"The Case Against College"

I thought this was an interesting article because it is an extremely relivant topic to all of us since we are all attending college with the hope that it will improve our career opportunities in the future. The article made some interesting points, which made me question and remember things I have heard about getting a college degree. Today, almost everyone attends college after high school, even if they have no direction or desire for a particular degree. In fact, this is so true that in most fields you cannot even get a good career with just a bachelor's degree. This defiantly makes you question the purpose and necessity of attending college. While I was reading this article I was thinking about all the successful people I have learned about who dropped out of college to follow their passions in life. One example of this is Bill Gates. I think an interesting point made in the article was about how going to college limits people's freedoms because after college people must immediately start working because they have so much debt from loans they took out in order to pay for their education. I think this is an unfair argument. Although it is true that many people graduate and must start paying back massive amounts of debt, if a person did not go to college, he or she would also have to start working immediately. Things like food, rent, and all other living expenses aren't exactly free. In addition, a college degree makes a person qualified for a wider variety of jobs. I don't think that having a college degree necessarily guarantees a financially successful future, but I do think it helps.

Essentialism

According to dictionary.com, essentialism is a noun for "a doctrine that certain traditional concepts, ideals, and skills are essential to society and should be taught methodically to all students, regardless of individual ability." Essentialism is a main topic covered in Bell Hook's writing. Hooks talks about how experience is important to teaching, but knowledge is also essential. One of my favorite quotations from this piece is, "I might ask students to ponder what we want to make happen in the class, to name what we hope to know, what might be most useful. I ask them what standpoint might, just for today, be a mountaintop, such that if we climb it, we will be able to see farther. Sometimes that standpoint is a personal experience. Then there are times when personal experience keeps us from reaching the mountaintop and so we let it go because the weight is too heavy." This quotation is special because it summarizes Hook's main point that knowledge should be gained through education and personal experience, in a metaphorical way.