I think any self-respecting educational institution ought to judge its policies by its best estimate of what their long-term consequences for their students and for the society will be.
Derek BokRead
If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Education comes with a cost, but the consequences of ignorance are far worse.
Derek Bok's quote emphasizes the high value of education compared to the dire repercussions of ignorance. It suggests that while education may appear costly, the price of not being educated—ignorance—can lead to potentially disastrous outcomes in personal and societal development.
Themes
EducationIgnoranceCostValueLearning
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the importance of funding education, this quote can illustrate the long-term benefits of investing in learning.
More from Derek Bok
All quotes →Doctoral training is devoted almost entirely to learning to do research, even though most Ph.Ds who enter academic life spend far more time teaching than they do conducting experiments or writing books.
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Colleges and universities, for all the benefits they bring, accomplish far less for their students than they should. Many students graduate without being able to write well enough to satisfy their employers... reason clearly or perform competently in analyzing complex, non-technical problems.
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Economists who have studied the relationship between education and economic growth confirm what common sense suggests: The number of college degrees is not nearly as important as how well students develop cognitive skills, such as critical thinking and problem-solving ability.
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