Day 4

Day- How Important do you Think Education is?

I love the game Life. It's one of my absolute favorites. I can never get anyone to play with them though... For those are unfamiliar with the game, in the very beginning you have a choice. You can take out $100,000 in student loans and get an education. You then have the POSSIBILITY to have a higher paying job. Or, you just go get a job. No student loans, but you cannot make the highest salary.

I used to always get the education. My parents put a very high priority on education and how important it is. It was engrained in my mind all growing up. So naturally when faced with that choice in Life I would go to college. I cannot think of one time I ever got that stupid $100,000 per year salary. On the contrary I would usually end up with a $60,000 a year salary card and the person next to me who opted to not go to school would get the $90,000. And I was stuck with a bunch of student loans. No fair.

That's right, it's not fair. I learned that after college. Just because you have a college degree does not automatically mean a pot of gold is going to fall in your back yard and make you rich forever. You tell an employer you have a Bachelors degree. So what, the guy in the waiting room to be interviewed next has Masters.

I'm not trying to say that I think education is not important. I think it's flawed. I think a higher emphasis needs to be placed on education in the early years. Like 1st though 12th grade. That is where you pick up your study habits. That is where you learn basic math, English, science etc. And of course that is where you have 40 kids in one class and budget cuts causing you to have 10 people in your lab group.

I enjoyed college. And I miss it immensely. It was nice to be able to pick classes that I was interested in for once. But you only get out of college what you put into it. At the end of my college career I had a degree but no idea what I wanted to do with it. I did no internships, I spent no time in the career center. So I fell into travel agentdom, and here I am. Not that there is anything wrong with it. But safe to say I'm not bringing in the big bucks. In fact it would be nice to have my life card salary back again.

I think Colleges should put a higher emphasis on job placement after school. Or maybe offer whole classes that will help you figure out what you want to do after you get out of there.

On the flip side of this, not everything is about money. I had experiences in college that don't translate to dollar bills, but they do perhaps make me a more well rounded person. Too bad I can't make any money of telling someone what the capital of China is. But I look at my college degree and I am overwhelmed with pride. I worked my butt of for that thing!

I can't wait for Brynlee to start school. I know I'm weird. I can't wait to help her read and write and learn her times tables. And to take her to staples and buy her school supplies. I remember my parents practicing my times tables with me over and over again. Or helping me make a giant solar system diagram for a math class in Jr. High. That I got an A on. :) Those are some of my favorite memories.