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Our task - and the task of all education - is to understand the present world, the world in which we live and make our choices.
E. F. Schumacher
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Education's primary goal is to help us comprehend the world we inhabit to make informed choices.

E. F. Schumacher emphasizes the vital role of education in recognizing and understanding our current environment. The quote suggests that the purpose of education extends beyond mere knowledge acquisition; it is fundamentally about preparing individuals to navigate and interpret the complexities of the world around them, thereby enabling them to make thoughtful and responsible decisions.

Themes

EducationUnderstandingWorldChoicesPresent

In practice

Example use cases

A speaker at a graduation ceremony might quote this to inspire students to use their education wisely.

More from E. F. Schumacher

The real problems of our planet are not economic or technical, they are philosophical. The philosophy of unbridled materialism is being challenged by events.
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The substance of man cannot be measured by Gross National Product.
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The printing press is either the greatest blessing or the greatest curse of modern times, sometimes one forgets which it is.
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By means of trees, wildlife could be conserved, pollution decreased, and the beauty of our landscapes enhanced. This is the way, or at least one of the ways, to spiritual, moral, and cultural regeneration.
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We still have to learn how to live peacefully, not only with our fellow men but also with nature and, above all, with those Higher Powers which have made nature and have made us; for, assuredly, we have not come about by accident and certainly have not made ourselves
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The heart of the matter, as I see it, is the stark fact that world poverty is primarily a problem of two million villages, and thus a problem of two thousand million villagers.
E. F. SchumacherRead

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