It has been said, “Not everything that is learned is contained in books.” Compare and contrast knowledge gained from experience with knowledge gained from books. In your opinion, which source is more important? Why?

There are several sources though which people acquire knowledge. Of these sources, books and experience stand out. Which of these two could be more important? Personally, I think that knowledge gained from experience is more important than that gained from books.

First, books are written by people who have experience in the subject matter. It is their wealth of experience that they want to transfer to the readers in the form of book. If you do not have experience in Organic Chemistry or are a rookie in that area, you will not be able to write a book. Therefore, without experience there won’t be anyone writing books.

Also, the adage which says, "Experience is the best teacher" underscores the importance of knowledge acquired through experience. In the cause of learning, we make mistakes in some fields, fail in others and learn from our mistakes and failures. If one does not venture into those areas he will neither fail nor succeed in them, but with the experience gained from previous attempts one is able to build on and make progress in future attempts. The experience you gained by making an attempt, cannot be gained from books.

Finally, when one is implementing a procedure laid down in a book, he will have to follow the methods step-by-step, whereas, with experience, two or more steps can be combined in one step to achieve the same goal. With experience therefore, one is able to save time and be more efficient compared to when one is using books to carry out an action.

In conclusion, the adage that says, Practice makes perfect”, underscores the importance of acquiring experience through practicing the act over time. It is obvious that experience is a more important source of knowledge than books.