Jaecheon Choi's Study how to learn and live Authors: Jaecheon Choi, Heekyung Ahn Publisher: Youngsa Kim Publication Date: May 18, 2022
While translating and publishing Professor Edward Wilson's 'Consilience', Jaecheon Choi translated it as 'consilience'. It was 2015 when I read that book, so quite a bit of time has passed. As the discipline developed, it became subdivided and specialized. There are many so-called experts in society. However, it is difficult to see active exchanges with other disciplines outside of the field of expertise they are engaged in. Even if we look at the same problem, even the terms we use are different.
This is not to explain the consilience that Professor Jaecheon Choi has emphasized before. It is a matter of what kind of goal we want to achieve through education that we should pursue. As the authors of this book recognized, our education has many problems. Rather than teaching the process of finding the answer, they value the answer to get a better score on the test. People flock to so-called prestigious universities through differential test scores. Studying is just a tool for inheriting a social and economic position. It is no different from the past exams of the Joseon Dynasty.
Can the outdated education system that was eaten in the era of industrialization survive in the era of the 4th industrial revolution? In what direction should we improve education and think about studying? Perhaps, even if you go to a prestigious university with the current education method, that is, study only for test scores, there is a high possibility that you will not be able to achieve a guaranteed successful life like before. The power of thinking, which is called by various words such as creativity, reasoning, and imagination, is more necessary than ever. How can such power be developed? Isn't it only possible through the effort to feel the problem and solve it, and the power to improve more?
Rather than simply memorizing or giving answers to children, letting them feel and be interested in nature may be a shortcut to developing their imagination and creativity. However, we are in a hurry. The fear of falling behind if they do not receive private education like others intensifies it. What if we looked at such fears with a slightly open mind and imagined the social image that would change? Perhaps the answer we have to take will be seen to some extent. However, the resistance of the class with vested interests will be severe. There are many things that we all need to work on with empathy in children's education.
how about studying? We live much longer than previous generations. If you reach retirement age, you will have to live another 30 years. In an age when people did not live as long as before, there would not have been much fear or preparation for old age. But the world has changed. While the lifespan of knowledge has been shortened, the lifespan of the body has been lengthened. Therefore, studying new things becomes much more urgent than before. Through such a process, life will become more meaningful and richer than before. And in the world, maybe if you're lucky, you might even have the possibility to contribute.
Through such a process, we will be able to reconsider the concept proposed by Edward Wilson, consilience. Through constant study, it will be an opportunity to learn about various fields and combine them with existing knowledge and insight. And it can have explosive results. If you think about it, the goal of education that we will pursue is probably a person with a flexible mind that can do such integrated thinking. This is a book that reminded me of the meaning of study in many ways. I recommend reading it.