[warning... this is all really incoherent, but I wrote it spur-of-the-moment, so forgive me.]
As much as this year has killed me, and as much as I've hated the fact that there have been not one, not two, but at least five hell weeks my junior year, I really love school.
It's not just the people. And I know that may sound bad, but the point of this isn't to go on about how people make a school. The point is that learning is amazing, and I honestly don't know what I'd do with my life if I didn't have to sit through six hours of lectures and hand cramps and the overwhelming tide of information.
But I also realized something incredibly unfair in it all. I attend one of the selective enrollment schools of the infamous Chicago Public School system. I just took a survey called "My Voice, My School" that I can only assume works to allow students to give feedback on the system that seems to keep beating us down.
But I actually can't complain, because I have the luxury of not being able to truthfully to check "strongly disagree" when presented with a statement on the safety of my community. But things have to change. It isn't fair that I got into the school I did. Not saying I didn't work for it, I really did. But I was prepared, groomed, by the same school system, a gifted program, because I took a test and got in.
And I feel guilty. I feel like I am taking the place of someone else. Because there aren't enough good schools. It's just a fact. Because, I'm sorry, but not everyone can just make the best of their own education. I'm not saying it's all about the best teachers or the newest textbooks or fanciest technology; all I'm saying is, with no budget and a bunch of crappy teachers, there isn't much students can make. Because there's nothing.
The survey really opened my eyes to how lucky I am. But I shouldn't have to feel lucky or guilty. Because there shouldn't be these limited opportunities for a decent education. The fact of the matter is there aren't enough good schools. Really. There just aren't. Every school should "strive to develop students’ critical and analytical thinking skills, and promote diverse academic inquiry by bringing together students from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences," not just the 10 selective enrollment ones.
And maybe I sound like just another selective enrollment student who's hating on the system that granted her a great, amazing opportunity for better learning, maybe I sound ungrateful. But I don't care. Because it's my voice, my school.
As much as this year has killed me, and as much as I've hated the fact that there have been not one, not two, but at least five hell weeks my junior year, I really love school.
It's not just the people. And I know that may sound bad, but the point of this isn't to go on about how people make a school. The point is that learning is amazing, and I honestly don't know what I'd do with my life if I didn't have to sit through six hours of lectures and hand cramps and the overwhelming tide of information.
But I also realized something incredibly unfair in it all. I attend one of the selective enrollment schools of the infamous Chicago Public School system. I just took a survey called "My Voice, My School" that I can only assume works to allow students to give feedback on the system that seems to keep beating us down.
But I actually can't complain, because I have the luxury of not being able to truthfully to check "strongly disagree" when presented with a statement on the safety of my community. But things have to change. It isn't fair that I got into the school I did. Not saying I didn't work for it, I really did. But I was prepared, groomed, by the same school system, a gifted program, because I took a test and got in.
And I feel guilty. I feel like I am taking the place of someone else. Because there aren't enough good schools. It's just a fact. Because, I'm sorry, but not everyone can just make the best of their own education. I'm not saying it's all about the best teachers or the newest textbooks or fanciest technology; all I'm saying is, with no budget and a bunch of crappy teachers, there isn't much students can make. Because there's nothing.
The survey really opened my eyes to how lucky I am. But I shouldn't have to feel lucky or guilty. Because there shouldn't be these limited opportunities for a decent education. The fact of the matter is there aren't enough good schools. Really. There just aren't. Every school should "strive to develop students’ critical and analytical thinking skills, and promote diverse academic inquiry by bringing together students from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences," not just the 10 selective enrollment ones.
And maybe I sound like just another selective enrollment student who's hating on the system that granted her a great, amazing opportunity for better learning, maybe I sound ungrateful. But I don't care. Because it's my voice, my school.
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