Street Smarts Are Already Being Used in Today’s Society
Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” To myself, this means that getting any form of structured education is the key to learning to make a difference and think for myself. However, I believe that any person’s interests or hobbies can be meaningfully studied. The subjects have to be learned like any other structured learning by analyzing critically, thinking deeply, and questioning thoroughly. In the article “Hidden Intellectualism,” author Gerald Graff, a professor of English and Education, explains his view that individuals with knowledge in unusual topics are often ignored by officials of education and society as a whole. He describes further by stating how we associate individuals who favor uncommon subjects as unintelligent and against education. Graff tries to proves his points by writing about his own experiences of his formal education and personal interests back in the 1950s. I disagree with Graff when he states that new writing should be assigned over classic literature and that society fails to recognize students with different types of knowledge; on the contrary, I agree with Graff that untraditional subjects should be introduced into education if, however, taught in an instructional manner.
One inaccurate argument that Graff asserts is that he believes there should be heavy consideration to assign magazines over definitive pieces of literature. Graff states, “If a student cannot get interested in Mill’s On Liberty but will read Sports Illustrated or Vogue or the Hip Hop magazine Source with absorption, this is is a strong argument for assigning the magazines over the classic” (386). By focusing on a single child’s taste of learning, Graff overlooks the deeper problem that every person is different, but it would be impossible for every school to teach every single child to his or her specific tailored needs. Standardized education may not be every student’s ideal way to learn, but the methods are created off a single rubric that educators believe every child can excel in. As well as, classic literature pieces are indeed classified as “classics” for a reason. Theses books and novels are timeless, and I believe they are recognized because every individual needs to read and comprehend them. In addition to expanding assigned literature in schools, Graff believes that society and schools should place emphasis on students who think deeply and make their own observations rather than a student who can memorize answers for a test.
Another mistaken fact Graff argues is that society and schools fail to notice the possible brainpower of street smarts because they link the type of knowledge with individuals against intelligence. Graff declares, “Nor do we consider one of the major reasons why schools and colleges overlook the intellectual potential of street smarts: the fact that we [society] associate those street smarts with anti-intellectual concerns” (380). Graff’s claim that society fails to recognize the high intelligence of humans with street smarts rests upon the questionable assumption that every human does not see the mental power that people with different styles of intelligence inhibit. Even in my small rural town located in Missouri, the citizens understand that street smarts are simply just a different type of thinking. Rarely do humans connect a person’s personal interests with the idea that the person despises intellect or education. Society does recognize that individuals with street smarts in different, non traditional fields can be very successful in life. Again, in my small town there are thriving businesses that involve film, fashion, cars, photography, and other unconventional topics. In addition, I don’t understand how Graff can argue that people with different types of intelligence are ignored by educational institutions. The evidence shows that a huge amount of colleges offer majors in almost every interest: automobile industrial design, modern fashion merchandise, sports broadcast journalism, and computer videogame development. These are just a small sample of the vast amount of other majors and fields of study that colleges offer. Also, various other skills and interests can be beneficial to learn but only if done through academic methods.
Graff effectively states how some unconventional fields of study should be implemented as subjects in the classroom but fails to realize that those subjects would need to be taught in an educational and analytical way. Graff explains, “So it makes pedagogical sense to develop classroom units on sports, cars, fashions, rap music, and other such topics” (386). I agree that uncommon subjects can be full of intellectual thinking but disagree because that’s only if a person looks at in a educational way. For example, Casey Neistat, a filmmaker who dropped out of high school, intellectually analyzed his passion for making movies. From the usage of his street smarts and interest in film, Neistat is now one of the biggest stars on Youtube and recently sold his social media company for millions of dollars. However, Neistat did not become successful from just mildly pursuing film as a hobby on the side. He had to research, analyze, and think to become informed and educated on the subject. He studied the industry and found a place where he could thrive. Ultimately, what is at stake here is that almost any topic can be learned educationally to create a career.
In the article “Hidden Intellectualism,” author Gerald Graff, a professor of English and Education, explains his argument that humans with unconventional intelligence are often not recognized by colleges and the general public. I disagree with Graff when he asserts that modern literature should be given to students instead of classic writing and that people ignore humans with street smarts; on the other hand, I agree with Graff that uncommon fields of study should be implemented into schools if, however, taught in an educational style. In addition, Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” To me, this assertion means that obtaining any type of informative education is a vital aspect to learning how to think deeply and make real change.
Works Cited
Graff, Gerald. "Hidden Intellectualism." They Say I Say With Readings. By Gerald Graff
and Cathy Birkenstein. Ed. Russel Durst. 2E ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012.
380-387. Print
“A Quote by Nelson Mandela.” Goodreads, Goodreads, 2017, www.goodreads.com/quotes/16243-education-is-the-most-powerful- weapon-which-you-can-use.
One inaccurate argument that Graff asserts is that he believes there should be heavy consideration to assign magazines over definitive pieces of literature. Graff states, “If a student cannot get interested in Mill’s On Liberty but will read Sports Illustrated or Vogue or the Hip Hop magazine Source with absorption, this is is a strong argument for assigning the magazines over the classic” (386). By focusing on a single child’s taste of learning, Graff overlooks the deeper problem that every person is different, but it would be impossible for every school to teach every single child to his or her specific tailored needs. Standardized education may not be every student’s ideal way to learn, but the methods are created off a single rubric that educators believe every child can excel in. As well as, classic literature pieces are indeed classified as “classics” for a reason. Theses books and novels are timeless, and I believe they are recognized because every individual needs to read and comprehend them. In addition to expanding assigned literature in schools, Graff believes that society and schools should place emphasis on students who think deeply and make their own observations rather than a student who can memorize answers for a test.
Another mistaken fact Graff argues is that society and schools fail to notice the possible brainpower of street smarts because they link the type of knowledge with individuals against intelligence. Graff declares, “Nor do we consider one of the major reasons why schools and colleges overlook the intellectual potential of street smarts: the fact that we [society] associate those street smarts with anti-intellectual concerns” (380). Graff’s claim that society fails to recognize the high intelligence of humans with street smarts rests upon the questionable assumption that every human does not see the mental power that people with different styles of intelligence inhibit. Even in my small rural town located in Missouri, the citizens understand that street smarts are simply just a different type of thinking. Rarely do humans connect a person’s personal interests with the idea that the person despises intellect or education. Society does recognize that individuals with street smarts in different, non traditional fields can be very successful in life. Again, in my small town there are thriving businesses that involve film, fashion, cars, photography, and other unconventional topics. In addition, I don’t understand how Graff can argue that people with different types of intelligence are ignored by educational institutions. The evidence shows that a huge amount of colleges offer majors in almost every interest: automobile industrial design, modern fashion merchandise, sports broadcast journalism, and computer videogame development. These are just a small sample of the vast amount of other majors and fields of study that colleges offer. Also, various other skills and interests can be beneficial to learn but only if done through academic methods.
Graff effectively states how some unconventional fields of study should be implemented as subjects in the classroom but fails to realize that those subjects would need to be taught in an educational and analytical way. Graff explains, “So it makes pedagogical sense to develop classroom units on sports, cars, fashions, rap music, and other such topics” (386). I agree that uncommon subjects can be full of intellectual thinking but disagree because that’s only if a person looks at in a educational way. For example, Casey Neistat, a filmmaker who dropped out of high school, intellectually analyzed his passion for making movies. From the usage of his street smarts and interest in film, Neistat is now one of the biggest stars on Youtube and recently sold his social media company for millions of dollars. However, Neistat did not become successful from just mildly pursuing film as a hobby on the side. He had to research, analyze, and think to become informed and educated on the subject. He studied the industry and found a place where he could thrive. Ultimately, what is at stake here is that almost any topic can be learned educationally to create a career.
In the article “Hidden Intellectualism,” author Gerald Graff, a professor of English and Education, explains his argument that humans with unconventional intelligence are often not recognized by colleges and the general public. I disagree with Graff when he asserts that modern literature should be given to students instead of classic writing and that people ignore humans with street smarts; on the other hand, I agree with Graff that uncommon fields of study should be implemented into schools if, however, taught in an educational style. In addition, Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” To me, this assertion means that obtaining any type of informative education is a vital aspect to learning how to think deeply and make real change.
Works Cited
Graff, Gerald. "Hidden Intellectualism." They Say I Say With Readings. By Gerald Graff
and Cathy Birkenstein. Ed. Russel Durst. 2E ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012.
380-387. Print
“A Quote by Nelson Mandela.” Goodreads, Goodreads, 2017, www.goodreads.com/quotes/16243-education-is-the-most-powerful- weapon-which-you-can-use.