To learn is to live

Just a quick one - a friend of mine recently shared this video with me and I think it is simply amazing.  I looked up the definition of "education" in the Oxford English Dictionary; apparently it's "the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction, especially at a school or university."  *Sigh.  Well, I guess for the last bit the UK will have to add an extra nota bene along the lines of "Available to rich kids and trust fund types only; plebs need not apply."  It's a sad state of affairs when education of the official type is only for the privileged - I think we all thought we'd moved past that stage.  


The hike in university fees couldn't have come at a worse time for an already cash strapped public.  It makes me angry that many of the next generation will be denied the opportunity of extending their studies (and the delight that is snakebite) but more that that it is the shortsightedness of a government who can't see that without the influx of bright, fresh talent the university system itself will falter.  A quality university system needs its strong research and even stronger teaching practise to be challenged - not just by fellow academics, neither simply by monied 20 year olds but by a diverse body of students from a range of backgrounds.  It's expected that because of this soaring rise in fees student numbers could drop by as much as 20% in the next few years - so this plug for axed funding designed to save money looks like it'll cause a whole other financial mess for our universities. 

But there is another side to this - perhaps the looming inaccessibility of a university education is a good thing.  Perhaps we need to focus on that other part of education, the part that says that what you need in your 80 odd years on this earth is not a piece of paper that says you can write essays and drink pints of buckfast in 10 seconds (oh, hang on - was that just my university?), it's life experience - and the very definition of that is getting out and living.  Yes, you will learn vital skills at university - but they are skills that can be acquired in the big, bad, real world.  For many, is university not an extension of the cosseting and coddling of the school experience?  It's being a grown-up, but with the stabilisers still on.  For that reason, I am attaching this video, brought to my attention by Carin Toso (who writes a fab blog by the way) - to celebrate that much of what we learn is from the University of Life.