Industry vs. Academia

Academia for its own sake is fine and good, but if it isn't teaching a student anything about a reality of the world and the way it works, what good is it?

For instance, and excuse the base example, but math makes that claim that 1+1 = 2. However, it doesn't necessarily tell you as to why such measurements are important in day to day life. It is the job of the student to see where that applies, but this is not always obvious. Therefore a certain aspect of the teaching, in whatever subject that comes up, seems arbitrary in nature.

As a musician, I am largely self taught. Many of my colleagues do well with theory, but not with actual composition. Therein lies the rub. We can know something, but if it is force fed to us a certain way, it kills the potential for creativity.

I think its good if we can teach ourselves to do things, provided that we have a means for properly learning the material. Thats where the process of learning/applying principles truly begins so it can't be underestimated.

Jam it back in, in the dark.