2016 Winner – Robert A. Klingler Co., L.P.A. Ohio Problem-Solving Scholarship

We’re excited to announce Jayant Thankappan as the recipient of the first annual Robert A. Klingler Co., L.P.A. Ohio Problem-Solving Scholarship. Applicants were asked to write an essay sharing one thing they would change about the world. Jayant wrote a compelling essay about how he would choose to change the education system. Jayant’s passion for education is apparent and we hope this scholarship will help him achieve his personal and professional goals. We are proud to help a bright young man prepare for his future. Congratulations Jayant!

Winning Essay

What is one thing you would change about this world if you could, why, and how you would do it?

The amount of factors and components that are intertwined within human life and this planet’s functioning and progression through time is unfathomable. Selecting one thing to change is surely difficult, but improvement is possible if an influential factor can be altered to create a domino effect for maximum positive yield. I believe this factor to be our education system. Humans live according to an individual as well as a collective knowledge base. A knowledge base in which we contribute toward and experience the resulting ignorance. By making education far more accessible and reforming the focal knowledge delivered to future generations, a more open minded and logical approach to our world’s problems will become the norm.

Before any kind of reform, accessibility poses to be the largest obstacle among poorer regions of the world. Children across the board, many with the will to learn, are denied the rightful education they deserve. If we plan to move the world forward, we need to increase the knowledge over a global scale. We as humanity are a team and we are as strong as our weakest member. This member cannot afford to be deprived of the only thing that can empower their minds and increase communal awareness of issues and events. I believe ignorance and blind faith are the most dangerous to the collaborative psyche of humanity.

Accessible education is very important but the pre-existing curriculum and the way the substance in it is delivered is flawed and outdated. It is a highly uniform system for a widely diverse student body. The system focuses on test preparation reinforcing logical and linguistic learners over focusing on real world preparation for a variety of learners (spatial, musical, naturalist, etc.). We need a restructuring of the entire curriculum and we need to diversify how the curriculum is integrated into the student knowledge base. A sufficiently preparatory education that is engaging to every student will maximize efficient, logical, and creative thinking for future generations to come.

Realistically speaking, a change like this takes drastic measures and planning. We need to begin by starting a peaceful revolution for accessibility and reform in our education system. We need to spread the word and encourage petitions and other forms of reach to influence our legal representatives and eventually governments throughout the world. If we put our top minds at work with the majority backing them up, we can really bring about positive global change and improve our world’s condition in terms of humanity.

In conclusion, no one factor in this world will guarantee maximum positive change. But my best bet is our education system. If we can educate almost every child in the future, we indirectly will initiate an intellectual evolution. And if we can diversify our methods in delivering a more comprehensive curriculum effectively covering real world applications, then we can expand problem solving abilities and innovative thinking in the minds of future generations to come. We need to come together as a unified people and empower the minds of our society with knowledge and a unique way of thinking that truly captures the innate curiosity of our amazing species.

Current Scholarship Opportunity

Thank you to all of our applicants. Please check out the annual Robert A. Klingler Co., L.P.A. Ohio Problem-Solving Scholarship for current opportunities.