30 Day Blog Challenge- Day 9 How important do you think education is

I am a teacher. So it is obvious what I think about education, I think it is highly important. I have intentionally taken a job in the education field because not only do I want to make a significant contribution but I do think knowledge is power. I have 10 GCSEs, 3 A Levels. 1 AS Level, 1 undergraduate degree and a postgraduate certificate. For Americans I guess that is equivalent to graduating high school, graduating college and completing a 1-year postgraduate course. I am now wondering whether to complete another year of study (part-time) and get my Masters. But how important is education? Is it essential? Well the current government definitely think so, raising the compulsory leaving age to 18 by 2013. I do know people who have worked their way up to a senior position in a company versus gaining a degree. Think about it, there are many celebrities who have achieved upward social mobility and do not have a degree- Puff Daddy (whatever he calls himself these days!), Richard Branson, David Beckham and Jay Z to name a few. The question of the importance of education is very popular, considering the three fold increase in tuition fees in the UK, from £3,000 to £9,000 in a year *shakes head* (around $4,500 to $13,500). I think the answer to the question is: education is highly important but not essential, depending on your career aim. Do you need a degree to be an artist? No. But you do need a degree to be a teacher, nurse, social worker etc. That is not to say that any of these occupations are not as valuable/worthwile as the other it proves that education is not vital for everyone. Everybody learns in different ways- some people learn while doing (kinaesthetic) I believe Jamie Oliver is like this, which is why he did not gain more than one GCSE. Some people, like myself are visual learners. I think anybody can gain an education and everyone needs an education not only to learn knowledge but also to learn social skils. Not everybody wishes to gain a degree or Masters and that is fine also.