There are countless techniques used in teaching that evolve more every day. We are often handed a textbook with the expectation that within five hundred pages of well documented research is a lesson. I am not denying the strong purpose of the classic education system, but I urge you to look beyond that for enrichment. What if we were to pull ourselves out of this vortex once in awhile to ask the people around us what they are living through? There are over seven billion people on Earth that each have hundreds of experiences to learn from. We cross the paths of so many lessons without batting an eye because we are too focused on studying lesson 3 for our test this week.

The problem we face with our commitment to studies is trapping ourselves in a cycle. I spent a lot of my time in school in various history classes and really loved my teachers. When the test was placed back in my hands, I would (usually) find a decent grade. Despite this, I still was anxious before any of the classes as I felt I was not truly retaining any of the information. I never wanted to have a discussion about politics with one of my friends; I was too embarrassed to admit I did not even know the difference between the political parties through most of high school. The worst part was I did not feel I had time to learn them between everything else expected of me as a student.

Flash forward to my sophomore year in college, and I decided learning is not just about getting an A on my next test. With this in mind, I went with my friend the other day to get coffee and talk about her travels for volunteer work (expect an article from me with more on that in the near future). In our three hours beside each other, we exclaimed, "wait, I never knew that," more than once. As she described to me the people she had met, I was suddenly able to understand more than any news broadcast ever explained. I left with more interest than frustration, a phenomenon that would never happen as I crashed for my final exams. It was amazing to have a drive to learn, and not just a test I had to study for.

Think for a moment of the last time you or somebody you know was preparing for one of the aforementioned tests. "Hopefully it is easy" or "I better get at least a B+ on this" may have been the major concern. We have become so focused on this that we are missing all the other opportunities in the classroom. The purpose of college goes far beyond the books they make you read, so take advantage of being surrounded by intelligent people with stories to tell. On your campus, take one day to walk to a teacher's office and start asking questions. Ask questions that have nothing to do with your grade, and everything to do with something you always wanted to know. Sit next to somebody in the courtyard talking about experiences instead of curriculums.

Communication is a powerful tool that seems to be deteriorating, or in the very least, changing, as the world itself evolves. We need to keep this art as part of our lives. Nothing can be more enriching to our lives than continuing to grow through our personal relationships. There will be a day when we have closed the textbooks and left the classroom. Discussions simply prevent us from becoming stagnant in our intellect when that time comes.

There are a million ways to learn- don't limit yourself to just one!