Turning Education Into Knowledge

Reading Time: 3 minutes

By Fatma Bujsaim (@Fatma_Bujsaim)

At some point in life, we have been programmed to believe/understand that everything we need to learn and know is either in the textbook or on the white/black board in the classroom. We went to school everyday at 8 am and attended our classes, at around 2pm we went back home, did our homework and that is that. After finishing our homework, we played, we had fun, we shopped, and we hung out with friends; and we avoided anything that would remind of us of school.

When we start university, and the first two semesters go by, we realize that the books and the board are not really enough in the process of learning. There is more to university than just doing projects, homework, and getting A’s in finals and midterms.

Wanting to learn could mean two things; either we want an education, or we want knowledge. But it could also mean that we want both. There is a very thin line that separates education from knowledge. In the Oxford Dictionary, Education is defined as “the process of teaching and learning (giving and receiving) systematic instructions”. So basically we are being told what to do and we just do it.

The problem with having an education alone is that we might forget it. It might slip away because it is just a set of instructions and guidelines. Education alone would not be able to survive and this is where knowledge comes in; it is defined as “facts, information, and skills acquired by a person through experience or education”.

So in other words, applying our education in experience turns it into knowledge. We do not only become aware of the information we gained in our education, but also become familiar with it and make it part of who we are, part of our experience.

The ways of gaining experience differs from one person to another. Some of us may volunteer in different events and conferences in their fields of interest; others may establish simple yet effective initiatives in order to practice and apply what they learned from their education.

We not only turn our education into knowledge by doing so but also get to learn new things while we are doing what we are doing. We meet new faces that teach us things from their own experience and enlighten us. We find support in other people and find ways of developing our future plans; one thing leads to another.

Some of us do not like any of the things mentioned above but we end up finding a way of creating our own experience, our own way of turning our education into a lifelong serving knowledge, and that might include traveling and exploring or conducting research.

So whether you are a freshmen, sophomore, junior, senior, or even an alumni, it is never too late to realize that what we learn from the classroom is not enough; there is more to life than what books teach us.

This, my friends, is what I found out while I’m on campus; I wonder if that’s going to change after graduation.

 

Here We StartInterview – Just Another Undergrad – Living Through The Eyes of ArtMicroscopic Me
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6 Comments

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  • Education & knowleadge are essential elements of human, can't be deleted easily from our lives . what we learn in the classroom is automatically carried out with us to real life. you find students share their thoeries with others & implementing that in or out school, so basically by doing so you're adding your own imprint into this WORLD .

    loved your topic . god bless & keep writing .

  • Education is no doubt crucial, however, it's not everything. Millions of people have survived and succeeded by putting themselves out in the world and dealing with matters as they come. I find that many a times a street smart person is a lot more knowledgeable in persuading others and getting things done than an educated person.
    I don't believe that what you learn from a book and what you discuss with your esteemed peers is enough to help you deal with all the challenges life puts your way. Theories matter to a great extent , yet implementing theory into practice is a whole different game.

    The point Im trying to make here is that education is very valuable, but life doesn't happen in a classroom only, nor should it.

    Fatma you make an excellent point!

  • I agree with what you said, there is huge difference between the two. The problem is that in school or university we are spending hours from our day to just learn (If we learn) things we can actually learn in less efforts and hours. It's true books are not enough but 1 hour of book reading we can gain more than 6 hours at school. To be honest almost everything I learned from school I think they are already gone, however in 2 years of reading I can say (Thanks God) I have learned far more than 12 years at school and I actually learned about things that is more useful than most of what we are taught in school.

    We can never have all knowledge and have enough time to experience what we were taught that's why to me Reading is the greatest source to gain knowledge after all books we are seeing on shelves they are (Experience of many years) of other men.

    Thanks to reading I am proud that I am now educating and teaching people who were educating and teaching me before I was reading. I really thank Allah and feel so thankful that he gave me a heart that "Loves Reading"

    Great article Fatma, keep up the good works up

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