James Marcus Bach’s, “Secrets of a Buccaneer Scholar” challenges the idea that one needs to go to school to be successful. He uses his own life experiences and accomplishments as examples of why school does not necessarily play a large role in the contributions of one’s success. He claims that if someone wants to truly be successful, all they need is to be motivated enough to reach their goals. “I left high school because it wasn’t helping me. I felt that I was wasting my time. So I developed my own approach to learning.” (2).  He states that all school does is waste time and blocks you from learning what you really need to learn to reach your goals. Bach explained to the class about how he dropped out of high school and studied hard on his own to get himself in the position he held, working as a software test manager at Apple.

Kanye West, in contrast, advocates that higher education is much needed to become successful. Although he is a successful college dropout, he explained that he had to work extremely hard to be lucky enough to make the fortune he made. He encourages people to take advantage of every opportunity they can, and states that a college education is a strong advantage a person can have in the real world.

Although Bach and West have differences in their opinions on schooling, they do share one similar perspective; the current school system is flawed. Bach argues that the school system is flawed because the students are forced to think that the only things that matter are what they learn in school. Kanye West says that the school system is flawed because the current curriculums are not relevant to the majority of the students’ interests. “‘So why not start a curriculum that teaches music production? Come on, get with the times. People are so behind. There’s poetry classes, but why aren’t there rap curriculums? It takes people like myself to stand up and say this is part of our culture, why not use it to educate.'” Both Bach and West encourage people to work hard to pursue their interests.