The Other Caste :: Essays Papers

The Other Caste For some professions the need for standardized higher education is obvious. We wouldn't want our doctors to have learned their craft by simply reading books and practicing on patients in their kitchens. Neither would we feel comfortable crossing a bridge or inhabiting a building designed by someone with a passionate interest in architectural engineering but who had not been subjected to rigorous testing of his or her own abilities. There are many professions, however, for which the unconsidered demand for a degree is unnecessary and creates an artificial class distinction. More importantly, the most qualified people for the job are often not even considered. My mother greatly influenced my views on this subject. She dropped out of high school when she was a freshman but she personified the self-motivated pursuit of knowledge. When she wanted to learn something, she read everything she could find on the subject. She then put her newfound knowledge to practical application until it because a new skill. Her library contained books on subjects as varied as horticulture, philosophy, stonemasonry, interior design, and architecture. She knew the Latin name of every plant in her extensive gardens. She knew more about heath and nutrition on a budget than the dietician at the assisted care facility where she worked, earning just over minimum wage. She eventually did get her GED but because she didn't have a degree in any of her areas of expertise she was poorly paid and sometimes perceived as uneducated. I saw this same prejudice all the years I worked for the Forest Service. They employ people with degrees and people without. Degree holders have the opportunity to advance professionally and become permanent employees. Those with no degrees are consistently paid lower wages and kept in a temporary status though they often do the same work as the permanent employees and return to work year after year. My Forest Service job required three things: being able to hike all day, not getting lost in the woods, and an appreciation that my repetitious acts were insuring future forests. A college degree was irreverent but I often had to train people with no aptitude or knowledge of the forest and watch them move ahead of me professionally because they had the degree. In Mark Salzman's book, Lost in Place most of the learning he writes about took place outside or even in spite of his formal schooling. The Other Caste :: Essays Papers The Other Caste For some professions the need for standardized higher education is obvious. We wouldn't want our doctors to have learned their craft by simply reading books and practicing on patients in their kitchens. Neither would we feel comfortable crossing a bridge or inhabiting a building designed by someone with a passionate interest in architectural engineering but who had not been subjected to rigorous testing of his or her own abilities. There are many professions, however, for which the unconsidered demand for a degree is unnecessary and creates an artificial class distinction. More importantly, the most qualified people for the job are often not even considered. My mother greatly influenced my views on this subject. She dropped out of high school when she was a freshman but she personified the self-motivated pursuit of knowledge. When she wanted to learn something, she read everything she could find on the subject. She then put her newfound knowledge to practical application until it because a new skill. Her library contained books on subjects as varied as horticulture, philosophy, stonemasonry, interior design, and architecture. She knew the Latin name of every plant in her extensive gardens. She knew more about heath and nutrition on a budget than the dietician at the assisted care facility where she worked, earning just over minimum wage. She eventually did get her GED but because she didn't have a degree in any of her areas of expertise she was poorly paid and sometimes perceived as uneducated. I saw this same prejudice all the years I worked for the Forest Service. They employ people with degrees and people without. Degree holders have the opportunity to advance professionally and become permanent employees. Those with no degrees are consistently paid lower wages and kept in a temporary status though they often do the same work as the permanent employees and return to work year after year. My Forest Service job required three things: being able to hike all day, not getting lost in the woods, and an appreciation that my repetitious acts were insuring future forests. A college degree was irreverent but I often had to train people with no aptitude or knowledge of the forest and watch them move ahead of me professionally because they had the degree. In Mark Salzman's book, Lost in Place most of the learning he writes about took place outside or even in spite of his formal schooling.