No one can say just how long a message should be, but you rarely hear complaints about a speech being too short. The amateur worries about what he is going to put in his speech or article. The expert worries about what he should take out.
Interpretation
Effective communication focuses on clarity and brevity, prioritizing what is essential.
In this quote, Edgar Dale emphasizes the importance of conciseness in communication, suggesting that the length of a message is less important than its clarity and relevance. While amateurs may struggle with what to include, experts understand the value of trimming unnecessary content to enhance the impact of their message.
In practice
During a public speaking seminar, emphasizing that shorter speeches often leave a greater impression.
One of the curious things about censorship is that no one seems to believe in it for himself. We want censorship to protect someone else— the young, the unstable, the suggestible, the stupid. I have never heard of anyone who wanted a film or speaker banned because otherwise he himself might be harmed.
I wouldn't wish any specific thing for any specific person - it's none of my business. But the idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane. It's insane.
Doctrina sed vim promovet insitam. Instruction enlarges the natural powers of the mind.
The elimination of ignorance, of illiteracy... and of needless inequalities in opportunities (is) to be seen as objectives that are valued for their own sake. They expand our freedom to lead the lives we have reason to value, and these elementary capabilities are of importance on their own
We have to move back to the idea that education isn't about teaching people to bow to rigid rules. That's not what democracy is about.
The new American dream is one of responsibility. What is the bottom-line number that you're going to be able to pay back toward a student loan responsibly if you're doing it yourself after you have a job? That dictates the amount of money you can borrow. That dictates the school you can go to, if you can even go to a four-year college at all.
We have the most prolonged adolescence in the history of mankind. There is no other society that requires so many years to pass before people are grown up ... Adolescence is nurtured and prolonged by educational processes and by industry that has found a bonanza in embracing the adolescent population and fortifying 'adolescent values.' This prolongation of adolescence robs the country of the population group having the most risk takers, and the highest ideals.
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