One Piece of the Puzzle

Ever since I listened to my parents talk about their years in college, I wanted to go. Their stories of their adventures in college made me curious. What’s it all about? What’s it like? I wondered. I didn’t have a clear idea of what college offered, but I was eager to find out. I wanted to “Go to college and see what they know,” as George Bailey said in the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

When I learned about Post Secondary Enrollment Options and the opportunity to take college courses in high school that are paid for by the state, I eagerly signed up. Why wait until I’m done with high school, I thought, when I can get up to two years of college done and paid for before I graduate? Many other home schooled kids I knew talked about how they loved college, so I felt certain that it would be a great experience for me, too.

So I began my first semester of college as a junior in high school. I danced with optimism and bright hopes for the future, motivated to do well and perhaps even graduate with a bachelor’s degree before my twenty-first birthday and get on with life.

Unfortunately, it didn’t work that way. I began to realize as the first few weeks dashed by that I wasn’t enjoying my classes very much. I had registered for courses in subjects that I liked or wanted to know more about, but as the semester progressed, they all felt too artificial. My curiosity about the subjects began to fade until all that was left in my mind was, “I have to do the work. I have to learn this so that I can do well on the test. I need to study some more because I don’t want to fail.”

One of the positive things that college has done for me is that in showing me what doesn’t work for me it has helped me to formulate a better idea of how I learn best. I don’t learn well when my schedule fills up with lots of classes and activities that aren’t related to each other. I don’t learn when I have lots of assignments heaped upon me so that my life is one endless line of motion that never allows me to slow down and take a breath. I think that I learn best when I have a one specific area of study that I can delve into by myself in a variety of ways. I like to have no more than one in-depth, large-scale project going at a time, something that I can pursue on my own and really learn about. As I do this, many topics will be covered.

For example, I spent about two months working on a fantasy novel. In the first month alone, I did extensive research about New York, Arizona, France, and Ireland (geography); I read about the bone structure of a bird’s wing (biology); I learned about the customs and history of the Navajo Native American tribe and the history of Ireland (social studies); and I planned out the plot and characters.

Now, how does this all fit in with college?

First of all, ask yourself why you want to go to college. Don’t slouch through a bunch of courses just because you’re expected to. If you aren’t ready for college, or if you don’t have a reason to go, don’t go! I would have benefited from waiting to go to college until after I completed high school. In fact, I might not want to go to college until I’m in my mid-twenties or thirties. Or never. Not everyone goes to college, and not every person should. You don’t need to go to college to have a good, exciting, famous, or productive life. You don’t need a degree to publish a bestseller book, to train prize racehorses, or to run for president!

For some people, to achieve their goals (such as becoming an accountant or a chef or a fire fighter) they must get specific training in that area and a degree, so they can get the job they want. If this is your path, great! Work hard and don’t give up!

But not everyone has such a clear idea for the future. You may have an interest or two, but perhaps you’re unsure of what you want to pursue at this point. This is okay. Take some time to explore. Try things out. Have fun making or doing something with your interests, and don’t be pressured to hurry up and get to college.

Some people may think that to be valid they must go to college and get a degree in something. Put the emphasis on education, not necessarily on college. You don’t need to go to a four-year college to study something you’re interested in. Traditional college is not necessarily the best option. Take your education into your own hands. You know what you like, so do it. If you love painting, then read a lot about painting, go to art museums and study professional paintings, and of course, do plenty of painting! Be curious. If you feel that a certain class or two would help you, go ahead and take them, but don’t feel like you have to “go” to college. Fit college into your life, not your life into college. It should be a piece that fits snugly into the puzzle of your education.

One more thing, don’t assume that the puzzle will ever be finished. It won’t. You will always discover and learn new things. Make it your goal to live a lifestyle of learning. As John Dewey, considered by many people to be the “Modern Father of Experiential Education,” put it, “Education is not a preparation for life; education is life itself.” You can go places you never dreamed of if you take your education and make it your own.