Some people believe that the purpose of education is to free the mind and the spirit Others believe that formal education tends to restrain our minds and spirits rather than set them free Write a response in which you discuss which view more closely align

Scholars, practitioners, and administrators have several views on the role of education. Amongst them, a dominant one is that education’s purpose is to free society’s mind and spirit. While this is a noble and cardinal cause, this essay argues that the formal education system has largely failed to do so for three reasons.

To begin, the formal education fails in achieving this crucial purpose as it places far to much emphasis on evaluation and grades. As has been found in studies cited in the Journal of Organizational Behaviour, the more one is influenced by extrinsic motivation (e.g. grades and praise), the lower one’s intrinsic motivation and creative abilities are. Hence, the formal education system’s excessive place on these extrinsic measures is likely qualifying students’ creative skills, minds, and potential. For instance, many students may produce only the minimum quantity and quality of work they need for A-level grades. Yet, this suggests they have not reached their potential. Perhaps, they were capable of far more yet were limited by their extrinsic desires set up by the formal education system. As a result, our society is suffering from lost potential as education’s primary purpose has not been fulfilled.

Secondly, the formal education system limits students by encouraging and forcing them to pursue certain majors. Often times, these majors are the ones that most align with the job market. For instance, doctors, accountants, lawyers, engineers, and financial analysts are often considered lucrative and ‘successful’ occupations. As a result of this pressure to pursue these majors, many students are not able to pursue other interests (e.g. art, music, social sciences, and athletics). While one may argue that students always have the option to explore these interests through their electives, this alone is not sufficient as electives often make up a trivial amount of a student’s courseload. Additionally, the formal education system often does not always encourage and take pride in these course choices as the more popular and orthodox ones (e.g. finance and science). For instance, Lara may not be taken as a serious student in her university if she chooses to pursue her passion of studying the sociology of food as compared to Matthew who chooses accounting. Given this somewhat toxic culture in the formal education system, it is unlikely that students are able to freely engage with learning and reach their potential.

Finally, education’s true purpose is not achieved through the formal education system as it places great emphasis on regurgitation, memorization, and sometimes even sycophantic behaviour. As has been widely disseminated in scholarly papers, these aspects make up the most basic aspects of learning. For one to truly and freely engage with their minds and spirits, students must be encouraged to think at higher levels (i.e. critical and analytical thinking). Yet, sometimes this behaviour is not formally and/or informally rewarded in the schools and universities. For instance, a recent article from the New York Times discussed how many high school and university students feel limited by this aspect of the formal education system. Ergo, it is not possible for the education system to achieve its primary purpose should this continue on.

While this essay has criticized the formal education system as it stands now, the author acknowledges that education’s inherent purpose is to free us from the shackles of prejudice, bias, and meritocracy. This includes both formal and informal education as they are meant to provide us the means to reach higher and higher levels of growth and excellence across all fields. Indeed, there are countless individuals who have cited the role their education has played in their lives. Yet, the formal education system has to grow in leaps and bounds for it to serve this purpose. This point is exemplified in Bernie Sander’s statement that he learned more after he left university than in the four years he spent at the University of Chicago. Such statements should be reflected upon and subsequently acted upon if we truly want our society to progress.