An Overview of Thoughts on Why College and Education Matter
Booker T. Washington’ ideas about education are relevant for today, and it can be seen in the article “Beyond One-Size-Fits-All College Dreams”. In this article, the authors tell that most of the high school students assume they will get dream jobs after graduating from University. The students do not understand that their expectation may be impossible if they do not recognize their ability accurately. The students also ignored the importance of certificate and associate’s degree which can help them find appropriate jobs more than bachelor’s degrees. The teachers and counselors in the school should advise students to let them know their goal and how to prepare to achieve the success. Washington’s lessons about the education relates to this article because both of them want to teach the students the necessary knowledge, and they will feel happy about their choices.
Firstly, Washington established Tuskegee Institute to give education and independence to black students. He helped them know the importance of the industrial study that would support race issues. They also set up the Washington and his students learned about the brickmaking successfully after the failures. Then, the students could build their school by themselves and sell bricks in the market. This lesson aided the blacks felt more confident and gain useful skills to step into the society. Likewise, nowadays the high school students need the counselors show them what they should to think and make the right decisions. There are some information of bachelor’s degree like as earning a million-dollar and ensuring a dream job that make students have an illusion about it. Getting the bachelor’s degree just is a path, but there are many paths to get the success in the life. In fact, students are easier to find good jobs with their certificates or associate degree in many popular industries such as mechanical design technology, graphic communication technologies, dental hygiene, or computer networking. Many bachelors do not get a job after graduating, and they have to work contrary to their major that they learned from University. The students do not need to pursue a bachelor's degree persistently if they do not prepare well. Every student can work effectively and happily even if you do not have a bachelor’s degree.
Secondly, when Washington taught his students learn about the trade, some parents claimed that their children had to labor in school. However, Washington still kept his opinion that black students had to be self-sufficiency and responsible about their life. Therefore, blacks’ life would be better, and whites would respect them. Relate to the article, the counselors tell that they will be get trouble from parents and school if they let students know that it is difficult for students to go study college courses because students’ high school grades are low. The counselors can not give the advice that students should get the certificate or associate degree even though these students just have a few percent to achieve the bachelor’s degree. Similarly to Washington, the school staffs should be honest to give students the correct information. Hence, the students will know where they are, and what they need. They will choose the school that they can to learn helpful skills to prepare for their future instead of wasting their time on unnecessary courses. Washington helped black student, who came from slavery, overcame the obstacles to improve their life, and the young people should learn from their experiences to achieve their goals.
As show above, Washington’s valuable lessons still affect today’s education system. The ultimate purposes of education are to become a useful role in society and find a good job.
