Most educators around the world would agree that higher education plays an important role in helping people learn how to learn and how to think critically and creatively. To quote Sherwood Anderson, an influential American writer, “The whole object of education is […] to develop the mind. The mind should be a thing that works.”
Unfortunately, many of today’s university students worldwide seem to be more concerned with the result rather than the process. The goal of learning for learning’s sake has been displaced by the terminal goals of earning a degree and landing a decent job. Of course, having a degree is an important prerequisite for getting a good job, especially in today’s highly competitive market. Nevertheless, if that is where responsibility for developing one’s capabilities stops, then higher education serves simply as an academic assembly line.
To some extent, many students are satisfied with just going through the motions to get through college rather than wanting to put in the time and effort to be challenged in a way that helps them reach their highest potentials. Although such students may not be physically lazy to complete the basic requirements of their degrees, they seem mentally lazy to ask questions, to solve new problems, to tackle difficult issues, to engage in serious thought, and to integrate acquired knowledge. Such a lackadaisical approach to education impedes true growth of the mind intellectually, creatively, and emotionally.
To overcome this sluggish mindset, students need to take control of their own learning by placing higher demands on themselves—not in terms of grades or society’s expectations, for that can lead to an unnecessary feeling of inadequacy. Rather, students need to cultivate an intrinsic motivation to exercise the mind to be able to think for themselves, to develop strength of mind, to enhance creativity, and to garner wisdom. Consequently, developing such good thinking habits will not only contribute positively to any future career but also to overall happiness in life.
Moreover, happiness in life is related to wisdom. When the seeds of wisdom are planted in the mind, people begin to have an overall awareness of their true being in a way that encourages them to keep growing and to be better—a better citizen, a better partner, a better human being.
Considering this, the process of growing and developing the mind is a most worthy goal itself when it comes to pursuing a higher education. Simply put—read more, write more, think more, live more.