting for the time I can work on my conversational Spanish or learn about philosophy, or maybe the basal ganglia (maybe not). I didn’t quit learning when I got out of school.
I think learning is more important than education, but you don’t have to be in class to learn things. Developing a desire to find out how and why things work is more important than being able to fill in the correct small circles with a number two pencil. That being said, a certain amount of education is necessary, and if it is a struggle from the beginning, I think I would do my best to foster my child’s curiosity outside of school.
Oct 23, 2009 @ 09:50:00
I really could have used that degree in agriculture/wildlife~ I was not even remotely prepared for nine children. But discovered it is what I am designed to do~ and has molded me and given me the confidence to handle ANYTHING God brings my way.Seems we spend too much time trying to perfect those things we struggle with~ instead of nurturing our God given passions and gifts. Love this post!!
Oct 23, 2009 @ 11:51:00
Great post. My husband is not great at school. He’s smart, he studies constantly, and he can ace a test, however, all the “fill-in” work bores him so he does not do it. This is not good for grades. He also gets so bored in classes that he falls asleep, also not good . . .. I feel frustrated for him because in order to be taken seriously for the knowledge he’s spent all of his spare time acquiring over the last ten years, he’s got to sit in a classroom for about 40 more hours at some point. I have a degree in counseling and run a domestic violence shelter. It was not the intended plan of that degree, but it actually fits.
Oct 23, 2009 @ 16:20:00
Political Science major/French minor. Jobs: Crew Trainer (McD’s), truck dispatcher, receptionist, customer service rep., secretary, program assistant, and SAHM. I agree with everything you’ve written. Education is what you make of it, and book learnin’ isn’t for everyone–some, like your hubby have gifts that go beyond books and school. I’m like you, I love to take classes. I took an Intro to Criminal Justice class at the community college. It was not only interesting, but fed my inner law follower! Lately, I’ve been struggling with my decision to home school the girls. This is the second thing I’ve read that has been encouraging to me. Thank you!
Oct 24, 2009 @ 07:32:00
Great post.My BA in journalism degree has led me to careers in science reporting, technical editing, being a croupier in Las Vegas, and being a safety/security officer at a major hospital (my current job, at which one of my side functions is to help the boss spell the words correctly when he has to say something in writing). Go figure.
Oct 24, 2009 @ 12:52:00
My grandfather had to quit school before his 8th grade graduation to work on the farm, but he never stopped learning. He was one of the most knowledgeable people I ever knew. He was curious about everything and read and traveled as much as he could, though he spent his first 70 years mostly on the farm.Education is never wasted. Even those fine arts classes required for some degrees are part of what makes a person educated, rather than trained. That being said, a formal education is the easiest, most efficient way to pass on knowledge. And having knowledge makes a person more interesting and more interested in the world around him. My degree in library science and media specialist job required I know a little about a lot of things but not a lot about any one thing. It helped that I had a background from my grandparents and parents that encouraged learning. So, I didn’t deviate from my college education–a BS in secondary education and library science–but my learning never stopped with the degree. And my husband says I have never stopped teaching him–he says he’s been my student for the longest time. Actually, my daughter has been my student longer. And you’re exactly right, curiosity drives knowledge. Encourage that in your children.
Oct 24, 2009 @ 15:18:00
Wow, that sounds interesting! There are so many things I wish I had studied and hope to study in the future. My grandfather took an advanced mathematics class at Oklahoma University when he was 83 years old. I just loved that about him. Education is a small part of the Venn Diagram, I agree, but so important as you get older.
Oct 24, 2009 @ 21:13:00
I’d say the ability and willing ness to read is probably the most important thing. The guys I work with who are not readers have such gaping blanks spots in their lives, seems to me.
Oct 25, 2009 @ 21:38:00
@prairiecowboy – I agree wholeheartedly.
Oct 26, 2009 @ 10:13:00
Add history major now selling JD parts and a dental assistant now selling advertising to your list. Good post!
Dec 05, 2009 @ 09:31:00
October 22 post – I didn’t read this one! I am sure I missed it in my fog of debilitating nausea! There are actually a bunch of posts I missed as I paged back to this one. And you DO want to learn about the basal ganglia, I promise! I have a lovely hand out and 2 very nicely done power point presentations that will teach you all a first year medical student needs to know about the basal ganglia! And I have some excellent demonstrations set up in the lab around the end of March/beginning of April if you want to see them in cross section (both horizontal AND vertical slices!). Trust me. You would love them. (-:Shockingly, I actually have a job in my major (PhD biomedical sciences, teach neuro) but I also do bookkeeping for our small businesses (amateur accounting, I guess) and have been the official drama director at church. My husband’s official degree is in math, I think, but he is a computer guy. I worked as a teller for a while out of college to pay off student loans and then went straight to grad school. Work schmirk, who needs it if you’ve got a sugar daddy!?
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