Class

When I say I have class, it has two meanings.

Learning is a continuous process. I used to think that graduating from the university means I am more superior to everyone else who is non-graduate. Not that I would look down upon the lower educated people but more like holding myself higher than most. I am not alone.

I know of many graduates who have the same thoughts as I did. Note that I wrote “did”, not anymore. Now that I have been through most of my life observing everything around me, the environment, the people, and everything else, I realize that learning does not end in university. We live our whole lives learning the meaning of life. Most often, we learn more from the lower educated people.

Albert Einstein is the world’s most well respected icon but how was his education journey? Great minds are creative; minds that are continuously moving, thinking, nurturing for the better, and more. Everything that is thought in class nowadays is mostly to adhere to the rules and regulations set upon by the authorities. Any students that think differently are considered a rebel. Is that the correct way to run a typical classroom?

There are alternatives for the younger generation these days. More countries are allowing home schooling. Children are allowed to stay home to learn from certain mentors that their parents see as good influence. However, the children will still have to go through the same syllabus and examination as those in the classic classroom settings. This is a route different from the norm and is gaining popularity. Children are allowed more out of the books learning chances which open up their minds. It’s a good thing.

Our minds are always very busy. Some meditators say that the human mind is a monkey mind. We each are born with a brain, a different brain that makes us all unique. Our brain will think of various thought at any one second of our lives. We have to learn to calm the mind. This is the only way to declutter and think better, especially when life is bogging us down with the unknown.

The only way we can succeed is to put ourselves up for challenges. Any type of challenges that comes our way, we face it. It is only when we face our challenges, we will learn in the process. This is an outdoor classroom, a never-ending classroom. The world is vast and the thing we ought to learn is limitless. The more we learn, the better we achieve.

What has achievement got to do with class?

This brings upon the other meaning of class. Some say the high born are the high class people. However, I do not agree. Class is inborn. Class is attitude. A person with class will stay humble even after achieving high goals. A person with class has a broad vision to motivate other people to success. A person with class is acknowledged by others, not self-proclaimed.

This comes back to early education, most importantly the values instilled upon by the first educators, the parents. Being the child of a teacher, I have heard my mother say many things. I used to think negatively but now that I am all grown up, I choose to think differently. When the parents complain that teachers are at fault for their misbehaving child and vice versa, it is simply a learning curve for three parties; the parents, teachers, and most importantly the child.

Children are the future. Every single person that the child encounters plays a huge influence in their lives. Parents nurture, teachers educate, everyone else adds to the spice of life. If every person has similar understanding, the world would be a much better place as everybody is ready to help everybody else. This is the ultimate challenge for every single human being.

Let us not stop there. We are born into a world of biodiversity. Our class begins on the day we are born to the day we return to Mother Nature. Let us all learn through observation of all living beings and thrive together.

Almost all of the world-class athletes and other peak performers are visualizers. They see it; they feel it; they experience it before they actually do it. They begin with the end in mind.    

Stephen Richards Covey, American educator & author (The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People), 1932-2012