THE VALUE OF EDUCATION

Kids in one part of the world fight and struggle just to go to school; other kids in other parts in the world act otherwise; they fight and struggle as to not to go to school.

Malala Yousafzai would make the epitome of the former sentence and Victoria Thompson is the epitome of the latter sentence.

Malala was shot in the head when she was 14 by the Pakistani Taliban for being outspoken about how important schooling is while Victoria's dream was to drop out of school and have a baby at 15.

Some kids who have it all -- loving parents who fulfill their every demand, good food, techie gadgets, video games, television, laptops, Internet and other luxuries, simply balk from studying, deeming it boring.

Parents send their kids to tuition, buy them revision books and promise rewards if they do well in school. And, most of the time, the 'covenant of reward' is what motivates such children to pick their book up and study.

One case of study:

X is twelve. In his home, the TV would be switched on close to 18 hours and when he is told to study, he cries; the multiplication table is just too much for him and photosynthesis and the food chain doesn't seem to be worth understanding for him.

For underprivileged kids, their deprivation is what that motivates them to study; they study for the sake of acquiring an education, which is a reward that they give themselves.

One case of study:

Y is fourteen and she defied her parents when they wanted to barter her into a marriage to a much older man, threatening that she would go to the police if she was forced. She never misses a day for school and aspires to go to college and support her family in the future.

Education is a reward you give yourself and it is the best gift you can ever give yourself -- it stands the test of time, it will be yours for your lifetime, you can accumulate it, add value to it and nobody can take it from you.

One will only realize the value of something if it is taken away or not accessible for them.

Some kids don't realize how lucky they are.

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