The Nations of Definations..

Much education today is monumentally ineffective. All too often we are giving young people cut flowers when we should be teaching them to grow their own plants. -John W. Gardner

Don't you think in our education system today we spent so much time learning by definition rather than knowing how things actually work. Like it or not we like to defines things to the extend. Take the new UMNO politician buzzword ' Bangsa Malaysia'...I believe there will be individuals or organization who will try to compose the defination with all the tougue twisted jargon..which by the time you finish reading the whole definations you need to go up again just to reread the whole thing without understading what the heck it means.

Just like what 'Biomedical Engineering' terms means. There are a lot of defination for that words. Some are too long and some are short. For me I understand the the terms as 'Engineering + life science knowledge' but of course I wouldn't write that in my answer sheet during exam...as much as I wanted to but I am just not a nuts who would risk my grade just to make a point. Like it or not, I need to memorized all those long words and put it in the well scripted answer so that my lecturer would like it and give me a good marks.

The problem with these kind of teaching is simple...we spent to much time defining things. We act very little. Personally ask me any computer/IT jargon and hopefully if I still remember I can give you the answer but ask me to actually connect or set up an IT/computer system for a hospital. I am hopeless. None of the defination make sense. Just knowing what is it...offers a very little help in the technical world. Engineers are a part of that technical world.

I am not ashame to admit that I am a product of the 'school of defination'. We need to change the education approach. Personally I think the system we inherited is just obsolete. The system today are something we inherited for a long..long time. During the old days there are very few people who went to school. For those who succeeded to go to university..they are thought all of the definition because at the end of it..most of them will become goverment officers..and it is their job to come out with all other wierd definations...that is what they do and that is why they are thought in such a way. Nowadays actions speaks louder that 'paper proposal'. What every undergraduated must now is when they finishes school..not everyone will become officers or executive sitting in air-conditioning office..counting their salary by the end of the month.

To all my friends who will become lecturer..put a stop to this twisted ideology for the benefits of the future generations.


The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet- Aristotle