Vanessa Langlitz
ENG 110-C
8/31/17
Higher education is the building block of our society. It is considered a necessity yet is never analyzed as to why. We never ask what it entails, it is just a given. Higher education’s purpose is to challenge us. Without challenge, the human mind cannot evolve. Education is exercise for the mind; without higher education, the mind would be weak and unable to act.
When we have nothing to do, the mind is restless. When there is a day where we learn nothing or are taught nothing, we are tired . Higher education provides the opportunity of daily challenges to the mind. We see and hear examples of this everywhere. Those who do not learn or take initiative to learn are the “deadbeats.”, Someone with aspirations, who attends a university, is seen as someone who will go far in life. The education they receive will get them somewhere. This brings us to another aspect of education most easily stated in Martha Nussbaum’s “Education for Profit, Education for Democracy.” Nussbaum clearly states that the United States’ education system is tailored to the liberal arts. These liberal arts provide a range of courses that provide more critical thinking courses for students. These courses allow emphasis on active thinking. This is a main part of the United States’ Democracy system. We need capable and active thinking adults to make decisions and speak up. A democracy requires competence and activity.
Ronald Barnett takes this statement a step further in “The Idea of Higher Education.” Higher education does provide knowledge and activity, yet students must realize there is never finality. We must always use critical thinking as it is fundamental in our society. If we believe that a higher education will automatically grant us a way to something better all the time, then we are wrong. My experiences show that both Nussbaum’s and Barnett’s ideas are completely true. Higher education provides critical thinking skills that allow us to actively participate in society, especially in our democracy. We must be able to think of things in a critical way on multiple levels to fully understand a problem and find a solution. We cannot take anything for granted. If we never learn how to argue against something, then the world would be a much different place. Higher education is not meant to comfort, it is meant to challenge. It is the preparation for our place in a complex world.
