Contrast Expectations

Growing up, school was not a major factor in my life. I come from a hard-working, middle-class military family. My mother, a Filipino immigrant, was a homemaker. My father was a 21-year United States Marine veteran. They were my first impression of what I thought my future would be. Being the youngest of four children, I was expected to fall in line behind my siblings when it came to education. I was never pushed to excel in my studies, so I did just enough to get by. As I watched friends escape the grasp of a military town and ascend to their respective colleges, I was left wondering what was next for me. I attended my local community college for a brief period of time. I treated college no different than high school. I

Education is very important to my parents and it is not just a means of obtaining a good job in the future, but it serves as a way to get respect and social standing in a world that is so heavily focused on societal and class statuses. Being the first generation to have gone onto higher education, the pressures, put on by my family, can sometimes be overwhelming. In fact, at times I think my parents are more excited and ready for me to graduate than I am, which can be quite comical.

It seemed the harder I tried, the worse grades I received. My parents punished me for not achieving high marks by grounding me on the weekends to keep studying more and more. All this punishment did not help because I began hating the pressure of school because I did try hard and had a desire to get good grades however the more effort that I put in, the harder school seemed to get. Additionally, each year every student was obligated to perform in a talent show for the whole student body and community of parents. I remember feeling like these shows were put on so the parents could laugh, make fun of and be entertained at the expense of the unfortunate children. I remember feeling sorry for some students that just didn’t have the talent they were trying to portrait. Being a student in the 1970’s, you did what you were told to do, without question, and if you did do something that was out of line, your parents were called to pick you up, and you were punished at home. I really did not like grammar school much. I was in the lower average of my class, I did not have a great talent, and I was made fun of for being different than others students---I have red hair. I really dreaded going to school as a child due to the pressures that the school, teachers and my parents put on me.

From a very early age, I always assumed it was a part of my future to pursue an education. The American educational system engraves the importance of school at a very young age. Elementary school children are motivated through rewards when they try their hardest to reach their goals. Students are exposed to statistics and facts outlining the consequences of not getting a college degree as soon as they reach middle school. High school counselors and staff make it their priority to ensure that students apply to college. Students are conditioned to believe that education is the building block to a successful future. My cultural upbringing did not support my choice to pursue an education, however, I refused to conform to my family’s behavioral expectations because certain norms must be challenged due to progressive time periods and conflicting values.

My moms raised me with a strong set of morals, including “hard work pays off.” Sometimes this can be discouraging when you work hard, but it doesn’t pay off as you’d like it to. I’ve always gotten the grades I strive for without much struggle. However, once high school started, everything changed. I’d work for weeks on a scholarship essay, and I wouldn’t even place. I’d work for months to get something published and then read other people’s names in the congratulations announcement. I’d constantly wonder: Who’s at the top of the class? Who’s going to win the end of year awards? When you consistently get the grades that I do, people just expect those grades. No one congratulates you on your hard work anymore, and you don’t always get recognized. Despite the lack of recognition, I still take pride in my grades, and continue to work hard. Getting great grades is something I know I can do, even when it’s difficult to do. The difficulty makes it even more satisfying when I see the hard work pay off, and I get the grade I wanted. I’ve encountered

Some people may argue that the main reason people go to college is not because they want to but because they “have” to. Could this be parents forcing their children out the door every day to college? Although many people dropout before graduating high school, there are a lot of high school seniors that persuaded or otherwise “peer pressured” by guidance counselors and parental guardians to attend college because it’s merely rightful. In “College Isn’t for Everyone,” W.J. Reeves argues that the concept of student and educator apathy is central to the issue of a four-year education not being a viable option for students, and open admissions

Growing up, I’d always been expected to do well in school. Which isn’t out of the ordinary, every parent wants their child to be successful and have a beneficial career. So, since good grades were what my parents expected that’s what I got. All throughout elementary, I strived to do my absolute best in every subject. At my sixth grade graduation I was awarded the Presidential Award for Academic Achievement, in my junior high years I did well as well. My eighth-grade year I achieved my goal of obtaining a 4.0 G.p.a. The first year of high school was nerve-racking but I still managed to keep my grades up. However, Sophomore year was definitely a bump in the road for me. In all my ten years of being in school (including head start and kindergarten)

I had thought that high school would be no different than the past. Work hard, pay attention in class, and meet standards for every teacher. I was wrong. My teachers were supportive and only held the most basic of standards for all their students. They worked hard to provide us with assistance to succeed in class and be caught up in lessons. By the first grading cycle, I had exceeded all previous expectations my family had of me. I was both joyous and sad though. Now that I had reached the only goal I ever cared for, I was unsure of what to focus on next. This led me to ask my peers for advice and I realized that most of them also did not know what they wanted in the future. Thusly, after thinking and conferencing with others, I began thinking for myself what I wanted for my future. I was still being held at a high standard by family and friends, however I now had time for myself. I was free to decide what kind of future I wanted. Though afraid as I was of my unknown future, I was

Living in a household with western style parenting, I disagree with Amy Chua. Yes, your parents want you to do better but most do not run and blame it on the school or school system.

This is a deeply ingrained mentality that is first cultivated in the home. Robbins points out that parents who put their children on tracks to become doctors or lawyers before they even exit the womb are prime culprits. Coaching a three-year-old to ace an interview to get into preschool or putting an eleven-year-old in SAT prep courses puts really high expectations on them, according to the book. Parents that spend a ridiculous amount of money on extracurriculars, tutors, and college counselors make students feel pressured not to waste their parents’ money. For many high school students, acceptance to a college that is perceived to be “good” is the most important thing they could ever achieve. Unfortunately, parents are not doing enough to combat this perception. Offhanded comments about being disappointed with scores and doing better can really be taken to heart. It eventually creates the feeling that a child’s self-worth is tied to a number decided by an arbitrary grading system. If parents were to make a point to remind their children that they’ll be loved and successful regardless of the opinion of College Board, it could create children less obsessed with taking every single AP class available. A good support system is imperative in having a healthy school life.

“This is a book about pressure–about how the pressure on the students, parents, teachers, and graduates has whirled out of control and will continue to do so exponentially unless there is a massive change of attitudes and educational policies. The intensifying pressures to succeed and the drive of the overachiever culture have consequences that reach far beyond the damaged psyches of teenage college applicants, though that effect alone should be enough for us to take notice” (15). The first sentence serves as the main thesis, and the second one serves to strengthen the thesis. These two sentences explicitly inform the readers the main argument of this book–the weaknesses of the American education system. By placing this statement toward the beginning of the book, the author raises the readers’ attention, making them ready for further evidences and analysis later in the

That’s what some people ask themselves, but they can know by a simple website. They can go to google and looked why parents push their kids/teens so hard, and they might come across a website called http://living.thebump.com. This website explains a lot of good information. It says in the first paragraph, “By ramping up the academic pressure, they’re hoping to spare their children the disappointment and feelings of failure that may come along with not getting admitted to college.” What it seems like the author of this article is trying to say is, parents try to get their teens smarter so they don’t have to deal with the major disappointment of the possibility in their

Sin nature and Holiness are viewed totally from one end of the spectrum to the other end. When viewing sin nature and holiness, there are many different concerns one can have from this, when did sin first show up, the first it showed up through, and the effect it has on mankind when revealed. Holiness is on the opposite of the spectrum. It means to be set a part, keeping one’s life free of sin, and honoring the laws of God. “Sin is any evil action evil motive that is in opposition to God. Simply put, sin is failure to let God be God and placing something or someone in God’s rightful place of supremacy”. (Tezel & Gutierrez p. 65).begin

The transition from being a teenager too an adult often comes with many struggles. In this difficult transition we are supposed to be able to deal with while passing the required classes needed to graduate, pick our career path, and decide who we are supposed to become. From the age of 5, the school systems have told us where/when we are allowed to eat, to ask for permission to go to the bathroom, how we should be seated in a classroom, and what rules we must follow while in a school. Being constantly told what to do and how we should act, what is right and what is wrong can be very discouraging. As a society there is a set of “standards” that have been put into effect in everyone's mind. When we don't meet these academic standards parents and ourselves often get upset as to why we can't be as good as the person next to us. As a result of feeling like you have let yourself and your parents down for not having marks that you should, often you begin to think negatively about yourself. Beginning to believe things such as that you aren't smart, or that you aren't capable of completing school work as well as you think you should be able too according to the “standards” of what is acceptable. What we don't realize is that every person is unique, meaning we have all been given strengths and weaknesses. Focusing on our weaknesses gives us a negative

A wise woman, Malala Yousafzai, has said “Some parents do not send their children to school because they don’t know its importance at all”. This is true to some extent, but more often than not, parents tell their children to attend the finest school possible. This is similar to the pressure grade 12 students face when having to get admitted into post secondary education. Parents constantly mention the best universities like University of Toronto, Waterloo and McMaster, they never consider the option of College. I am currently seventeen years old and going through the toughest moment in life, applying for post secondary education. I have asked my parents about their thoughts on George brown college, their reaction was “huh what is George brown college is that a person?”. Afterwards I asked about Seneca and Humber college as well, they responded similarly. After that it was clear that my parents were only aware of the prestigious schools in Canada. They believe university is the only way to achieve a stable life, and college was not even a consideration. Disappointing your parents is one of the saddest moments a person can experience. The pressure of a parent 's expectations causes their child to apply to the education they wish for, without any regard of the child 's own interests. My parents believe university is the only way to succeed in life, but I believe otherwise.