Education

A gateway to opportunities

By definition, education is the process of both teaching knowledge to the others and gaining the knowledge from someone else. It allows human beings to expand their horizons, to develop skills and critical thinking, thus, opening a world full of possibilities.

In short, "education is a gateway to progress". Without education, one may not dare to dream big dreams and pursue great achievements and growth. I once thought that education is about going to school and passing exams. Growing up, I learn that it is so much more. Education should be about unfolding what one knows and does not know.

In 1999, professors Dunning and Kruger proved the phenomenon where people are confident in a particular subject that they have little knowledge about. If you don't know that you know so little, you will never actually be the expertise of the subject. The figure below represents the Dunning-Kruger Effect.

Most people experience great confidence when they start picking up on new skills or learning new concepts. At the start, your progress is usually fast, which makes you feel that you have become great at the skills. However, this is exactly where you may fall trap to your own limited knowledge range - believing you are terrific at the topic while in fact you know little (Mount Stupid).

As time passes, you recognize that your knowledge on the subject is a drop of the ocean, and your confidence plummets. This is a great challenge one should overcome, as if you choose to continue learning, you will expand your knowing and thus, your confidence builds up. We may be at the peak of Mount Stupid on one subject, yet in the Slope of Enlightment in the others. It is important to constantly reflect and recognize your own knowledge and experience. Most crucially, never stop learning!

Learn more about the Dunning-Kruger Effect

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