How to Invest in Your Children’s Education
“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”
This applies to our children as well. Education is simply the biggest gift that parents can give to their children, all other gifts lose their value compared to the gift of education because education not only equips the children with necessary skills that they need in their lives but education can also transform them and turn them into better human beings that can benefit the society as a whole.
1. How Can Education Transform Your Children?
This is a very basic question, one which we shouldn’t even be asking but let`s look into it nevertheless. We live in a world that is stratified into different social classes and while basic education is a human right in many developed countries, it is considered a luxury in many developing nations.
Many people in developing nations cannot even afford to educate their children properly and therefore what we in developed nations take for granted is a luxury for many people in this world.
When our children go to school, college and then university they go through a process that not only educates them and equips them with necessary skills but it also teaches them valuable life lessons. It isn’t even about life lessons, for one can learn life lessons without going to a school. The thing is that proper education prepares the children to survive in a world that is ever-changing.
It doesn’t matter if your children grow up to become an accountant or an engineer or a doctor. These are professions that they have chosen to specialise in. The real impact of education is hidden beneath the surface. Proper education allows us to look at the world, see where it is going, how it is changing and how we can adapt to it.
An uneducated person may know a trade or two but when times become tough, a person who hasn’t got formal education will not be able to survive and adapt to changing conditions whereas an educated person will be able to find a way. You can see this happening all around you right now. The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way businesses operate, millions across the world have been unemployed but at the same time people are innovating and coming up with new ideas for business. This is what education does to an individual. It gives them the ability to change and adapt when needed.
This brings us to the next question.
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2. What is Education?
Well, this is a valid question. What counts as a valid education? The answers to this may be subjective. People tend to differ on what real education is. Primary and secondary education is without any doubt included in the answer. You can home school your children or send them to a regular school, in either case, your children will learn skills like mathematics, language, history and science and these subjects will help develop their understanding of the world.
A college education is also a very necessary part of formal education. Many students drop out after school due to various reasons, some cannot afford college education while some simply aren’t interested in studying further. It goes without saying that if you drop out after school your education isn’t really complete.
A college education can be considered as the in-between phase that prepares students for their university education and this brings us to our next point.
Many students across the world drop out after college mainly because universities are expensive and many students simply cannot afford them. While a student who drops out after college can be considered as a literate person but they cannot truly be considered as educated because their education is incomplete.
University education serves as the icing on the cake. It equips students with the advanced skills that they need not only to excel in their careers but also as individuals and professionals. University graduates not only get better and higher-paying jobs they also have fruitful careers and are likely to find more ways to succeed in life as compared to students who drop out after college.
This isn’t discrimination, we must understand that the more a student studies the more they are likely to succeed in life because they have got more ability and skills. A college graduate, for example, cannot get the same job that requires a university graduate.
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3. What Should Parents do?
As parents, it is our responsibility to look out for the best future of our children. Yes, as individuals it is their own choice to do whatever they wish in life but as parents, it is our responsibility and duty to look out for them. Have you seen how a mother cat grooms and trains her kittens? She knows that her kittens will grow up to be a cat and thus they will face the same realities that she did. In a similar manner, our children too will grow up n this world which is not only harsh but ever-changing and therefore in order to equip our children with the abilities and skills that they are going to need in future, we must invest in their education today.
4. How to Invest in Our Children’s Education?
Ideally, you should start thinking about the education of your children even before they are born. Yes, because this will give you plenty of time to save up. If you live in a country where primary and secondary education is state-funded then you have got t least 14 to 16 years before your children will be eligible for college and university education.
If you start early you can deposit the savings for your children’s future education in a special savings account that will provide you with a monthly return. You can reinvest this monthly profit and over time this will allow your savings to increase exponentially. In this manner, by the time your children are eligible to go to college and university, they will not have to worry about their education funding. Alternatively, you can look for long term education funding plans that may be available in your country. Remember that the earlier you start, the easier it will be for you to save and invest.
Conclusion
We as parents are duty-bound to look out for our children whether they are young or old and looking out for them by investing in their education so that they can be successful in their lives and help out not only their family but society as a whole can be the best gift and investment that any parent can make for their children.
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Fun Fact
What is the greatest gift a parent can give a child?
Parents are best equipped to give their children the gift of presence, validation, and security. Our presence opens the door to attunement and resonance. Attunement occurs when parents become aware of their child’s inner world.
