For some reason, editing is a technique that's overlooked in school. It's assumed that students will just know how to do it, which is problematic because editing in itself is a skill.

Think back to a moment during your education where you were submitting a rough draft to your teacher. That first draft of what you're exchanging is a reflection of your thoughts and opinions getting voiced through writing. When either your peers or teacher edit it, it's their voices telling you what can be improved. For most, a person will look at the teacher's edits and, worrying about the grade, will do everything the teacher says. In doing this, it's a form of submission to authority.

Editing is finding a balance between your voice and that of others, but in school, it's almost always implied that "the teacher knows best." Even if you disagree or think that something might rob someone of what s/he's trying to say, a student is still more likely to comply because the grade takes importance.

This kind of behavior is something that can be internalized over time, where a person may exchange what they were originally trying to say to meet the editor's desires. Not limited to writing, it is easy to see that a person may do this in the future in other relationships, such as the boss-employee approach. Any scenario where a person must make changes to their work to meet their boss' wants can relate to this, but the reason why this is significant is simple: if a person is able to learn early on that people in authority aren't all-knowing, it can be easier for an employee to make the choice between doing what's right or wrong should such a situation arise. This isn't meant to inspire a form of rebelliousness or suggest that a person should question their bosses, but having the understanding that those above you aren't always right.

For example, take this scenario into consideration: you and a team of people are assembling parts for some sort of product and you aren't going to meet your goal that day. In order to make sure you do, your shift leader says that everyone should skip an inspection step that would make the process move along faster. In this moment, the choices could be to do as they say since they're the person in power, or you could do the smart thing and not listen to what they say.

If there's anything I've learned from receiving edits, it's that there is nothing wrong with questioning or challenging authority because, sometimes, it needs to happen. If someone could potentially cause harm or risk a major production problem, like in the above example, there should be minimal hesitation to take action. Just as much as we need feedback from our peers and authority figures, the vice versa also has to happen in some instances.

So, rather than just blindly follow your shift leader or, in the case of your education, your teacher, it's important to remember that every day, no matter who you are, we are all still learning. People make mistakes or could potentially be putting you in a situation that can cause harm to you, others, or, in the case of writing, might be robbing you of your voice. Take a step back if you ever encounter a situation that involves writing and ask yourself, "Am I learning how to get better at what I'm doing, or am I only learning how to do whatever others want me to do?"