First off Bach and Kanye both raised great points to their different but similar views. I felt they both had separate views on going to school while their underlying message was more about the importance of studying and following what excites you and what you can see yourself doing in the future. Not those nonsense high school classes where you learn about trigonometry and wonder to yourself “when am I going to use this in real life”. Bach’s main point where he mentioned, “school is temporary but education lasts a lifetime” is a great point and I never really thought of it like that. Like J.Lin mentioned you’re are not stuck in school you can leave and pursue your own valuable education. I also agree where j.lin said, students should be giving more options instead of being forced to “memorize” facts in school, and learn by observation and experience. As for Kanye’s view on education he feels success isn’t only obtained by college degrees but if you can’t become a famous rapper as a college dropout than a degree is a very important thing to have in this “hard real world”. He feels you need to give yourself as many chances as you can in order to be successful. Kanye also raises a great point similar to Bachs where he talks about the importance of offering classes about things that kids are interested in rather than the basic curriculum. Like the cliché phrase you hear from everyone older, when you find a job you enjoy working you’ll never work a day in your life. Basically follow your dreams and do what makes you happy.
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THE SYSTEM ISN’T WORKING?
After reading Wikipedia’s definition of what it means to be a buccaneer I believe James M. Bach’s term coining of the term buccaneer-scholars fits in perfectly with the ideas he is trying to convey. Bach writes “[Education is] not indoctrination, nor worshipping the ancients, nor obedience to authority… [It] is the you that emerges from the learning you do.” He elaborates by saying “Education is important. School is not. I didn’t need school. Neither do you”. What Bach’s theory on education and the buccaneers both believed that it was possible to excel (whether it be monetarily or academically) without having to follow the norms established by governing authorities. However, it is more complicated than what he is making it out to be.
Bach implies to the “at risk” students that it is possible to become successful without the need of traditional learning methods if they just educate themselves with topics which are interesting and fun to them. Similarly, the buccaneers decided to leave their homes along with the possibility of learning a trade or living off the land to instead live life in a more unorthodox manner. The problem with going down these unorthodox paths is that nothing is guaranteed. Sometimes the risks may outweigh the benefits. A simple man may dream of becoming a buccaneer but may die the first day out at sea. A student may choose to not attend school anymore believing all he has to do the self-educate but may end up being overwhelmed due to the lack of guidance.
In theory, the concept of Buccaneer-Scholars may sound interesting and doable on a case-by-case basis but the problem comes in putting it into effect over the whole population. According to the NYS Department of Education, “The object of the compulsory attendance law is to see that children are not left in ignorance, that from some source they receive the instruction that will fit them for their place in society.” Without a traditional education system in place, I fear that many students will not have all the tools necessary to distinguish facts from false statements.
The only benefits I see with Bach’s theory is that it will help give a small percentage of the population the freedom needed to explore beyond norm and if anything learn at a faster rate than that of a traditional curriculum just like Bach.
Two Buccaneers
1) Bach decides to disregard the teacher because of her stance regarding schooling. He compares her solemn outlook to that of his own 8th grade teacher, who told him that he wouldn’t amount to anything without school. He went on to use himself as an example to refute both her and his own teachers comments, and that’s where parallels can be drawn between Mr. West and Bach. Mr. West has to fervently explain to the students that school isn’t the end all be all, and Bach does too. They both express their desires for schools that don’t take such a linear approach to educating their pupils.
2) In simpler words, a buccaneer is a pirate. Buccaneers generally didn’t function under any already established legal systems, and instead made their own. Their means of warfare were excellent, due to a general passion for their lifestyles. Their vigor was what led them to be efficient, just like Bach’s passion for programming. Their success was self made, and they didn’t rely on any preexisting institutions to determine their lifestyles. The limits of this lifestyle however, is the fact that much of the population has been brainwashed into thinking that education and conformity is the key to success. Therefore, to live life as a buccaneer scholar, you are subjecting yourself to a life of proving yourself, which could be uplifting for some, but exhausting for most.
Education, not Institution.
In his book, Secrets of a Buccaneer Scholar, James Marcus Bach stresses that the key to success is education, not school. He dismisses the teacher’s comment that his speech was “dangerous” by pointing out that she was correct, but it wasn’t dangerous for the students, it was dangerous for her. Bach’s key point was, “Education is important. School is not. I didn’t need school. Neither do you (1).” He believes in education that is self-determined, not institutionalized education. The importance of education is to learn through your own developed means, not for achieving desirable grades and obtaining a diploma. Bach mentions that what is learned through self-education is much more useful than “schoolism” that is practiced in educational institutions (5). Self-education enables youth to learn their own interests and open up multiple opportunities rather than narrow them down in “schoolism (5).” His success was accomplished through learning and developing his interests and not confine himself in an outdated curriculum.
In a speech given to high school students, Kanye West stresses that hard work is what made him successful. Similar to Bach, West is also a successful dropout. What makes West different than Bach, is his view on education. He mentions that although one can become successful as a dropout, it’s “a hard world, a real world, and you want every advantage you can have (1).” In an extremely competitive environment, a college education will help you master obstacles. But West does encourage schools to change the curriculum and add more courses that students would show an interest in. He recalls how he went to school “for gym, for lunch, for art (1),” and since kids show a passion in the music industry, there should be curriculum focused on music. Both dropouts, both successful, Bach and West suggest that education is something that should be interesting and not forced upon.
Success stories from dropouts
Bach is very fortunate to have found something he loves doing and excelled on his own. Bach clearly stressed in his, Secrets of a Buccaneer- Scholar, that education is important, but how you obtain that education is not necessarily important (1). Bach dismisses the teacher’s comment that his speech was “dangerous” because he is simply stating the facts; he is living proof that you do not need a formal education to succeed in life (1). I believe he also dismisses the teacher’s comment because of the lack of faith she has in her students. She believes that her students did not understand the message he was trying to give and does not believe that they will strive to exceed her expectations. However, Bach’s response was very well played; he stated, “They will learn and grow from anything that happens, unless they believe there is no hope. Your job is not to make them huddle quietly in a corral, but to help them get out there and seek their fortunes. Show them a way” (7). Bach basically said to the teacher that she needs to help them grow based on whatever foundation they choose, whether it has to do with school or not.
Bach’s response is similar to West’s response in the sense that they both believe a person should do all that they can to succeed. Bach phrases it as, “If you want to prosper in life: find something that fascinates you and jump all over it. Don’t wait for someone to teach you; your enthusiasm will attract teachers to you” (2). They both believe you have to be a go-getter to get what you want; Kanye told students to take advantage of your opportunities (1). They both also believe it is not the end of the world if you do not succeed. Kanye said backstage, “It is true you can be successful without [college], but this is a hard world, a real world, and you want every advantage you can have” (1). He talks about his experience dropping out of college when he had a record deal on the table, but had to go back to the real world when he was not entirely successful. Similarly, Bach stated that even if you are not successful and you have to work at low skilled jobs, it is not fatal or permanent, everyone bounces back in their own way (7).
College dropout and the Buccaneer
1. Bach dissmisses the teacher’s comment because he believed that he gave the kids another way of thinking towards education. Education should be free and challenging. “Education is important. School is not.” (1). It should not have to follow a certain system which does not worked for everyone. The teacher believes in the system and that is why she is dangerous because she agrees with a method that limits a child’s education expirience. Now, Bach and Kanye are both successful but they have different opinions. Bach isn’t saying to stop learning. He wants everyone to crave knowledge and to continue learning in their own way. They should master what they are interested in by challenging themselves. If they feel like school isn’t the right place for their education then, they should get out. “I felt like it was wasting my time”(2).
Kanye on the other hand motivates students to continue their education by going to college because it’s an advantage in the real world. You can network and have a lot of oppurtunities that a school might have to offer. He also mentions being broke.“That’s the main problem. When I was a college student I was broke, and I really like clothes. When I was in college it would have been better if I could have afforded more clothes!” He donates money with contests so that when kid’s are in school they don’t have to worry about personal expenses. The two point of views are opposing but they both have the message of taking the best oppurtunity for your education.
Bach’s idea of a buccaneer scholar is that it is different. “The status of buccaneers as pirates or privateers was ambiguous.” I think Bach reffered to himself as a buccaneer because he was probably in a lot of “wars” since he didnt not have a diploma but he kept on fighting until he reached the “riches”. He basically put himself out there and even if he wasn’t suppose to be in certian places he would still show up to soak up information on what he was interested in. He gained success by taking a different route than what “normal” people do.
School and Education
In the excerpt of Secrets of a Buccaneer Scholar, Bach dismisses the teacher’s comment that his speech was “dangerous” because he believes that Schoolism is what’s really dangerous for students. His personal experiences have taught him that teachers are not necessarily correct and the school education system is incompetent. When the teacher says the students “have” to be in school, Bach relentlessly criticizes the illness of school rules and proves that his high school teacher said the same thing and was wrong.
Even though West and Bach seem to have diametrically opposed responses to school, both of them mention the importance of proper education. They express that nowadays students need to learn what is valuable and useful in today’s society, not just what for grades. They are successful dropouts because they are clear about what they are truly interested in and filter out the useless things. West says: “Why did I go to school?’ I didn’t go for math class, I went for gym, for lunch, for art” (par.7). Similarly, Bach expresses: “Knowledge does not improve my education unless it changes me for the better” (1). West and Bach make their own choices to drop out of school, but they still continue their education, just in a different format that is equally or even more rewarding.
In addition, both West and Bach feel that school can’t satisfy their needs. For West, school is not able to support him financially; school can’t offer music production and rap classes. For Bach, school doesn’t give him the opportunity to do a meaningful experiment in physics class. More importantly, school doesn’t prepare him for the real world.
Furthermore, West and Bach both agree that education is flexible. While West states: “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” (par. 7). Bach believes: “ Feel free to disagree with your teachers, take some things from them and ignore some other things” (2). In other words, a good education is customized to one’s needs.
A Passionate Education
James Marcus Bach dismissed the teacher’s comment of being “dangerous” because he wasn’t the dangerous one, the teacher was. Bach is not in favor of “traditional” education; he states that, “Education is important. School is not. I didn’t need school. Neither do you” (1). Bach believes in education and learning, just not through the means of school. The most important thing about education to him is learning who you are and that cannot be achieve from traditional education. An individual should learn everything they want to learn, and should learn it in their own manner. If you can learn calculus from reading a book, physics from hands-on activity in your garage, or even history from watching documentary. Do it. That is a valuable education, and it is probably better than anything that you could ever get from a school. In school, “schoolism” is practiced (5). There is no you in that. The student is forced to go to school studying topics that were predetermined by the school, only to get a number that does not mean anything. There is no self-exploration or discovery in that, just another cookie cutter forcing its shape upon a student.
Similar to Bach, Kanye West is also a successful drop out; however, his view on education is different. Kanye West says, “‘it is true you can be successful without [college], but this is a hard world, a real world, and you want every advantage you can have’” (1). While he did not achieve higher education himself, he approves and promotes college. Despite the contrast in views higher education and schooling, Bach and West share a common ground; that should teach more relevant courses. Bach didn’t attend school or do the work because it did not interest him. Bach wanted to do calculus, not basic high school math. So he skipped school to learn calculus. He feed his own interest, not the schools. Kanye West went to school not for math but for gym, lunch, and arts (1). In his days, ball was the hit thing, now music is prominent. Kanye believes that there should be a curriculum focused on music production, and schools should “get with the time (1). Bach and West promote learning but it should be interesting or relevant to you. Students should educate themselves in something they have a passion for.
Method to the Madness
Historically, buccaneers were seen as reckless rebels. Their social status was ambiguous because nations failed to place them in an already existing social category or to accept them as part of their societies at all.
So I believe that the term “Buccaneer Scholar” has a negative connotation to it; it may even be a euphemism for what another would call a reckless intellectual. “Buccaneer Scholars” are looked upon as strange; the Spanish authorities even called buccaneers “heretics and interlopers,” but there really is a method to their madness (Wikipedia). What I make of a “Buccaneer Scholar” is a person whose mind breaches the norm in a way that alarms those who have been trained to think in a way set by said norm. A “Buccaneer Scholar” is an intellectual rebel – someone, as Bach writes, “whose mind is driven to wonder and find its own voice and place in the world” (8). “Buccaneer Scholars” neither need nor desire academic recognition from a society that shuns them; they believe that all one needs is the passion to learn. The way one shows this passion may seem unconventional, but if it works for the individual, he or she will be content. As the European governments put it, buccaneers are “hard to control” because they know no boundaries for acquiring the knowledge that they yearn for (Wikipedia).
The benefits of such a formulation include new inventions, theories for previously unexplainable events, or possibly an overall better global quality of life. Because the “Buccaneer Scholar” thinks so far out of the box, there is more room for discovery. However, there is also a limit for the “Buccaneer Scholars;” since their ways of thinking venture far beyond the borders of the norm, others leave little room for success. A student at Bach’s lecture raised a real concern with his question: “Isn’t it true that many employers won’t even consider you unless you have lots of formal education?” (3) To survive in today’s society, one must still hold a job – usually obtained with a degree attained through formal education – and with a job comes restrictions. The brilliance of a “Buccaneer Scholar” may be held back by rules made to keep a society structured and orderly. Instead of discovering the cure for cancer or how to stay alive on another planet, a “Buccaneer Scholar” will probably use this time working in a place that hinders the individual’s full potential, just trying to make a living.
“Buccaneer Scholars” truly break the mold that society expects of us. They experiment with their own intelligence, and like with any experiment, there are positive and negative reactions.