| All men are created equal, except in birth, intelligence, and beauty. You’re either stupid, or you’re smart. It doesn’t matter where you go to school. Public or private school, it won’t alter how intrinsically intelligent you are. (Incidentally, I tend to think I fall on the stupid end of the spectrum. Also, doesn’t this sound like a desperate excuse/explanation for not getting into an esteemed institution of higher education?) You see, there was this belief, or more aptly, erroneous opinion, I used to hold when I was young and naïve. When I went to private school, namely West Portal Lutheran, I thought that I was somehow inherently better or smarter than kids who went to public school. There’s a fallacy, if there ever was one, believing that going to private school makes me better than people who didn’t. How mistaken I was because when I got to Lowell, I found that my West Portal Lutheran education didn’t give me any advantage over kids who matriculated through the public school system (and two years of German instruction doesn’t count as an advantage). Some of smartest people I have the pleasure to know now at Lowell went to public school, and some of the dumbest come from private school. The opposite is true as well: some of the dumbest people I know went to public school, and some of smartest went to private school. So in reality where you go to school means little, if you’re not already innately mentally endowed. Having said that, where you go to school does matter and is, in fact, a matter of extreme importance. Now, I know that sounds like a complete contradiction of what I just wrote, but I assure you, it is not. While what school you attend may not be particularly important in terms of what you’re taught at that school or what you learn there (since it won’t give you any more intelligence than what you started out with), it is nonetheless most crucial in affecting your future life. In terms of the connections you forge, the relationships you cultivate, the people you encounter, the instructors you study under, the environment you’re in, the opportunities you’re offered, the school you matriculate is of the utmost importance. And due to its environment and social offerings, school shapes your personality to a certain degree as well, or what part of your personality that isn't already innately predetermined. (I’m sure I would be a completely different person than the person I am today if I had not attended Lowell for the past three years. Had I gone to any school other than Lowell, I’d probably be less bitter, disillusioned, and “pessimistic”, and I might possess a great deal more confidence in my abilities. But I don’t think I would be content going to any other school, public school at least, knowing that I did not attend the “best” one, whatever that means.) From grade school to post-graduate studies, the school you attend will affect who you are and more importantly who you know. Going to a well-regarded private school will not only almost automatically boost your reputation and public regard, it will also ensure you will mingle with the socially and economically elite, which is not something to be taken lightly since these connections may well benefit you for the rest of your life. In the end, it matters little where you go to school in regards to intellectual ability or education received. (You can learn the same material whether you go to a state school or an Ivy league school, though that might be a little bit of a stretch. In theory you should be able to obtain the same education wherever you go, or am I mistaken? Regardless, it is quite ironic that I tend to look back and believe that I may have gotten an inferior education at West Portal Lutheran, if only slightly, than I would have gotten at any other public school.) However, in terms of your personality, relationships, reputation, and other malleable factors, the school you attend is of great significance, particularly since personality and moreover, relationships, are ultimately what life is all about. All the academia, scholarship, erudition, and pedantic knowledge in the world is useless, if you have no connections with which to impart your knowledge, with which to garner influence, with which to make a difference. The (rather oblique) point I’m trying to make, besides the one about inherent intelligence and school, is that ultimately at the end of the day what you do with your resources holds a great deal more weight than what you are capable of doing, no matter how smart and intelligent you may be. As J.K. Rowling says, "It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." Well, I’m sure wasting my time, ranting about all this, when I should be crafting impeccable personal statements to ensure I earn myself a spot in some “good” college so I can become an influential, self-important member of society. Further reading:
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.’s short story "Harrison Bergeron"
All Men are NOT Created Equal (which includes “Harrison Bergeron”)
A Post of Mine from April 11, 2006 (The only relevant part is when I talk about recruitment, public school vs private school, etc) |
