This discussion was created from comments split from: School in the 2020-2021 Academic Year & Coronavirus.
But, what does “self-education” even mean? Memorizing dates of historical events? Easier to do in technical courses than the humanities.
While all education is, at its root, self-education (no one can hit the books for you), there are not a whole lot of engineers and physicians out there that are self-taught, and I don’t think it’s just the credentialing barrier.
Even in computer programming, where the need for self-study is most evidently manifested, and there’s quite a few people in the field that are self-taught, the benefits of a quality computer science degree go well beyond getting a diploma at the end of the four years.
Well, I have a routine of watching at least one YouTube video a day of a topic I find interesting. Today I watched an interview with daryl davis, a black gentleman who converted many former KKK members. Highly inspirational individual, his lesson in patience, empathy and forgiveness that his story tells can’t be replicated in a college class.
Self-education means learning on one’s own.
Any topic taught with the assistance of an instructor and/or written materials is something that someone (or a group of people) in the past has self-educated for the very first time, whether it is something like learning about a historical event, crafting research methods in history, or coming up with a new engineering design. Indeed, a PhD is a certification that the graduate can self-educate by discovering new knowledge. Of course, other forms of self-education involve learning existing knowledge on one’s own, typically with the aid of written and/or recorded material, even though there may be no live instructor involved.
For example, in real time, political scientists, historians, other social scientists, journalists, and many others are self-educating (or at least trying to) themselves about the recent election, particularly the interesting open questions about why and how the results happened and the reactions to it, rather than just the results that anyone can look up.
I know what you’re trying to say but I don’t buy it. Sentient beings don’t operate in complete silos (although they may feel as if they do.) They’re constantly getting feed back from bosses and clients and other professionals. If they don’t, their output will eventually suffer. Nice try, but the saying, “No man is an island.” probably applies here.
This does not necessarily mean that the feedback has to be from instructors in a formalized school that costs $80,000 per year.
I don’t believe anyone claimed the only way to get a good education was to go to the single-digit number of schools in the country with an $80,000+ annual cost?
https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/the-50-most-expensive-colleges-in-america/50/
I think it really just comes down to learning something without the formal process of teachers, classrooms, etc. One of the purposes of college is supposed to be for the student to learn how to learn on their own. Many of us have to (or should) continue learning throughout our lives, but without the benefit of formal instruction.
But, how do you know when you’ve really achieved competence in something? Do you give yourself a quiz? There must be a way of talking about self-learning that acknowledges that it’s an organic process.
Self education is all around us. Many peope teach themselves things all the time. It might not always be formal education but it’s still education. Over the years, through much reading and trial and error I have become a pretty good gardener, without any formal education. Many people learn trades without formal education. A carpenter, plumber, electrician, roofer, painter, etc can be taught by example or even just by reading books and some practice. I know it’s not college level education but it certainly could be expanded to that. You might need a license or degree for many jobs but some of these requirements can be gained by testing.
Another example. I taught myself the information necessary to pass a couple HAM radio licensing exams. No one showed me/taught me. I took it upon myself to study the material and ultimately pass the tests. Many auto mechanics are self taught. Now later on they might get specialized training but many times they pick up things in other ways.
There are many examples of self teaching out there. Am I going to be a self taught doctor? Probably not. Could I be a self taught accountant? Maybe.
Self-education presupposes complete self-education, that is, you are responsible for all the work done. I could even call 2020 the year of self-education. Self-education has a number of benefits. Self-education can free you from a job you hate, from a college major you aren’t excited about, and it will definitely be a core skill for the 21st century. You can find here many good thoughts on education topic . Self-education is good for just about any branch of knowledge or skills you want to acquire.