Learning Away from College

So seeing as today is July (according to my calculations, there was no June), I felt like an update was in order. I am home alone in my apartment this fourth of July weekend, and I am actually really loving it. I love my roommates. Don't get me wrong. They are so much fun to be with and talk to. In fact, sometimes we talk too much. But I have 2 (almost 3) engaged roommates, so it's not like they feel like hanging out with me all the time anyway. Thus, not having them here is a little relieving. No, I don't have to share the TV. Yes, I can take up the whole couch. Yes, I can play my music really loud whilst writing a blog post. And that brings us to where we are now. Welcome!

I want to talk about something that has been on my mind a lot lately, and that is education. Since I'm in college, I always like to take into consideration what I am learning and how it would apply to my life. Fortunately, I am taking classes (for the most part) that I really enjoy and can apply to my future career or life. I have to give a hand to the language department at BYU-Idaho. After 1 year of studying Spanish, I feel really competent. I write emails to people all in Spanish, order my food in Spanish, and sometimes go to a Spanish branch in Archer. The way the Language Department is set up is perfect for my brain. I understand that it may not be for everyone, but I am happy with how I have been taught. Not only this, but I get to go serve in Mexico for 4 months and solidify the Spanish I have been studying for the past year.

I am taking 2 English classes this semester, and I just like English in general. One of them is a General Education credit (Foundations, as it is called here)--it's an advanced critical thinking and writing course. That class is okay, but it's not my favorite. The class that I have grown the most in is my English 314 class--Advanced Literary and Research Analysis. It has really improved my writing. I have looked at certain pieces of literature much more closely. I have been enlightened by the literature that "everyone talks about." Take Emily Dickinson for example. Everyone knows who that is. But I never understood what the big deal was until I had to write a 5 page paper on one of her poems. That was so enlightening.

So as much as we all hate tests, writing papers, reading chapters out of books, is there any good in it? To an extent. I think if it is something you want to learn about, writing a paper about it can prove to be a good way to understand it better. In my English class last semester, we talked about how sometimes you don't really know what you think about something until you are forced to put it into words. I really believe that. When you want to articulate something, you have to phrase it just right so that you get the correct message across. And that includes thinking critically about it.

I do think, however, there is a lot of room for education outside of an institution. People in the old days didn't have formal education, and yet they are so much smarter than we are. How is it possible that they could be smarter than us when we are being educated for 12+ years? Many contributors to the literary canon educated themselves by mere reading. So that is the direction I am going now as well. I got a bunch of books that were recommended to me for my specific bad habits in writing. I have a problem with using words that I believe are synonyms, but they really aren't. I don't truly know the precise definition of some things, even though I've been using those words for years. For instance, one of the words I misplaced is association. What I really meant was connection. Can you see the difference between association and connection? If you are connected to someone, you have a closer relationship than if you are associated with them. Word precision is something I'm struggling with. So the medicinal book to fix this? Anything by Jonathan Swift (according to Brother Weeks, my mentor professor), especially Guliver's Travels. Brother Weeks says that Jonathan Swift uses some of the most precise language ever written. So why not go to the experts?

My education this semester has been so much more than just my classes. I have read a lot more than I usually do, and it has been very enlightening. I love reading, and I have come to appreciate the classics and understand why they are considered classic. They have something to give you everyday of your life. If you are living, you can apply the principles taught in these books. Can Transformers do that? Well, it may have some pretty awesome graphics, but it is superficial. It only scratches the surface while these books explore life and the inner workings thereof. So the challenge for the next month is this: Read a classic. Yes, it might be boring at first, but just give it a chance. There is a reason it's a classic, so go find out the reason for yourself! I know you won't regret it. You can do it!