I do not believe in the clichéd separation between “school” and “the real world.” Maybe it’s because I have spent almost my entire life in schools (and plan to continue doing so), but I have seen firsthand that the experiences people have over the course of their education are not just real, they are among the most valuable experiences of their entire lives. 

Schools and universities are not the only place where education happens, but they are a critical site of it. In a great school, students aren’t passively given an education, they are inspired to actively engage in it. Different students have different goals, skills, and prior experiences. The best schools are the ones that meet each where they are, guide them in deciding where they want to be, and provide the tools they need to get there.

The extrinsic value of education is well-documented, but nonetheless worth cataloguing. A good education positions students to succeed by giving them the tangible skills they need to thrive today and the intangible skills they need to adapt to tomorrow. A good education also prepares students to be citizens by teaching them how society does (and ought to) function and how they can contribute to it—or, if necessary, change it. Students will learn some of that in the classroom and much of that from the school itself. A school is a microcosm of society; a great school is a microcosm of what society can be. 

Those extrinsic benefits of education are important and ought to be emphasized. But they should not obscure the intrinsic value of education. Education is not just a means to an end. It is an end of itself. Understanding our world even just a little bit better, understanding ourselves just a little bit better—these do not need any other payoffs to have been worthwhile. The time that we spend making these discoveries is just as real as whatever comes next.