<p>Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below:</p>
<p>I cannot comprehend those who emphasize or recognize only what is useful. I am concerned that learning for learning's sake is no longer considered desirable, that everything we do and think must be directed toward the solution of a practical problem. More and more we seem to try to teach how to make a good living and not how to live a good life.</p>
<p>Adapted from Philip D. Jordan, "The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge"</p>
<p>Assignment: Do people put too much emphasis on learning practical skills? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.</p>
<pre><code>In our modern day society we overemphasize "practical" skills as opposed to simply learning what we desire and wish to learn. Instead of viewing learning as an enriching experience we look towards it as being simply a tool through which we make money or become succesful, not enough importance is placed on the joy of learning itself.
An excellent example of this taking place in our society would be my cousin. His dream in life was to become a musician. However his parents were not willing to support his nterest in learning more about music and furthering his abilities. His parents insisted that he needed learn something that he could use to become succesful and feed his family. They believed that he should learn a trade that would make him succesful not happy.
My cousin decided to pursue a degreein software engineering. He despised the field; he drudged through college due to his parents persistantly pushing him towards the degree. He eventually got the degree and became a successful software engineer. However despite what it may seem, he was not happy. He had a great job but could not continue learning what loved. The job was extremely practical, he earned over$90,000 a year, had benefits, low working hours, Despite the practicality of his knowledge brought him, he was unhappy with life.
After 3 years as an engineer, my uncle quit his job, sold his car and bough high end studio equpment to record at home, he spent most of his days playing and composing music, he became much happier with life; had a much more positive outlook and became all around a much better person to be around.
Only after learning what he truly desired did my uncle become succesful in life, his parents placed too much emphasis on the practicality of learning, as do many others in our society. Yet the over emphasis on learning as being simply a tool for succes is wrong as can be seen by my uncle who learned simply what he desired to learn and became a much happier person, in addition to feeling much more postive about his future. Learning is increasingly looked upon as a practical tool when it should infact be seen as a way to enrich ones life.
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<p>what do you think i should get on this essay?</p>