EDUCATION: A Life Long Process?

By: Zenaida C. San Pedro Principal II

One year in Kindergarten, six years in elementary, six years in high school, two years in vocational or four to five years in colleges and universities, one or two years masters degree and 2 to 4 years doctorate degree; what an epitome of life long process, isn’t it? However, if we sum up all the years from the lowest to the highest educational level, it would cover 20-24 years of our life span which is around half of the average life span of Filipinos, which according to WHO has an average of 68.76% at least in 2011. So what about the remaining half? What comes after Ph. D, Ed.D, M.D and all these doctorate degree? Nothing, as far as I know. So is education a life long process? Maybe not, but it’s definitely indispensable!

I believe that EDUCATION opens the door for LEARNING and is locked by EXPERIENCE. Education comes in two facets: formal and informal. While informal education starts at home where parents, siblings, relatives and even the neighborhood serve as teachers, formal education starts at school where children learn the simplest to most complex lessons in life. With every lesson learned in each step of the ladder, their experiences locked on the significant lessons they learned. This is what keeps them going on despite the many challenges of life.

Education and experience also serve as strong pillars of learning which leads to success. Without education and real-life experiences, learning would be like the famous parable in the bible where a man built a house on sand and is washed away and devastated by wind and waves. Education is like digging a deep foundation supported by the iron bars of experiences, which results to the construction of a strong structure of a well-rounded individual.

Education might not be the totality of what a successful individual needs, but it is undoubtedly as significant as fuel towards the attainment of desired goals and successful destinations in life. Some might reach the highest level of education, some might acquire a masters degree and still others might just settle and stop pursuing education after college, high school or elementary. No matter what one has attained, I believe that he is a step higher, an inch farther, and a lot better than those without education.