“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand. “ - Albert Einstein
Education is not just about the subjects that are learnt and taught in school. Becoming educated is not restricted to being in school and then in college, gathering certificates and feeling proud of oneself. It is a lifelong exercise that can be unbelievably exciting if only we wish to jump onto the train of experience and take a trip to every conceivable place on the earth. Now we know that this cannot be done literally, so how do we manage it, first in school and then as we go on through the journey of life?
First, we all have to be on the same page: children, teachers and parents have to understand that education is not restricted to lessons taught in the classroom from text books. Parents and teachers must encourage children to ask as many questions as they can. For it is in wanting to know that will result in actually getting to know.
The thirst for knowledge is not restricted to the child. It is also essential for a parent and a teacher to keep adding to their own knowledge bank by keeping their eyes and ears open and by reading as much as possible and ensuring that children develop these habits as well.
Besides all of the above, that add to children becoming truly educated, schools and teachers must ensure that children have a society of enriching experiences. Surprisingly, these experiences develop a child’s creativity and imagination and lead to something that is often thought to be more important than knowledge. Creativity and imagination make children grow up to be productive adults who then arrive as citizens of the world ready to make their own great contribution to mankind.