The Question

How do we learn to fish? And more specifically, how do we learn to fish a specific body of water? The two questions address two interdependent types of education. The former is a general skill set, such as one obtains with a liberal arts degree. The latter is specialized, like a Master of Business Administration or Master of Fine Arts degree. In short, we take the general skill set and apply it to a specific body of water. We refine and fine tune, match the universal with the local, and ultimately pair the species with the phylum. By adapting our general skills to the specific lake or pond or river, the adaptation may also change our general skill set. Ideally, by way of the back and forth, we may become versatile.

The give and take between general skills and a river or lake can resemble a positive teacher-student relationship. At other times, it makes you want to send the whole class to detention.