ONE of the several traits, and arguably the most important one, that sets humans apart from the animal kingdom, is our desire for knowledge. Humans have always had the insatiable need to learn about and decipher the world around them. The result of this is why we have houses with heating and air conditioning, the reason we can travel by air, the reason we have electricity, the reason we have conquered many disease, the reason we have cell phones and the internet, the reason we have functioning societies and legal frameworks,
Thus we must not belittle the value of learning. Our schools provide the foundation of such education and learning to prepare us to explore and learn new things as we go through life. While many children feel that school subjects are pointless and a bore, they actually all have a reason and a purpose. The sciences help us understand and explain the world around us, the mathematics gives us a sense of order and objectiveness, social studies help us understand society and where we came from and how we got here, languages give us the ability to communicate better with those around us.
Education and learning thus should always be given a priority and importance in your life. That being said, you may not like every topic or subject you are asked to study, but the only way for one to know what is interesting is to be exposed to many subjects. The world is extremely complex, and various fields of learning are constantly overlapping and interacting with each other. Psychologists sometimes need the logic of math; scientists need the philosophical insight and the businessman needs to understand cultures and traditions. Thus exposure and learning of many subjects is important at the school level.
Obviously there are other traits which set us apart as humans – such as our desire to be creative in music, arts, writing etc and our ability to appreciate this creativity. No other animal creates varieties of songs and music, shapes and forms, expressionism etc. And thus the exploration of the creative side is also important. There are others like the philosophical and the physical side as well.
All these go hand in hand and are not mutually exclusive and the exploration or emphasis on one should not compromise the other. As we grow, we may tend to focus more on one area of the other and sometimes there may be limitations preventing us from exploring some of these areas – but as human beings we must try not to consciously ignore any of these traits during our lives.
So make sure learning and education remain a priority – make sure you give them their due and your best effort and attention. If you make learning a part of your life, then you will not see it as a chore or a bother – it is just natural.