I am an English teacher and sometimes I have students who come to me for lessons because they are having trouble passing their English qualifications. I ask them to show me the results of their past exams and their daily efforts, and often one of the reasons why they cannot pass the exams is that they just solve the questions in the dark. However, when you get a question wrong, it is always important to analyse why you got this question wrong and why you were able to choose the right answer for this question, rather than just saying that this question was right and this question was wrong. This is exactly what I advise my students to do and I have seen a great improvement in their English skills when I teach them how to think about the questions and how to revise.
When I thought about this, it occurred to me that sometimes people say that schooling is not necessary, but I think that learning something helps us to develop problem solving skills to solve problems when they arise.
In our daily lives, we are faced with a variety of problems, both small and big. If we are not able to find the cause of the problem when it occurs, time will pass and we will make the same mistakes again and again. This can reduce the efficiency of what you have to do, and can also lead to negative emotions and poor relationships with others.
That’s when problem-solving skills come in handy. Especially in this day and age, no one really knows what is going to happen. Suddenly, something unexpected can happen to the whole community, society or the planet. In such situations, we need to be able to calmly accept the situation, identify and analyse the cause of the problem and why it happened, and come up with multiple solutions and remedies. If you do this, no matter how difficult it is, you will be able to find hope and find a solution.
I think that this habit of thinking for oneself is one of the reasons why we study so many different subjects at school. You will think properly for yourself, and if you still don’t understand, you will seek advice from others around you, and you will also refer to someone else’s successful experience to come up with an idea of what you should do. May you enjoy thinking about the process of moving from mere results to solving your immediate problems, fulfilling your dreams and illuminating your daily life with the light of hope.