In the know on knowledge

Octavia Tsibes
Octavia Tsibes



During one of my trips to the library last week, I noticed something unusual. As I took a seat in one of the wooden cubicles, I saw some words carved deeply into the surface of the desk - one of those permanent etchings that are added to library furnishings year after year, reminders of the travails of students who came before us.

What I read was, compared to the other nonsensical inscriptions I have seen, rather surprising: “I miss learning for knowledge, not grades.”

Reading those words made me stop and think for a moment. Apart from the fact that I would never expect to find such thought-provoking rhetoric among the expletives scribbled on library cubicles, something else occurred to me: I kind of missed that too, but not as much as I did in high school.

As the end of the semester is not that far off, I have mostly integrated myself into the academic atmosphere. Needless to say, university is a world away from high school. Gone are daily classes, weekly assessments and pointless worksheets. There is of course less structure at university. Adjusting to two-hour classes and lecture halls is something that will take time, and whether these aspects of university promote more intellectual stimulation than high school remains to be seen.

From what I’ve gleaned in my short time at varsity, the answer is both yes and no.

Yes, university classes are more focused and concept-based. The emphasis on memorisation is less prominent, and professors are more often concerned with attaining a level of intellectual stimulation rather than with overwhelming students with a litany of obscure facts.

But at the same time, grades will always matter. Courses that unfairly stress minor details will invariably exist. And that reality is not always a bad thing.

At a university where most are naturally curious and academically accomplished, there is good reason to make assessments tougher, but only to a certain extent.

I think my varsity days so far have been a healthy balance between traditional classes that include heavy textbook reading and courses that inspire students to explore what they love, in less conventional ways. The former are part of any university and the abundance of the latter determines the intellectual goals and quality of education.

I think part of the beauty of university is the chance to learn purely for the sake of knowledge, and the more opportunities we have to do so, the better. The environment at Unam doesn’t seem overly competitive. It’s an environment that fosters, perhaps even demands, deep intellectual forays and leads students to explore their interests for personal edification.

I’m sure there are other perspectives on the university intellectual environment, but I think all students can agree that it has a wealth of opportunities aimed toward stressing how knowledge itself is more important than the attached number or letter.

The student who etched those powerful words on the desk was expressing a sentiment that many hold. That student might have just received a reminder of how grades often render the quest for knowledge a shallow pursuit. It’s a system that produces people with a breadth of knowledge, but no depth. We end up only scratching the surface and never really penetrate the deeper issues. Luckily, I think I’ve arrived at a university where the deeper questions matter. And as I transition into my second semester, I hope to find more opportunities to gain knowledge in ways that are fruitful beyond the grades I receive.

octavia@myzone.com.na