Intellectual Curiosity. Where Would We Be Without It?

Intellectual Curiosity. Where would we be without it?

In my opinion intellectual curiosity forms the basis of all education whether in junior infants or leaving cert. Throughout life we ask ourselves and our peers a variety of different questions. I believe that life is filled with mystery, and for many people, just trying to navigate the treacherous waters of our existence is a frustrating and even frightening thing. Terrible things happen for which there are no simple answers to explain them. Wars and disease. Tornados and typhoons. Even our own bodies begin to betray us as we age. There are lots of questions that plague our minds causing grief and stress as we make our way through this jungle known as life. For many of us, if we could just get some answers, we could live more easily despite the worry all these stressors often cause. Even if the answers aren't exactly what we want to hear, at least the knowing would help us find some measure of comfort in a world that seems so cruel. People go through their whole lives trying to find answers to questions that can never be answered such as, what is the meaning of life? This is by far the most perplexing question of all. There is no wrong or right answer. Everyone has their own outlook on life and I think that the only person that can answer this question is you. There are so many other questions such as, is there a God? Why is there suffering and death? Do I really have a soul mate? If we weren’t curios none of these questions would be asked. Teachers would never have to try and answer them but we are curios and I think that is why education is there, not just so we can get a good job and have a living but to be curios and to let us be curios.

Imagine a 2nd class teacher. The children they teaches are probably some of the most curios in the world. My nephew is in 2nd class and he has so many questions, why do clouds move? Why do you blink? Can T.V’s explode? Is the boogieman real? How many stars are in the...