Specific Gravity

I've got many thoughts, so I'll fire a couple of them off.

Exams/Assessment... Sometime back, I remember writing an essay on the topic of "Why do we mug?". This time, I'm only writing a short piece, and it's on the exams. As you already know from reading this blog, I don't think exams or assessment in general are necessarily bad things, though in excess I think they are bad.

Imagine scrapping assessment from your country's education system. Sure, you might allow younger-aged people to enjoy their youth to a larger extent. I see some element of decision here:

A - no/minimal assessment, allow young people to enjoy their youth and develop --> may lead to creative stars, entrepreneurship
B - assessment, forcing young people to absorb as the primary concern

Well, granted (A) does have its benefits, but (B) seems the more pragmatic option, as taking option (A), you are likely to end up with a greater pool of unskilled labour and fewer professionals in the future; in view of the transition to a present-day knowledge based economy, not good. Of course, (A) may result in entrepreneurial (sp?) businesses and all which can perform well by tapping off foreign talent, but notice the key word - may. Though (B) has its risk of failure, it seems comparatively much less than (A), as people end up following internationally recognised courses in education - "O" and "A" Levels, the IB, etc.

In a way, I admit that I am to an extent a bit sadomasochistic, but I usually only exhibit such qualities if I believe that, by my standards, I can become a better person going through such pain. Personally, I find that though assessment can be stressful, it can improve our skills when it comes to working under pressure, as well as various constraints. I find that the usage of other mediums of assessment like the IOC or geog field reports does have its benefits, even though I tend to perform relatively mediocrely on them - the primary benefit being exposure to using skills in another arena.

Meaning of Life. rawr too long to talk about now... I'll post this singly another time.

Worship. A while back, one of my Sunday School teachers told me that if he didn't believe in the words of a worship song, he would remain silent during the relevant section; and I find that this is something I have, to an extent, observed.

I'll bring you more than a song;
For a song in itself
Is not what you have required
You search much deeper within -
Through the way things appear,
You're looking into my heart.
-- "The Heart of Worship"

Granted, this does not come from the Bible, or any of the Christian Creeds that I do know of. Yet, it sort of encapsulates what I think with regard to this issue. The Ten Commandments state that we are not to give false testimony - I presume this means lying. Though I have failed many times, I know I should consciously try to minimise such infractions; wouldn't singing something you don't believe in be a lie?

You'll never let me go
through it all
jk