Schools of the Future

I think the article by Ben Okri was well-thought out and very interesting. I do feel that when we leave this university, will we really have learned enough? Ben Okri says that besides learning math, science, etc... we should also be learning about ourselves. Is knowing how to take tests and give answers enough? I know that I am a person who thinks about the world we live in and why we're here. When I have attempted to talk about my thoughts to friends and family, I get weird looks, I get ignored, or they ask, "Are you ok?" I have learned to not talk about philosophical things. Ben Okri says we are all philosophers. I think that we have all been taught to not think about the big questions of life. We have all been taught only how to memorize facts and answer test questions. We have not been taught to think abstractly. I think adding classes that teach us how to think abstractly and classes that teach us to look at ourselves and who we are will be a great addition to college curriculums.
People are so rushed now a days that we don't ever stop and really look at what is around us. Ben Okri says we read through pages of books, but don't really read them. I think we need to take the time to really look at our environment and ourselves. I am an artist as well as a teacher. I think that being an artist has made me stop and look at the world around me. When I am walking through campus, I don't just focus on what I will be doing later or where I need to go, I look at my surroundings and take in the beauty of the trees, sky and buildings around me. I work a lot with color in my paintings, so I take notice of the colors around me as well. I think taking art classes here at Kean have helped open my eyes to the world. I really think that everyone should take a painting class because it makes you sit for a long period of time focusing on just one thing. When I paint, the busy part of the world disappears and I am completely focused. All students should take a class that makes them look at themselves. How can we understand our world and other people, if we don't understand ourselves?
Now the question is...is this school of the future realistic? I'm not sure. Will we ever have classes that really make us look at ourselves and become philosophers? Or will these classes just become another class that we have to study for and come up with answers to? I think the education system has potential, but will it ever happen? Unfortunately, I don't think it will happen soon.