Now More Than Ever: Why Do We Educate?

The most important question boards of private, independent schools should discuss now concerns the purpose of education itself; simply put, why do we educate?  There are many possible answers, and the best ones likely combine several in the process, but not having a consensus within the board (and agreement with school administration) sets the stage for trouble.The "right" answer need not (and probably should not) be political; that is, it is not necessary to blend answers into a sort of neutral response that is devoid of hard edges or definitive statements. Instead, I propose that the purpose a school embraces should be deliberately partisan, taking a clear stand toward one side or another. Not doing so is shirking a core duty of governing.I was reminded of the importance of the above while reading, "The educational power of discomfort," by Irina Popescu in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Popescu's article raises the classic liberal arts purpose of stretching students by deliberately making them uncomfortable. Such behavior is not popular in today's political climate (at least not in the USA), but it is fundamental to what many of us consider to be education.The alternative seems to be that more and more of education becomes what was once derisively called "voc-tech"; that is, preparation for a specific type of job. One of the justifications for such an emphasis is said to be the demands of students and their parents, and I am sure that is accurate. However, one of the benefits of age is knowing a modicum what what one didn't know decades ago, and what I didn't know when I was 20 was what would be important later on. That is why education has a larger purpose than merely job prep - it sets the stage for life.