Issue 153

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153. Students should bring a certain skepticism to whatever they study. They should question what they are taught instead of accepting it passively.

I strongly agree with the statement that students should bring a certain skepticism to whatever they are taught. Today, in most schools knowledge is imbued to students mind mechanically. What quality students lack urgently is skepticism, without which a country’s future would be in shortage of innovations and inventions.

Skepticism refers to the philosophic position holding that the possibility of knowledge is limited either because of the limitations of the mind or because of the inaccessibility of its object. It is more loosely used to denote any questioning attitude.  Skepticism's existence attributes to the limitations of
cognition, as there is no boundary in the ocean of knowledge, flaws or fallacies are always contained in current knowledge, which need to be found out by people with skeptical minds.

Students need a certain skepticism so that they can cultivate their logical thinking ability and stimulate their curiosity. In history, any nation’s development and prosperity depended on a group of people with skepticism, because skepticism is the catalyst that leads to innovations. Take William Harvey as the first example, he discovered the circulation of the blood and the role of heart in propelling it with a skepticism against traditional theories of Galen. His skeptical mind led to the great discovery and contributes a lot to the study of medical science and physiology. Another example, Albert Einstein, the founder of the special theory of relativity, whose success due to his skepticism about Newton’s laws. However, Einstein once conceded: “Anyone could find the new theory because it is obviously there.” Then why did only Einstein achieve the breakthrough? We must concede that it is because of his skepticism while other scientists never consider to doubt their authority. From these two examples, it is obvious that skepticism is essential to new discoveries.

On the other hand, students accepting knowledge passively would believe in anything they are told. It is not only harmful to themselves but also to their nation. To individuals who lack skepticism, they cannot flaws or defections in current knowledge so that they cannot make essential breakthrough but just decorate what they have already inherited. To a society of which people lack skepticism, it will not develop healthily because it loses the most important power that propels the progress of a society. Once a society lacks skepticism, we should worry about its future and how long it will live.

However, holding a skeptical attitude against authorities calls for great courage, it is sometimes very dangerous for these brave soldiers and they might lose their repute or even lives. Harvey’s discovery attracted severe criticism by many contemporaries. Galileo’s discovery that “the Sun is the center of the universe” was once treated as heretical and he was persecuted by the religion of that time. Bruno even lost his life because of his support for the same statement. Therefore people with skepticism and dare to fight for truth are really great people and they will win their followers’ respect.

In sum, without skepticism a person will lose his or her ability of innovation and a country will lose its competiveness. Accepting without question is dangerous, therefore students should hold a certain skepticism.