Essay 1
Jonathan Temple
English 101
June 3, 2013 ESSAY 1: EDUCATION
When we think of someone who is well-educated, we typically think of doctors, lawyers and people in those categories. This does not always means a person has to have a fancy degree or title behind their name to be well-educated. Being well-educated can come in many different ways. So what does it mean to be well-educated? In this essay, I will give some examples as to what I feel well-educated means to me, other than having a degree.
As I read thru the article by Alfie Kohn about principle leadership on what does it mean to be well-educated; I became very intrigued. Over my 21 years with the US Army, I have had several officers over me who have their degree but still not educated on life in the military. Yes, they went to college and got educated in the books, but when it comes to military life or combat, it’s still a lot to be educated on. There were times when an officer came to me for advice or what to do because he knew I had many years of experience on the job which therefore made me more educated than he. It’s no different from when I first enlisted in the military; there were people over me I had to go to because I wasn’t educated in the job. In Alfie Kohn’s article, he stated “my wife has a doctoral degree from Harvard but if you ask her what 8 times 7 is, she would freeze up.” The same concept applies with some officers I worked under in my military career. You could go to them about a lot things, and they could give you answer without thinking but it could be something as simple as putting up a frame tent and they wouldn’t have a clue. But if you take a person that has set up a frame tent several times without any hesitation and not ask the question, “how?” I consider this person well-educated because he has done this task many times. I do believe a person becomes well-educated with time and practice. Just because you go to college
English 101
June 3, 2013 ESSAY 1: EDUCATION
When we think of someone who is well-educated, we typically think of doctors, lawyers and people in those categories. This does not always means a person has to have a fancy degree or title behind their name to be well-educated. Being well-educated can come in many different ways. So what does it mean to be well-educated? In this essay, I will give some examples as to what I feel well-educated means to me, other than having a degree.
As I read thru the article by Alfie Kohn about principle leadership on what does it mean to be well-educated; I became very intrigued. Over my 21 years with the US Army, I have had several officers over me who have their degree but still not educated on life in the military. Yes, they went to college and got educated in the books, but when it comes to military life or combat, it’s still a lot to be educated on. There were times when an officer came to me for advice or what to do because he knew I had many years of experience on the job which therefore made me more educated than he. It’s no different from when I first enlisted in the military; there were people over me I had to go to because I wasn’t educated in the job. In Alfie Kohn’s article, he stated “my wife has a doctoral degree from Harvard but if you ask her what 8 times 7 is, she would freeze up.” The same concept applies with some officers I worked under in my military career. You could go to them about a lot things, and they could give you answer without thinking but it could be something as simple as putting up a frame tent and they wouldn’t have a clue. But if you take a person that has set up a frame tent several times without any hesitation and not ask the question, “how?” I consider this person well-educated because he has done this task many times. I do believe a person becomes well-educated with time and practice. Just because you go to college
References: 1. ONLINE ARTICLE: Principle Leadership dated March 2003 “What does it mean to be well-educated?” by Alfie Kohn