Education of youth

All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth.
Aristotle
384 – 322 B.C.

I really love this quotation from Aristotle because I believe it contains so much truth. Considering that it was written over 2,300 years ago, you’d think society would have learned to recognize the wisdom of these words and act accordingly.

At first glance, you might think that the general population is far better educated today than at any time in history. But consider what constitutes an education. Are we truly educating our youth? Or are we simply filling them with information?

All you need to do is look at our societal problems to realize that we’re doing a poor job of educating our youth. In America, the divorce rate is now about 50% for first marriages; for second and third marriages the rate is even higher. And we have the highest per capita incarceration rate of any country in the world.

Daniel Goleman, in his book Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ, pointed out that IQ only accounts for 20% of a person’s success in life. Rather, social intelligence and emotional intelligence are the major determinants of the level of success we achieve in life. Yet, as a society, we clearly do a poor job of providing our youth the emotional and social education they need.

It’s not the sole responsibility of the school system to educate our youth. Parents and caregivers also have a duty in this area; they can and should be good role models for the children in their care. But if the parents weren’t properly educated themselves, how can they teach their children?

Which brings me to my point: what is the single most important lesson we can teach our youth? It’s simple: for every action you take or fail to take, there is a consequence. Many actions have delayed consequences, so the further you can look down the road and understand the consequences, the better equipped you are to choose how to act. The choices we make ultimately determine the quality of our lives.

We often look at the immediate benefit and fail to look at the delayed results of our actions. It’s easy to focus solely on the instant gratification of certain actions and never consider the possible downside. But no one is exempt from the universal law of cause and effect.

If we could get our youth to understand the high cost of enjoying instant gratification without concern for later consequences, we would be well on our way to educating our youth and thereby strengthening our future. If we don’t, our society will continue building up a huge social debt. We see the cost of this debt every day. If we don’t correct the problem, the deficit will only grow and will eventually bankrupt society.

For whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Galatians 6:7