Why I Left My Friends When I began to take classes of higher difficulty in middle school, I also became exposed to the community that existed in and out of those classes. As I was assimilated into this tight-knit group, I found that I had never felt so comfortable or had so much in common with anyone else before. These people went on to become my best friends. We would do everything together. Hang out on the weekends, walk around the town, do homework etc. This group of ours was inseparable. I would not realize until halfway High School how true this was. Not far into my Freshman year I started feeling constrained. I found myself in a predicament only comparable to that of a cult member. Trapped in an extremely uncomfortable situation, …show more content…
I was not taking the advanced courses because of the challenge nor the merit that came with it. I took them because I loved to learn. I always felt that the regular classes in school did a very subpar job of giving me the full experience. The advanced courses however, did a very good job of encompassing all of the concepts and ideas. My friends at the time were not so lighthearted. They took these classes much too seriously. Going as far as to stay after school, buy extra books, and take practice tests just to ensure their “A.” I got A’s and B’s in a majority of those classes, and it was not because of extra help and practice work. It was because I had an honest interest in the subjects. Even to the last year of our friendship, when I “doubled up” on AP US History and AP European History. The teacher of these two courses was considered the most difficult teacher at our school. My friends critiqued me, telling me I had no chance of getting 5’s on the AP exams, and that I simply would not have time for the work. I ended up getting great grades in both courses, doing exceptionally well on the exams, and even befriending the teacher, who I now consider to be my greatest academic mentor. This is because I cared more about expanding my knowledge on the subjects rather than number crunching. I was also frequently criticised for how easy going and mellow I was about my education. It was always “Chris, you need to take things more seriously,” or, “Chris, your lack of motivation makes us feel uncomfortable.” Although the scolding I would receive was horribly irritating, it was much more bearable than the other factors that would lead to my dramatic
...cult. When my father lost his job, our family lost many of the comforts that we once took for granted due to a reduced income. Money became a very large issue and with it came many limitations on wants and desires that were so accessible before my father had lost his job. Furthermore, the loss of his job brought about immense shame for my father. Yet, rather than become embarrassed over my father losing his job and sad due to the fact that I could no longer have as many material possessions, I came to accept the different lifestyle. By letting go and accepting, room was made for new experiences, joys, understandings, and lessons. For instance, I now appreciate things that I took for granted in the past and realize the lack of necessity for materialistic objects and desires and I feel that as a result, I have become a more appreciative human being as a whole.
Before my years in high school, I rarely put time and effort into studying and constantly associated with my friends at school; that is until I entered high school. The different competitive atmosphere at high school caused me to suddenly prioritize my studies ahead of everything else and my ambition became greater than ever. I began to interact less with my old friends and become less sociable with those around me. My parents also began to notice this drastic change and encouraged me to once in a while contact my old friends. During the beginning, I contacted my friends about two or three times a week, but the phone calls began to gradually diminish. I began to abandon my previous cheerful, ebullient nature in order to conform to the competitive, tense study environment at high school. As long as I successfully accomplished my goals and was accepted by others, I was willing to alter myself in order to assimilate into the mainstream environment. Through my hard work and perseverance, I was able to reach my goal and receive the acknowledgement of others; however, despite fulfilling all my ambitions, I did not feel any joy or satisfaction within myself. Even though I successfully accomplished my objectives in school, I realized that in return I completely sacrificed my social life. Despite being accepted by others, I began to feel a sense of loneliness and longed to
Cliques and Outsiders The Emotional Trauma That is Fitting In Be afraid. Be very afraid. Wipe that goofy smile off your face. Whether you know it or not, that clawing, itching, quaking sensation seething beneath your skin is the feeling churning inside you every time someone of a superior clique comes rumbling down the halls, a contemptuous sneer playing on his lips. But whatever you do, keep that fear under wraps. You do not need to be shoved into your locker or called derisive names again. Cliques in high schools are a microcosm of a society dominated by hierarchies. Look around. It is hard to find one fully united school, devoid of the intricate social castes. In the wake of the now-infamous Columbine High School shooting, society was mercilessly slapped with the harsh
This summer, after I was informed that I had been offered a teaching assistantship, I was terrified. I was not sure that I was capable of teaching students about a discipline in which I still possessed such a conscious doubt of my own abilities. For most of my life I was what you might call a non-achiever. When my parents strongly suggested that I enroll in college (the other option being to leave the house) everyone around me just sort of held their breath waiting for my inevitable failure. Then a strange thing happened. I passed my classes, and even enjoyed them.
I decided to take Chemistry and Calculus just to have classes with my friends. Unfortunately, I was not able to pass these classes. Failing these classes affected my education and it affected me. It affected me education wise because my GPA dropped immensely. Because of my GPA dropping I was not able to graduate out of high school with honors. I was really disappointed in myself because before taking these classes I was on track to graduate with honors. I still remember when I meet with my counselor and she told me I was no longer in track to graduate with honors. I remember breaking into tears because that was one of my high school goals. When I first decided to take this classes with my friends I never thought it was going to affect me as much as it did. All I wanted was to have classes with
It challenged me more than usual. Even though I love math, my teacher challenged me to be better at it. But while I was in a specialized high school in DC, I thought everything would be very easy. It became more difficult because it felt like I was behind in the learning process. But managing my positions and school was very hard. I tend to take sports more seriously than academics. Once I transferred schools, it became more difficult because it felt like I was behind in the learning process. By the end of my sophomore year, I was learning that my GPA is very big. I admit. I messed up but now that I know, I do not play around and I take my work very seriously. I found this through my teachers and guidance
As we always believe that everything is easy and nothing is impossible for us, until, we realize that we are doomed. In fact, this is a big problem among students, since, many end up failing their courses for this cause. Honestly, I don’t know what I was thinking at the time I chose this and my other mini-term class, all I can say is that this was a very hard six-week journey for me. Although, the professors made it very clear on what to expect, I like many others, accepted the challenge without thinking about the consequences this could bring. Don’t panic, it was not as bad as it seems either, because I had the chance to learn a lot of new things that will definitely help me forge my future. I don’t regret taking this class at all, despite all the setbacks, I had the pleasure of meeting a wonderful professor who patiently made our journey more bearable, and my classmates that somehow always contribute to my
All of my classes in high school I passed with no struggle. I would cram all the knowledge that I needed for a test the night before, so I thought college would not be any different. A week or two before my first ever college exam the professor announced that if we had not already been study, then we should start to right away. Being a young naive freshmen, I kind of blew the teacher off. Telling myself that I did not need to waste the next few weeks studying for one exam. So I waited until the last day to study. You might have an idea of what happened next. I failed the exam. Failing so bad that it would be nearly impossible for me to still get a C in the course. I could not even look at myself. The thought of disappointing my parents was making my stomach turn. This fear of failing the class was tearing me apart. The only chance at passing this class was if I turned myself into the perfect student. This meant turning things in on time, studying days in advance for exams, and going to my professor’s office hours. And that is exactly what I did. By some seriously hard work, long nights, and over a hundred red bulls, I was able to achieve a passing grade with a
In today’s advancing society, knowledge has become an essential aspect to achieve a successful lifestyle. It is important that one demonstrates scholarship from the early ages to attain knowledge and understanding for the future. I like to challenge myself in my education by taking tough classes so it helps me to establish an effective work ethic that I can compliment with my career later on the road. Taking rigid classes and still maintaining an exceeding 4.0 GPA helps me to feel satisfied and pleased for my future. In my first two years at Westerville Central, I took all honors courses, which include Foundations of and American Literature and Composition, U.S and Global History, Geometry, Cell and Environmental Biology, and Honors Spanish II. Currently, in my junior year, I am taking Honors Algebra 2 and Honors Chemistry as well as AP Language and Government and still maintaining an above 4.0 GPA. All of the classes that I have took or I am taking right now were all challenging in their own way and required extensive studying. Going beyond grades, all of those classes also helped me to form a promising work ethic that will defiantly prove worthy in the...
Attending Early College High School has changed the way I feel about education because now I prioritize my academics. I don’t let any barriers in my life interfere with my academics. At ECHS, I have not faced many difficulties, but one difficult challenge was when I got a terrible grade in my AP Biology class. I was devastated to see that on my progress report card I had a D+. I had never had such a low grade in any class. Many thoughts were running in my head, including the thought that I was never going to make it into college because of that grade. I tried extremely hard to raise my grade, but I could not focus on school because my grandfather had just passed away and my family was facing a very difficult time. Memories came flashing in
However, the difficulties I was experiencing during my first year of high school made me realize that it was imperative to meticulously scrutinize the way I studied in order to ameliorate and become the student I used to be. Additionally, I became aware that my ability to speak English was affecting me, but later I came to the conclusion that if this was a determining factor in my performance in class, I had to challenge myself by engaging in more rigorous courses. As time went on, however, due to the fact that I was surrounded by students I considered to be far ahead, I felt very intimidated by my advanced classes. Furthermore, I became aware that some of my teachers from the advanced placement classes seemed to doubt my ability to perform at the level expected, just by hearing my accent. To be condemned to failure simply because I did not speak English the same way my fellow classmates did, was a terrible sinking feeling. Nonetheless, this circumstance made me very diligent in all my classes, for it made me very attentive to the topics discussed, and it made me evaluate the extent to which I studied. As a result, with my grades and work ethics throughout the year, I proved those teachers wrong and received an apology from the one I came to admire
My junior year of high school was not one of the easiest years of my life. As a matter of fact, i think so far, it's been my hardest. Especially because of my AP English class. I had several other AP classes and honors classes, but this one seemed to be my greatest struggle. I am one of the very few people who enjoy and are actually great at mathematics. It is my favorite subject, closely followed by science. I always look forward to going to these classes. I also find an interest in government, which is why I currently take AP Government and politics. Back on the English track, I've never been much of a reader or writer, it's just something that I'm not very well at doing. Last year in AP English, I had a wonderful teacher who goes by the name of Mrs.Stagg.
Throughout high school I have placed myself into the most challenging science and mathematics curric...
Being accepted into the four year, signature Honors Magnet Global Ecology Program was quite an accomplishment. I thought my strengths in both math and science would help carry me through this rigorous academic curriculum. I was wrong! I hit a brick wall and I hit it hard. Having a parent who was a special educator and dyslexic as well kept me afloat; however, I needed to use the resources available both inside and outside of the school to begin my journey to academic success. It took me until my junior year of high school to understand just how and what I needed to do to be all I could. I learned this the hard way on my own; it cost me admission in to the National Honor Society, being recommended to AP Biology and AP US History. I needed to begin to take charge of my life and set the goals necessary to get back on my feet. I needed to prove to myself that wanting to go on to a pre-med major in college was a possible dream.
She doesn’t know this, but she changed my life. She was there for me when it seemed like no one else was. When most of my friends were dissolving around me and I just didn’t feel like I could do anything right, she was there, and she made everything seem okay. It didn’t matter that I was inevitably going to graduate with a GPA a tenth of a point lower than I wanted, or that my director told me that he was disappointed in me because I just didn’t seem focused lately, or that my other friends just weren’t talking to me anymore. It didn’t matter because she was there and she made me feel safe. She’s my best friend, and I love her and admire her for so many different reasons.