Hidden Intellectualism. According To The Oxford English

Senior year I was trying to puzzle together this geometry problem in my mind. I couldn’t figure it out, I felt like I hit a brick wall and couldn’t break through it to solve the problem. Maybe if I reworded the problem to be similar to a real world situation I could solve it. In the essay “Hidden Intellectualism” by Gerald Graff, his thesis is that intellectualism is more valuable than academic intelligence. Graff begins talking about how schools fail to reach into the minds of kids who are street smart and connect that into their academic school work. He states that students would be more willing to take the academic intellectual characteristic if the schools would engage them into subjects they are interested in, rather than what the teachers think. Graff then opens up to a personal

The issue being debated in the article “Hidden Intellectualism” by Gerald Graff is street smarts versus book smarts. Gerald Graff is an English professor at the University of Illinois and has written many books. The author claims that people are better off if they are more street smart than book smart. The authors is very persuasive using real life examples. I although disagree with this claim. I think that you need an equal mix of both street and book smarts.

The author of Hidden Intellectualism, Gerald Graff, told the readers how he believed just because you are not school smart, you can still be very smart. As a kid, he lived in the melting pot of a Chicago neighborhood with people ranging from Chinese immigrants to “hillbilly” whites from southern Appalachia. It was frowned upon by the other kids around to be school smart, so he learned about the world of sports and saw that being sportsmart was way better than being school smart. As he grew older he began to see how being intellectual about sports helped him so much more than school ever would.

In this excerpt, the author expresses it’s important to have knowledge not only in school but out of school as well. For instance, Gerald Graff states “I believe that street smarts beat out book smarts in our culture not because streets smarts are nonintellectual, as we generally suppose, but because they satisfy an intellectual thirst more thoroughly than school cultures, which seems pale and unreal,” (par. 11). In other words, the author elaborates on the importance of also having street smarts because you will need knowledge from school and outside of school in real world situation. This

Most people, when asked, say that a person is intelligent if they have “book smarts.” People that are book smart can write and converse about subjects taught in school. On the other hand, people with “street smarts” aren’t seen as intellectuals because the subjects they are knowledgeable about are not traditional. In his essay called “Hidden Intellectualism,” Gerald Graff insists that schools and colleges are missing an opportunity to translate street smarts into academic work.

Everyone is intelligence, it is just that some people have different strengths when it comes to applying that intelligence whether it be in english, math, or even sports. In the essay “Hidden Intelligence” by Gerald Graff, the author argues that there are different types of intelligences besides what is commonly known as academic intelligence, one of which he calls “street smarts,” and that schools are missing the opportunity to use these types of intelligence and integrate them into academics. While Graff does make some valid points about the types of intelligence and how it can be used to help students become better, there are flaws in his argument.

Academic work should not define intelligence nor should a job define ability; a person, regardless of grades, degrees, or job title, is an intellect. Together, Gerald Graff, a coauthor of They Say I say, professor, and former anti-intellect, author of "Hidden Intellectualism," and Mike Rose, professor, author, and in depth thinker, author of "Blue-Collar Brilliance," share two different perspectives on what an intellect truly is. Yet, both writings hold meaningful points and experiences to prove who qualifies to be an intellect. Society continuously focuses on what leads to a successful and rounded life: go to school, graduate, go back to school, get a degree, and then a job. It is believed that these high expectations of higher academics enables one to be more successful is correct; however, it is not. It is a person’s individual goals that give them the success they wish to have whether that be education, volunteering, or donating. Also, street smarts is not to be overlooked; a person with common sense can know more than a Doctor. Typically, a person can have either common sense or intelligence, not both. Street smarts is, without a doubt, a superior quality to possess as it encompasses more in life than just a degree does. For example, it is more appropriate to know how to cross a street properly in life than know how to perform a craniotomy. Furthermore, one does not gain knowledge and life lessons through school alone, but through experience,

The first thing that I did was to take the interest inventory. This questionnaire allowed for me to reflect upon who I am as a learner and how it is connected to my interests. After filling out this questionnaire I realized that I base my liking of content subjects based on how naturally a subject matter comes to me. This means that math, science and physical education were my favorite subjects because they were hands on and easy to catch on to. I also realized that I wish I would have put more time and effort into English class because the more time I put into something the better I become at it. I feel that my writing is my weakest aspect of who I am as a learner.

In “Hidden Intellectualism,” Gerald Graff believes that individuals, who are ot interested in school, have a chance to be intellectual by inspiring them on subjects they themselves are interested in instead of forcing them to correspond with cliché historic figures. Graff begins his essay acknowledging the perception communities have on behavior of streetwise people who are looked at as “anti-intellects.” (264) Furthermore, he explains how society connects intelligence with historic heroes instead of modern subjects like sports or fashion; which Graff emphasizes is the issue. Graff supports his claim by providing a personal experience of growing up; he was that “anti-intellectual” (265) who preferred sports magazines and biographies rather

In Gerald Graff’s essay, “Hidden Intellectualism” he discusses the topic of street smarts and book smarts. Graff explains that many say it is sad, and a waste to see people who are street smart yet, cannot apply themselves in academics in the same manner. Graff believes that schools and colleges are at fault. He suggests that schools and colleges overlook the intellectual potential of street smarts. Graff states, “We associate the educated life, the life of the mind, too narrowly and exclusively with subjects and texts that we consider inherently weighty and academic” (Graff 244). Throughout the essay, Graff argues we are constantly absorbing knowledge in our day to day lives whether we realize it or not, and that society has the wrong understanding of book smarts versus street smarts.

In his essay “Hidden Intellectualism”, Gerald Graff argues that street smarts are much more important as school smart. Graff explains how many people are street smart, but do not perform well in school. The street smarts are the ones who are focused on sports or entertainment and the school smarts are the ones who love books and are into their academic lives. He believes students who are in school need to read literature to become more intellectual. Graff believes schools should encourage the street smarts and make them have more focus on their academic work.

To be book smart or street smart, or is it possible to be both? In the reading, “ Hidden Intellectualism,” by Gerald Graff, a professor at the University of Illinois Chicago, he touches on the subject of being “street smart” but not doing too hot in school. He argues that if students could be as interested in school, and as book smart as they were street smart, then they would have the opportunity to thrive and excel in school all while enjoying it, he even goes on to use himself as an example of taking an anti-intellectual and becoming a great intellectual.

In Gerald Graff’s story Hidden Intellectualism Graff, attests that intellect does not only exist in the scholarly form of thinking. Graff insists that knowledge can also take the form of "street smarts”. Graff uses personal experiences in his childhood to form his argumentative purpose. Graff tells about his disinterest in traditional academic subjects, and further elaborates on his love of sports. Being that he grew up in Chicago, Graff believes that academic knowledge is a delay in social world. Graff describes saddening story of growing up torn "between the need to prove I was smart and the fear of consequences if I prove too well." The conversation Graff brings to his audience attention with his friends helped develop the analysis, arguments,

Gerald Graff insists “Street smarts beat out book smarts in our culture not because street smarts are non intellectual, as we generally suppose, but because they satisfy and intellectual thirst more thoroughly than school culture” (248). I believe that school generalizes the students to a point where academic work can be very unsatisfying. By putting them in a box, there are less chances to expand thoughts, and creating new ways of understanding. Graffs opinions on this subject are correct because many people who are successful, and contributing member of society are not formally educated. Even if they had more interest in sports rather than books, they still succeeded later in

Everyone has an opinion concerning what type of education is most useful. We all know that a college education is important in the competitive world we live in today. For instance, if you want a career in engineering, medicine, chemistry or law, a bachelor's degree or higher is mandatory. We often see people who have made it really big, and yet have little or no formal education. My opinion is, in order to get and keep a good paying job, you need both “street smarts” and “book smarts.” The combination of practical knowledge and explicit knowledge is the key to a successful career. Both types of knowledge have distinct advantages.