Abstract
When one hears about an educated person, what comes to their mind is the level of education, their discoveries, their social class and value to the people. Being an educated person is quite a noble achievement in the society, and allows one to walk tall over the others. It is the reason politicians, professors, engineers, and doctors among other professionals have more respect than the local news vendor, mailman or supermarket attendant. However, the notion created by the society is wrong since education does not depend on the number of certificates one has but how they treat the common man. If certificates were the determinant, there would be no progress in mankind, since they are the inventors of education. Furthermore, those holding the highest level of papers, for instance PhD, would be the only ones holding the traits of an educated person. The paper seeks to show how knowledge, wisdom and intelligence define an ‘educated’ person and the various ways it exists in people.
Education is the key to success in the current times. It helps one edge further in their area of expertise and understands the common social, economic and political aspects. Apart from that, one fits into the society, community or social circle due to their grasp of the topic of discussion. Hence, the noble people have an upper hand when it comes to advice towards the other people or the younger ones. People like to associate with them due to their advanced knowledge and ability to provide opinions and thoughts to their problems. Thus, people with higher education certificates have more respect than those below them; the society classifies them as ‘educated.’ However, not everyone who possesses a higher education certificate stands as an educated person, and neither does one who lacks it stand as uneducated. Education is all about an individual’s mindset and their relations with others.
Wisdom, knowledge and intelligence are the core values for determining one’s level of being ‘educated.’ (Pinnock par 3) The notion of education being the determinant would be false if one were to consider the early centuries when education was inexistent. These three values guided people from one generation to another by providing them skills to make their lives better. For instance, the early men used the sun’s movement to tell time, direction and location. The advancement of such skills led to the evolution of man and made him gain more wisdom, knowledge and intelligence along the way. However, the three values do not exist in plain sight but the actions of a person.
An educated person ought to entertain themselves at all times. Different thoughts and ideas occupy their minds most of the time, which makes them feel intrigued to discover more (Mckay and Mckay par 2). ‘I am bored’ is a common statement people use when they have nothing to do. Such people love to lazy around when they do not have a plan or lack something to do. It shows their lack of vision or intelligence in discovering what the world has to offer and lack of planning for their days. In current times, it is common for people to lazy around their television or computer when they have nothing to do. Most of the time, they choose to let others entertain them and not the other way around. Another instance is when they are in the company of other people, but they do not participate in the discussion. Their lack of participation makes them bored, and they result in bringing confusion and disturbance.
Children are the only exemption to the trait since they are yet to discover what the world has to offer (Mckay and Mckay par 4). Apart from that, they have to rely on the orders made by their parents or guardians. The technological advancement has come to the aid of the ‘uneducated’ through the interaction with the internet and social media. People spend most of their time perusing articles and viewing other people’s profile to stay educated. However, it made the situation worse since people have become too dependent on technology that they lack common social skills. Attaining such traits requires one to be open to discovering new things in life and strike a conversation with people around them. It is quite hard to pull off in the beginning, but the curiosity of an individual will guide them to realizing their inner selves.
The second trait is the ability to entertain others through stories, discoveries or topic (Moreno-Riano par 4). The trait composes of two values: knowledge and intelligence. One should first access the situation then establish the appropriate conversation to strike. People who lack the trait have a problem socializing with others even on simple conversations. They tend to enjoy when others entertain them and would only talk back when queried by others. However, most of them do have topics to raise but fear taking it up with people. Others lack the basic stories to strike a conversation like endeavors and travels. People who possess the trait are up to speed with the development around them (Moreno-Riano par 5). They like seeking the viewpoint of others towards issues in the society, politics or economy. Some are quite talkative and seek to be the center of attraction in all conversations. However, there is a disadvantage of having the trait; people will view such a person as a show-off. Developing the trait is quite easy as the first trait; one should be open to new things in life and have something occupying their mind, which they can share with others.
The third trait is the ability to entertain a new idea by welcoming new ideas and viewpoints (Mckay and Mckay par 8). It is a solution to the flaws of the second trait, being talkative since such people ignore others. Ideas and viewpoints about a subject help one to open their minds to new possibilities. Apart from that, they learn new things and solutions to some of their problems. The progress of humanity came from new ideas tabled by individuals and people provided their input on making them come true. It helps people of the same skill to put their minds together and come up with solutions to life’s problems. Sometimes, it is quite hard to accommodate new ideas by people, since it may alter the way of life for others. However, change is unavoidable and one ought to accept it as it is the best way to make solutions in life.
In conclusion, a person sounds or looks educated by how they treat people and what they contribute to the society. Going to college or university does not guarantee one to possess better knowledge, intelligence or wisdom. What matters at the end of the day is what one chooses to apply in their daily life. However, having a higher education is quite necessary for the common man, since it helps them divulge further, regardless of what level they attain. Whether one is a farmer or a professor, their actions and words will determine their level of ‘education’; their knowledge of certain aspects of life, their wisdom in conversation and their intelligence in speaking.
Works Cited
Mckay, Brett and Kate Mckay. The 3 Characteristics of an Educated Man. 30 October 2011. Web. 30 April 2016. <http://www.artofmanliness.com/2011/10/30/the-3-characteristics-of-an-educated-man/>
Moreno-Riano, Gerson. What Constitutes an Educated Person? 31 July 2008. Web. 30 April 2016. <http://faculty.isi.org/blog/post/view/id/26/>
Pinnock, Hugh W. Ten Characteristics of an Educated Person. 2015. Web. 30 April 2016. <https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/hugh-w-pinnock_ten-characteristics-educated-person/>
