Category: Portfolio & Reflection

Education has always been something to look out for whenever you are planning to get a job or be someone in life. That is obvious to see, but we can only support you so much and give you the pushes necessary to keep you motivated. We want you to be independent so you may learn and prepare yourself for the big world. This was something my parents have said to me to get me to learn from my mistakes and actions. They wanted to set me up for school and to understand that in school your decisions can affect the way you continue through your education and that just like the outside world, in school you’re on your own. This is why I feel like my education was impacted the most by the students around me.  From a family who comes to America to give us a bright future, they give you the sense that here in America, education is key to success and future, you are given the opportunities and it is up to you to use them no matter the obstacles. 

Schools are some of the most diverse and unique ways to learn. Education in public schools has always been different from that in private/charter schools. Full of unique experiences since kids from all different backgrounds and cultures come together to learn and help each other, with different ideas and opinions. Elementary school was very much like this, we got to know each other, by communicating and being interactive. We all started at the same level of basic knowledge and it didn’t matter where we came from, we all had one thing in common. We were hungry for knowledge. We were still young enough to be curious, we all wanted to learn something new and have our own thoughts and opinions on that specific subject/matter. You are never alone in this beginning experience when you are with kids who want to learn just like you. In elementary school, we would learn from each other more than from the teachers, which was what made it such a unique experience.  

 Middle school was different and the atmosphere was completely new, I was surrounded by students who cared and didn’t, and that surprised me. Students started making groups and if you didn’t fit in quickly you would be alone. These groups limited the diversity that I was used to and if you tried to talk to them they would just give you that look of don’t talk to me.  Also being shy really didn’t help me cope with this new system. I was lucky enough to have made friends, but to my surprise, they were the do-nothing type of kids. They would spend most of the class time chatting and playing games, unfortunately, I had no choice but to sit next to them since I felt more comfortable doing so. My friends had potential; they just didn’t want to show it. I had a project to do with them, which I knew I was going to have problems completing with them, so I decided to do it by myself. This put more stress in my life and forced me to do the work in order to keep my grade as-is and pass. This changed my view on how education was meant to be and I realized that in school you are all alone with your education; it was just you and the teacher. The other students in the classroom are roadblocks, distractions, and just students who want to hurt you into being one just like them, well that’s what I thought. I remember one day the teacher called a student who liked acting funny to attract everyone’s attention the “class clown” because this student would always do something to stop the teacher from teaching the entire class time. 

I was now in High School and I decided to be alone this time, but it was hard. You had group projects to do with assigned people and it didn’t matter if you liked that person or not you had a project to do.  In high school, students were more mature and know when it’s too much or too little. This is when the diversity starts to take place, you make new friends and people are open to learning more about you. They even start talking to you by walking up to you and starting a conversation. As students, we now know more due to past experiences and by sharing them others learn from them too.  But, even though all of this some students never change and continue to be in the spotlight of everyone’s attention. At least they now keep it within their groups instead of stopping the whole class for an unnecessary comment.  This once again helped me change my view on how education and school should work. Specifically the way I was learning due to my past experiences. I made sure to make the right decisions when going through the grades of high school. Education is only for your benefit and it is up to you to expand your knowledge with the help of the people around you. It is up to you to see if the people around you can help you benefit or hurt your future. 

The people around you can really affect your decisions and actions. But others that care about you like your parents will always try to guide you to become a successful person who has accomplished everything that you have wanted. All of these experiences have really taught me to work and learn for myself and the rest of the world continues to move on forward with or without you. College is a completely new experience for most of us, but it is built upon our own past experiences. We are here for a degree, but we must learn that we are all on our own. It is up to us to put in the effort and take the work seriously in order to learn something from it.  These experiences have really helped me become who I am currently and will become later in the future.

       The education system has taught me not to categorize myself with everyone else. When I first started high school I was told to follow the crowd, so I physically did that in a sense of not getting lost in the building, but I would find myself lost because I wasn’t taught how to navigate properly. I was taught to follow other people who knew what and where they were going. So when I saw that this approach wasn’t working I started to learn where my classes and teachers were by myself. I had to learn how to apply that to my life. I also had to learn that things aren’t going to fall into your lap and you can’t always rely on someone else to tell you where to go or how to live your life. 

       My sister was basically my other mother, that was the role that was given to her, I was completely dependent on her like a toddler. I would treat my education the same way I needed someone to spell it out for me to understand, instead of trying to figure it out myself with some help. I basically wanted them to do it for me because that’s what I was used to. I say this because I just stopped being so codependent about 5 years ago, I slowly had to get away from that to get and do my own responsibilities. Teachers aren’t going to do everything for you because they aren’t always going to be there to babysit you. 

       Timing has always and still is a big problem for me. I started showing up on time by myself in high school in 11th grade. For some people that may not seem like such a big thing, but for me because I’m so forgetful, and irresponsible, getting to school on time was a big hurdle for me to jump over. I’m still tackling my work and handing them in on time. In middle school I either didn’t do it or handed it in on time. I did the same in highschool but it was more on time then not doing it. When I got to college I realized that I had to do it on time and everything was also more time consuming. I have to set timers for each week. Although many teachers let you put work in late, that still affects you because you’re not going to get the full grade you could get if you did it on time. 

       There are so many people that have had terrible experiences with education whether it was because of the teachers, students or family. If they didn’t get good enough grades they would be punished, and some people would get harsh punishments by family members. I just got this stare from my mom and it was enough for me. I never spoke up so I never really had teachers target me, except in 6th grade. I don’t remember what happened but my teacher didn’t like me because if I were ever to do something wrong in school which was rare, I got a speech from my mom. That form of discipline was good for me as well, but I assumed my teacher thought that I would get beat and it seemed that’s what she wanted because after a while when that didn’t happen she had a problem with everything I did and continued to hold this weird grudge towards me for the remainder of middle school. Not to downplay what I went through, but there are many people who do go through worst experiences and it mentally and physically affects them throughout their entire lives. 

       Knowing that learning was hard for me because I was a little behind, not enough to get extra help or more attention, but to a point where I needed to pay attention a little more. Writing things down helps me learn and remember things so much better. English was always the hardest subject for me, not liking to read made it harder to focus on books, my handwriting was barely legible, my spelling is just sad, and my vocabulary still needs to be worked on. Comparing myself from a few years ago although all that still needs work, it has gotten better. I never treated school seriously, I only needed to pass with a 65 to 75 and that was okay for me. But as I grew up and was picking my colleges I realized how important grades were and how they affected me. I was told that they were super important and was told that they weren’t, there were ways around it. I’m now paying the price for treating school so lazily and or secondary because I hated to read and now that hate has caused me to stay at a certain level. All these things that I went through in middle school and high school helped me realize that I needed to make my own decisions and do what was better for me, for the version of the person that I want to become.