What to Unlearn From School to Level Up?

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What to unlearn from school? Some lessons from school don’t cut it in the real world. To level up, you need to unlearn some things.

Let’s dive into six toxic lessons that the U.S. school system ingrains in us. Some of these ideas are drilled into our heads year after year, while others seep into our subconscious through today’s educational landscape.

But here’s the truth: these lessons can hold you back in your adult life and stifle your growth as an engineer. So, take a close look and see if any of these lessons have taken root in your mind. If so, it’s time to dig them out and unleash your full potential as both an engineer and a human being.

#1 Don’t blindly agree, question authority

what to unlearn from school

Picture this: top leaders and scientists declare the Earth is flat, but their reasoning seems off. Should you blindly agree? Absolutely not!

Remember, teachers and authority figures can make mistakes too – they’re only human. There are no exceptions.

Throughout your career, you’ll encounter those who speak in absolutes, insisting on their way or the highway. In these moments, embrace independent thinking and question the status quo. That’s how you’ll grow, both personally and professionally, and contribute to the advancement of humanity.

In essence, independent reasoning is the engine driving human progress. So, the next time you’re tempted to nod in agreement just to avoid looking foolish, take a step back and think critically, particularly when someone claims,

“Just trust me! This is how it has always been, and I know it’s right!”

By doing so, you’re not only helping yourself but potentially preventing harm to others as well.

For example, I had a few fantastic teachers who would intentionally make mistakes in their work, hoping a student would catch them. They wanted to show students the importance of questioning authority and not blindly trusting it.

#2 Value opinions backed by facts

School might tell us that every opinion matters, but let’s get real: only those opinions anchored in facts and data truly carry weight in any given subject.

The trouble with opinions is that they often lack substance and can be formed without any real understanding. Just look at the flat Earth theory: people can hold strong opinions about it without providing a shred of evidence.

As an engineer, you’ll come across a whirlwind of opinions, even from individuals boasting impressive credentials, decades of experience, and that wise, white-haired look. But always remember, opinions are just hot air without solid facts and logical reasoning to back them up.

So, be fearless in questioning others’ opinions in engineering. After all, it’s better to ruffle a few senior engineers’ feathers than to create a design that could lead to disaster.

#3 Don’t just memorize – understand

blindly memorizing information in school

Simply memorizing information to snag that elusive “A” grade is a dreadful strategy, especially when you don’t genuinely grasp the material.

Picture this: you cram the night before an exam, secure an “A,” but forget everything shortly after. Without truly understanding concepts, your problem-solving abilities will suffer. In the professional world, mastering underlying principles is vital for delivering top-notch work and thriving in your field.

Take it from my own experience: I resorted to memorization in college due to time constraints, but only truly understood the concepts when I revisited them on my own. Remember that a good grade looks nice on your transcript, but it won’t transform you into a 10x engineer or even a competent one.

It’s worth noting that our flawed education system often promotes memorization through its very structure. So, if you’re caught in the memorization trap, remember to circle back and really dig into the concepts later on.

#4 Forge your own path, don’t seek constant approval

in agreement and avoiding tough questions to win their favor in the classroom.

Hold up!

Even if everyone on Earth insisted our planet is the center of the universe, it wouldn’t make it true. Frankly, nature couldn’t care less about humanity’s collective opinion—it’ll carry on as it has for billions of years without batting an eyelash.

The key is to forge your own path in life. When you chase validation from others, you’ll always live for them, and that’s no recipe for happiness or reaching your full potential.

Steve Jobs once said,

“Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

In essence, it’s the trailblazers who shatter boundaries and propel humanity forward. Remember, everything is considered a fact by some authority until it’s debunked.

Harvard University theoretical physicist Professor Avi Loeb encapsulated this idea perfectly:

“One of the most difficult lessons to impart to young scientists is that the search for the truth can run counter to the search for consensus. Indeed, truth and consensus must never be conflated. Sadly, it is a lesson more easily understood by a student starting out in the field. From then on, year after year, the combined pressures of peers and job-market prospects encourage the tendency to play it safe.”

#5 Success isn’t solely about hard work

In school, individual hard work often leads to an “A” grade, making students believe it’s the key to success. However, in the working world, various factors beyond hard work contribute to success, such as:

  • Relationships
  • Abilities
  • Workplace
  • Past experience

While hard work is essential, it’s only one ingredient in the recipe for success. Recognize the importance of balancing all these factors to achieve greatness.

#6 Book smarts: not the ultimate key to success

I can’t stress enough that experience often outshines formal education. Sure, you can devour endless engineering textbooks and rack up university degrees, but without real-world, hands-on experience, you’ll remain in the shallow end.

Endless reading has its limits. To truly excel, you need to dive into the nitty-gritty of your field.

These days, schools bombard you with an overwhelming amount of information. Time constraints make it impossible to absorb everything, so you resort to memorization for the sake of grades. As a result, you miss out on truly understanding the crucial underlying concepts.

To illustrate this point, ask yourself:

Would you prefer a book-smart surgeon with zero experience or a seasoned professional with 30 years under their belt?

For me, it’s a no-brainer—I’d choose the experienced surgeon in a heartbeat.

“What to unlearn from school?” wrap up

Exceptional teachers are invaluable, but sadly, much of the U.S. education system still clings to outdated teaching methods and curricula that desperately need reform.

This cocktail of flaws hinders students from reaching their full potential, making it challenging to tackle unconventional, real-world problems.

The sooner you recognize and unlearn these detrimental lessons, the better off you’ll be.

In the end, embracing different perspectives on school learning can only benefit you. Armed with this knowledge, you can draw your own conclusions and decide what’s worth learning and what’s not.

Do you think it’s necessary to unlearn any of these 6 lessons taught in school? What do you think you should unlearn from school? What type of change do you want to see in schools, to further benefit students?

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