22nd January 2009, 12:12 AM
I've always believed that education matters for its own sake, not just for preparing people for work... I would not be in graduate school now, likely, if all I cared about was 'preparing myself for work'. I am here because I like learning and thing it is important.
Does preparing people for work matter? Sure... but the act of teaching people things matters even more, I would say. You are creating an educated citizen, not just a worker drone...
As for funding, there's no question that schools are horribly underfunded. The only exceptions for this are private schools and colleges, which get by with high tuitions... but public schools cannot do that and do not get enough money from the state, sadly, so they suffer. Teachers should be paid much better and schools should be much better funded.
Does preparing people for work matter? Sure... but the act of teaching people things matters even more, I would say. You are creating an educated citizen, not just a worker drone...
As for funding, there's no question that schools are horribly underfunded. The only exceptions for this are private schools and colleges, which get by with high tuitions... but public schools cannot do that and do not get enough money from the state, sadly, so they suffer. Teachers should be paid much better and schools should be much better funded.