Education From Fredrick Douglass Essay

While the free essays can give you inspiration for writing, they cannot be used 'as is' because they will not meet your assignment's requirements. If you are in a time crunch, then you need a custom written term paper on your subject (education from fredrick douglass)
Here you can hire an independent writer/researcher to custom write you an authentic essay to your specifications that will pass any plagiarism test (e.g. Turnitin). Waste no more time!

Frederick Douglass was, and still is, a golden example of why education is so important to

a human being’s life. Douglass spent the first part of his life in ignorance. However, his

life of a seemingly endless servitude and ignorance was completely shattered by the fact

that he learned to read. Once he learned to read, his life was forever changed. He

escaped slavery and tyranny and became an icon even to this day.

Douglass’s story more than adequately shows that a quality education is perhaps

the most important thing a person can receive in their life. Without his education, he

would not have realized the shame and inadequacy his slavery, and unfortunate acceptance

of that slavery, held him in. At least he would have had the chance to choose his fate

whereas in slavery, he was but a machine to be disposed of at the master’s will.

In the present, however, it is so overly obvious that our education system is

quickly becoming inadequate (if it isn’t already). Obviously, we cannot let it slip deeper

and deeper into the abyss, but what can we do to fix it? Should we throw more money at

it? Should we create more watchdog groups and set up more committees to hash out

what we should do?

It is my contention that none of those things we continue to do are going to work.

I do not believe there is anything we can do, on a governmental basis, to fix the problem

or stave off the descent. Changing the system from within is not going to work. The key

is to change it from without (Sarason 4).

Of course, it is easy to talk about social change as a means to education reform,

but talk is always more desirable than action. It is a given that broad strokes of social

reform take years and years. We do not have that time, to be honest. We need to make

these changes now.

The problems with education are, quite obviously, many. And it is a well-known

fact that we cannot just fix education. We must point out specific problems first.

The first problem is destroying the enormous difference in scholastic success

between races and cultures. In many instances, schools have chosen to take on this

responsibility when they are in fact incapable of taking it on. The schools have chosen

revisionist history and picking and choosing which subjects should be included in

curriculums. However, since the schools are so heavily influenced by the communities and

societies that surround them, they are eventually rendered unable to make any sort of

difference at all (Ravitch 337). Interest groups, who are more interested in preserving

their values as opposed to maintaining an exceptional education (Christian

fundamentalists, for instance), that control some communities, can completely destroy any

opportunity for a young mind to learn. The politics of racial injustice are hopefully

completely gone, but we’re still living through a state where the races feel as though they

are still there. Of course, from my perspective (the perceived subjugator), it is easy to

claim the politics are not there. From the perspective of those who believe they are being

subjugated, it is even easier to say it is there. They feel it.

The second problem, and possibly the most important, is a question of interest.

Are schools really condusive to American youth to learn in a stumulating way? I don’t

believe so. Pubescent students are almost incapable of true learning because their minds

are clouded by a hormonal fog for an enormous part of their lives. They walk around the

schools nearly humming and buzzing with new and exciting thoughts they are just

beginning to understand. Once those hormones have calmed and the student feels they

can control them a little, there is still no difference in the way they are taught. Nearly

every school is the same (Wood 9). The students go to class around eight in the morning

and come home around three in the afternoon. If a student is old enough, that student will

move on to the next grade. Generally a student’s ability is not taken into account when

they are promoted. As a result, many students feel bored and as though the concept of

school is a compulsory endeavor which is constrictive and dull (Sarason 4). It is obvious

why this does not work. No one can learn in an environment like that.

Another problem concerns practicality. Many of the subjects and classes don’t

reveal to the student how it will be useful to them in the present or the future. I can

remember sitting in algebra class thinking to myself and saying to my friends, “Where in

the WORLD am I going to need to know how to subtract x from both sides?” Of course,

I have...

Ehrlich, Elizabeth. “America’s Schools Still Aren’t Making The Grade.” Business Week,
Septermber 19, 1988: p61-64
Long, Robert E., editor. The State of U.S. Education. New York: D.H. Wilson, 1991
Ravitch, Diane. “Multiculturalism.” The American Scholar, number 3, summer ‘90.
59: p337-54.
Sarason, Seymour B. The Predictable Failure of Educational Reform. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass, 1990.
Wood, Dr. George H. Schools That Work: America’s Most Innovative Public Education
Programs. New York: Dutton, 1992. You should cite this paper as follows:

MLA Style
. EssayMania.com. Retrieved on 25 May, 2012 from
    <http://essaymania.com/85244/education-from-fredrick-douglass>

More College Papers

Education, The Law, And Discipline essay
Michael Weiland November 23, 1999 V. Nichols Education, the Law, and Discipline Discipline is a touchy subject in education. Educators must respect the legal rights of citizens as protected by the Constitution of the United States, Judicial decisions, and State and local Laws. In particular, stu

Active Learning essay
“Hear and Forget, See and Remember, Do and Understand.” ~ Chinese Proverb Simply stated by Dr. D. Robinson, “ Active learning is ‘doing’ and this leads to understanding.” Learning by doing is a theme that many educators have stressed since John Dewey’s convincing argument that “children must be

Argument Against Gun Control essay
Argument Against Gun Control An Argument Against Gun Control As long ago as 1789, the creators of the Constitution realized the importance of guns in American society. The Second Amendment states,"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people