Education: Who is an Educated or Uneducated Person? - By Archimedes

Education originated from the Latin word 'educare' which means 'the bringing up of a child socially, physically, and mentally'. Generally, education could be defined as a process of drawing out the best in a child with the aim of producing a well-balanced personality. A well-balanced personality is one that is culturally refined, emotionally stable, ethically sound, mentally alert, morally upright, physically strong, socially efficient, spiritually upright, vocationally sufficient, and internationally liberal. Education takes place throughout the life of a person.  The main aim of education is to enable the individual develop interpersonal skills that will enable him live in harmony with himself and with others. Education seeks to train the character of a person, so that he will develop behaviours which are acceptable in the society.

Who is an educated person? Is an educated person the one who schools? An educated person is not necessarily the one who schools, but rather the one who develops  attitudes which are acceptable in the society. Education goes beyond Schooling. Schooling ends, but education only ends when life ceases. According to www.dictionary.com, "An educated person is characterised by a display of qualities such as pursuit of continuous learning and cultural understanding". An educated person is more aware of his environs and therefore, doesn't flout any laid down values of the society.

Who is then an uneducated person? Is he the one who has never schooled before? An uneducated person is one who doesn't fit in the society. He may be a PhD holder, yet not fully developed-character wise. Imagine attending for a dinner held for a group bankers as your friend's date. After sitting there for a while, no food or wine is served. Then the waiters begin to serve. They served 20 of the 30 tables that were set only to announce that the food that is left won't be enough to serve all the tables. Your date rolls up his sleeves, walks angrily towards the waiters, speaks rudely and forcefully takes food which he brings to your table. Now let me ask: what would be your opinion of your friend henceforth? Would you even eat the food if he asked you to? Full development of a person comprises social development, emotional development, intellectual development, and physical development. Every uneducated person is a caricature of himself. A philosopher, Chanakya, once said, "The life of an uneducated man is as useless as the tail of a dog which neither covers it's rear end, nor protect it from the bite of an insect".


Who are you? Uneducated or educated?






Edited by: Harriet A.  Abrokwah