I'd have to say that in terms of "common knowledge", it doesn't necessarily come from things learned in high school. There are plenty of people who've finished high school and college but are not aware of many "common knowledge" type of things. It's a really subjective matter, but I feel that you'll understand it better if you look at media than at academics.
Since you want to continue learning new things and what you've missed, I'd recommend reading some foreign literature along with classic English stuff like Shakespeare. "Snow Country" by Kawabata is an easy read, but it's very haiku-like so you can get a real feel of Japanese writing style. I also enjoyed "100 Years of Solitude" by Marquez. "The Encyclopedia of the Dead" by Kis, and anything by Borges, if you like really fantasy-ish stuff. For poetry I'd recommend the classic Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass", as well as Carl Sandburg.
For math and sciences, there are often textbooks in libraries that you can borrow and read through. Most of the stuff learned in high school isn't really required for anything unless you take a job specific to a certain area though, so most people never remember that stuff.
World-wise, I think learning how to cook or sew (home economics kind of stuff) is really important since it helps a lot in life, so maybe read some cooking books or handcraft books or take some lessons. Also, I feel that learning finance or economics can be helpful too, so maybe learn basic things like what a stock is, or how to manage your finances. For things not that needed in daily life, learning a new language can be a nice challenge. It also allows you to learn about other cultures and even meet new people. I've learned Japanese myself, and also Chinese through school.
In the end, I think it depends on what you yourself want to learn the most. I don't think it's too late to keep on with your education, whether you go back to school or not. Hope this helped!
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2011-01-14 06:41 am (UTC)Since you want to continue learning new things and what you've missed, I'd recommend reading some foreign literature along with classic English stuff like Shakespeare. "Snow Country" by Kawabata is an easy read, but it's very haiku-like so you can get a real feel of Japanese writing style. I also enjoyed "100 Years of Solitude" by Marquez. "The Encyclopedia of the Dead" by Kis, and anything by Borges, if you like really fantasy-ish stuff. For poetry I'd recommend the classic Walt Whitman's "Leaves of Grass", as well as Carl Sandburg.
For math and sciences, there are often textbooks in libraries that you can borrow and read through. Most of the stuff learned in high school isn't really required for anything unless you take a job specific to a certain area though, so most people never remember that stuff.
World-wise, I think learning how to cook or sew (home economics kind of stuff) is really important since it helps a lot in life, so maybe read some cooking books or handcraft books or take some lessons. Also, I feel that learning finance or economics can be helpful too, so maybe learn basic things like what a stock is, or how to manage your finances. For things not that needed in daily life, learning a new language can be a nice challenge. It also allows you to learn about other cultures and even meet new people. I've learned Japanese myself, and also Chinese through school.
In the end, I think it depends on what you yourself want to learn the most. I don't think it's too late to keep on with your education, whether you go back to school or not. Hope this helped!