Purpose

I do not think that life in general has a purpose. We live on a small speck in a grand universe, so I don't see how our existence could signify something in universal terms. It's the duty of each one to give purpose and thus meaning to his/her life.
Let's take Edison as an example. He married twice and had six children in total, but in one of his quotes he says that the sole purpose of his life is to make more inventions. I do not doubt that he loved his family, but they were not the most important thing to him; what gave meaning to his life was his work.
To find happiness, one should find such a relation (as that of Edison to inventions). I think the purpose of the educational system should be to help children find their passion.