ESSAY 1: The Benefits of Going to School

Many young people see going to school as a chore and only go because they absolutely have to, while
some will even skip school because they see it as boring and unnecessary. However, going to school is
incredibly important for your career, future education you may wish to pursue, and social and
communication skills.

Teenagers are forever being told that they need a good education so that they can have the career they
want, but many do not listen. However, it is important to remember that your schooling, no matter how
long it may feel, lasts for just a few short years compared to the rest of your life ahead of you. Therefore,
it is better to sacrifice a little bit of fun now so that you can find happiness in later life, as you will be
happier if you can do a job that you enjoy and afford to do the things you want.

Integrally linked to your career is the fact that you will only be able to achieve a higher level of education
later on if you work hard in school now. Although at the age of fourteen and fifteen many young people
may not think they want to go to college or university, you don’t know how this may change as you get
older. And with unemployment among young people in the USA at its highest since the early 1960’s, you
may find that you need a college degree to secure a good job because there is so much competition for
so few jobs. Many people also decide that they want to study further when they get a bit older, perhaps
after they have got married and had children, sometimes because they want a career change as they are
not happy, or just to prove to themselves and others that they can do it. Those that don’t succeed in
compulsory education will not have the opportunity to even start many courses because there will be
plenty of better-qualified candidates that also want a place.

Finally, school is the place where you learn a great deal of very important life skills. From communicating
and empathizing with people of both genders and different ages, to listening to instructions and following
orders, and developing leadership skills. It is not a coincidence that there is a negative correlation
between criminal offences and level of education, in all races, ages and genders all over the world, and
one of the main reasons for this is that the lessons that are learnt in school are so much more than just
academic. So, although most of us only consider our career when we think about what school may do for
us, the life skills we learn are equally important.
ESSAY 2:Jonan Donaldson
Academic Writing

January 12th, 2010

Sample Argumentative Essay

Skills vs. Knowledge in Education

Education systems all over the world are based on the idea that students get and remember
information from teachers and books. These systems test this knowledge with standardized
tests which compare students to each-other. They only test the kind of information which is
possible to measure in tests. The goal is gaining information, not developing skills by which to
use and make information. Unlike the old style of education where people remembered things in
order to pass tests and get higher scores than other students, the modern world calls for a new
kind of education in which the focus is deep understanding, creativity, and information
management skills.

Most education systems in the world are designed to make students remember things. One
reason is that schools feel the need to compare students. They do this by giving tests. They
want to be able to give grades and decide which students are smart and which are not. They
function as a sorting mechanism for society. From the earliest grades, students are put on tracks
that will decide their futures. Another reason schools like to make students remember things is
that by doing so they will be able to test their knowledge and determine if they remember or not.
They believe that if students remember things it is the same as understanding those things.
Schools also like to impart knowledge because in this way, although students can have different
individual skills, they can all have the same knowledge.

Einstein said “Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited.

Imagination encircles the world” (Needle, 2007). All the knowledge in the world is useless
unless you are able to use information in creative ways. Knowledge is what other people have
created. Understanding is all about what you think about something. Everybody sees, hears,
feels, and thinks differently. No two people in the world have the same understanding of the
same thing. It is impossible to give tests on a point of view. Because of this, tests are illogical.
The only reason tests exist is to label students as “smart” or “stupid.” There are many kinds of
intelligence, however. One of the most famous researchers in the field of intelligence, Gardner,
found at least seven different kinds of intelligence (Gardner, 1999). Intelligence and
understanding are related. Unfortunately, tests only measure one type of intelligence.

In the modern world skills are more important than knowledge. If a person knows many facts,
it is impressive, but not very useful. It is of much greater importance to be able to find
information quickly, organize that information, analyze and understand the main ideas, put
different pieces of information together (synthesize), and create new information. Together these
skills make what we call information management and innovation, the skills which are most
desired in the business world.

Most people in the world believe that education is about remembering things to take tests
which measure one’s performance against other people who have studied the same information.
However, this idea no longer matches the reality of the modern world in which knowledge is less
important than creativity and deep understanding. To be successful in the age of technology,
education must focus on helping students gain information management and innovation skills.

Sources Cited

Gardner, H. (1999). Intelligence reframed: Multiple intelligences for the 21st century. New York,
NY: Basic Books.

Needle, Andrew, et al. (2007). Combining art and science in 'arts and sciences' education.
College Teaching 55.3