Instituted Mandatorily
Today in English we had a prompt regarding conformity and individuality in schools and which one should be emphasized more in a system that so overtly highlights a tight schedule, strict adherence to rules, and a limitation in free thoughts.
As I drew my essay to a close, I began to wonder why I went to school everyday. If it were not mandatory, would I still continue to attend? If so, for what reason? Would it be to see my friends or to actually learn?
I would like to think myself a scholarly student and say that I would continue to go to school no matter what for the sake of learning, but I don't think I can bring myself to say that, not because I don't want to learn but because I do not think I am learning sufficiently and effectively at school. School has become a routine task and a place where I can reunite with my friends on a daily basis to uphold my social life. Learning has become secondary to my extracurricular activities and it has become a burden rather than a pleasure or a necessity to my growth as a scholar, and for that I am disappointed in myself. But I want to learn - I hunger for knowledge and the type of wisdom that it entails as time trails by, but I do not necessarily match the classes that I am taking. I do not want to take AP United States History, Physics, Chemistry of Living System... I want to take the humanities, psychology, sociology - classes that will help me understand how humans function individually and in group settings and for what reasons. I understand fully the importance of the STEM fields but I want to exist to help people become more aware of themselves more than they are of a memorized math equation. I want to learn how happiness works and how I can aid in its promotion in our society to create an environment in which smiling is common and is a daily occurrence for everybody. I want to learn about the reasons multiple personality disorder occurs and not just memorize the textbook definition; learning should be so much more engaging and exciting! Otherwise, why learn? Why waste time on memorizing one word after another for the sake of a letter grade? I want to remember these things for my future endeavors in helping others live a more successful, joyful life. But school has been inhibiting my growth and my chance in finding my passion and my love for learning. Instead I've been growing accustomed to the idea that learning is a chore and not a joyous experience. But learning is so amazing and has the potential to do so much! There is much to know in this world as knowledge is exponentially growing and every minute I spend away from information, reason, and wisdom, I am falling behind in this rapidly advancing society. I can't wait until I am allowed to study the things that I want for the right reasons - not just to get a high school diploma and move on with my life.