Graduation Speech : School Is Place Where They Come From Has An Equal Change Of Education

Every fall, millions of students return to school to learn about math and science, English and history, every weekday until summer finally returns. Year after year, the same fundamental classes return and, time after time, seem to faintly impact the students. Schools have been designed so you learn the same information, slightly more in depth, from kindergarten to senior year. What about topics that would further the student in their future after graduation? Schools emphasize the same core subjects throughout the years, but not the real life obstacles millions of millions of people face. What if schools required classes on survival, job interviewing skills, studying, how to pass the SAT- all classes which would further students in their

Nowadays, teenagers and young adults are graduating high school and college and are unable to find jobs. A lot of them lack the basic skills needed to survive during adulthood. Institutions exist mainly to educate people on what they need to maintain a somewhat decent lifestyle. Students have been forced to take classes on a variety of subjects throughout high school, most of which have nothing to do with what they need to prepare them for life after education. Even in college, a majority of students do not know what career field they would like to enter, so when they graduate it is hard for them to get a job anywhere. Institutions are not arming students with the proper information needed to excel after education. So, new classes should be created and required for students to pass before graduating. They will be based on basic skills such as money management, customer service skills, and credit understanding.

Chiles Elementary School’s improvement plan, for its vision statement is to strive “for excellence by actively involving all students, parents, faculty, staff, and the community in a safe, nurturing, and respectful environment” (Lawton M. Chiles Elementary SIP, 2015-2016, pg. 8). Building relationships is extremely important in order to facilitate successful collaboration, which is why the school improvement plan also listed different ways for learning student cultures, building safe and respectful learning environment, and getting parents involved. For example, in order to learn more about student cultures, teachers are encouraged to involve all students in activities to share about themselves, their families, and their work with peers. Teachers are also encouraged to meet with parents, to listen to concerns, and to learn about special needs that a child may have. To create a safe and respectful learning environment, teachers have general tasks that they must do before, during, and after school, such as providing supervision in their grade level’s common area before the first bell, utilizing school-wide classroom management system, and supervising students in the car loop or bus loop

I believe that for these students, school can be a place of hope, change, growth, and opportunity. This means meeting the student and the student’s family and community where they are at. I believe that all families want what is best for their children and want them to be successful. I believe that both the families and the students are doing the best they can at any given moment. Families often need opportunities for support from outside agencies and support systems in order to allow them to be the best they can be. Holistic or wrap-around services are essential.. A very basic example of this philosophy is that a child can’t learn if they are hungry so food should be provided. Students who need it should have access to meals provided by the school. I am employed by an organization that packs 300 backpacks of food that children who are risk of not having enough to eat over the weekend can take home. If students need mental health services, access to those should be provided. If families need support in getting medical care or safe housing, they should be able to access resources to help them and schools can be the hub of those kinds of services for families in need. If the ultimate goal of education is to help create contributing members of society, than some families will need support along the way.

The public education system has been in place for enough time to know the many goals it has for students. Horace Mann allowed his sole purpose to present equal opportunity to students so they can experience wealth. The idea that if a person attends public school they will have the equal opportunity to be wealthy and have any career they wish. However, “equality does not mean that everyone will have equal incomes and equal status” (Spring, 2013, p. 66).

What a college education means to me? It means pride, determination, and opportunity. The pride I have in knowing that even though I have had many setbacks and faced many challenges that I was able to overcome them and achieve one of my greatest accomplishments working toward a college degree. My determination allows me to wake up every day and even though it is not going to be easy to work, I will make sure I am able to study and complete all my school work. An opportunity, I am in no way ashamed that I have not completed college, but I know in today’s world this limits how far I can make it in the job market. I know that with a degree I will get closer to finding a career that I can be successful at and enjoy doing.

As a freshman in high school, school was my least favorite place to be and I also dislike going to class. My grades were inadequate by the time I was a sophomore. Toward the end of my sophomore year I met Dawn Pollman Kivlehan who is a teacher at Fowler High School. She is the head of the ESL (English as a Second Language) department. Mrs. Kivlehan was born and raised in Syracuse, New York and lived in a neighborhood called Tipperary Hill. She enjoyed in spending time with her family, listening to music and watching Fowler soccer. She had a bad habit of drinking Diet Pepsi every morning. I remember every morning she drinks Pepsi. She played field hockey in college and basketball in her early age. Her eyes changes color depending on the clothes she wears and, then green when she’s upset. Mrs. Dawn is fashionable during the week she always dressed up except Fridays. Friday she wears her soccer t-shirts. (She really loves wearing sweatpants after work). Dawn Pollman Kivlehan is hardworking, helpful, and very beloved teacher. (I can really say that she is one of the hardest working person I know)

From my kindergarten beginnings up to my recent experiences, I have always wondered about the world around me and always tried to put others needs before myself. My father also thought of me as a caring philosophy due to things like questioning about “What is death?”at a young age. My elementary school, Foothill Oak, has shaped some prejudices and arrogance that I did my best to hide and fix through my middle school through high school.

It all started when I was a senior in high school and I was taking my final English class required to graduate. At first I had the attitude of a typical senior student with a bad case of “senioritis”, but that all changed once my teacher Ms. Wade began her lesson plan. I immediately fell in love with her teaching style and her enthusiasm for English, which seemed rare to come by with teachers who taught a senior level class. It was then that I knew I wanted to become a teacher and possibly major in English. Fast forward a few years, I started dating my fiancé and was introduced to his niece (age 6) and nephew (age 2). At that point I had a flood of memories of when I was student in elementary school and remembered how much I enjoyed going to school, learning basic knowledge like my ABC’s, and more importantly how my teacher brought me happiness and the desire to learn new things in a fun, exciting and safe environment. When I came back this semester to Daytona State College I was informed of a new program they offered, a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education (BSED) and knew it was meant to be. After speaking with an advisor and some of my peers it was clear this is the career path I wanted to take and with hard work and determination I would eventually become an elementary school teacher.

I volunteered at W.B Sweeney Elementary School in Willimantic, Connecticut. I was with children in grades kindergarten through fifth for two hours after school every Monday this past semester. I thoroughly enjoyed helping them with homework, doing activities, and just getting to know them individually. I grew as a person from this opportunity, learned more about the field I am planning on entering, and broadened my experience with children overall.

As a senior here at UNI, I am very anxious to start my student teaching experience next fall. I hope to be placed in an elementary classroom because I am an Elementary Education major with minors in Literacy and Educational Technology. I hope to incorporate both literacy and technology into my lessons and prepare my students for the future. I have always wanted to be a teacher because I loved school as a child and even played teacher when I wasn’t in school. I enjoy being around children and love to see the excitement in their eyes when they learn something new. I am creative, caring, and passionate and I believe these characteristics will help me to become the best teacher I can be. I have always told myself that my main goal as a teacher will be to change at least one student’s life for the better and help them see that learning can be fun. I want to show students that school can be enjoyable and teach them learning techniques that will be beneficial in the future. I believe that teachers are extremely important in this world because it helps people enter all different kinds of careers and without teachers, these other careers would probably not exist.

Everyone is entitled to have the opportunities to succeed in their education, however, not everyone has the privilege to receive a great education from the start. Due to the factors that might interfere or hinder education, such as economic and geographic matters, many programs have been developed in order to help students with their journey throughout college and high school. The Puente Project is one of the many programs that has been around for three decades assisting underrepresented students to further their education. The program believes in the potential of their students, especially when given the right tools and opportunities to achieve academic success.

I earned both my Bachelor’s of Arts in Liberal Education and my Master’s in Education-Urban Education at Langston University in Tulsa, OK; Langston is a Historically Black College with a commitment to educational focus on diversity and underrepresented populations. While pursuing both degree programs I worked full time as a teaching assistant and, later, as a teacher in a high poverty school whilst taking my courses in the evenings, weekends and summers. During my Master’s program I was able to use my course work on topics like Jonathan Kozol’s The Shame of the Nation or Savage Inequalities directly from the college classroom to my own class of students.

Higher education is important to me and probably many other people because it gives a person new dream, outlooks, greater job opportunities, and most importantly, it is self-improvement. Going to college takes someone on a journey; a journey of finding one 's self, learning responsibilities, and finding the inspiration deep inside that says, "no matter what comes my way I will fight, I 'll fight to the end because this is important to me". I respect and hold the following quote in my heart to help me on my never-ending journey; "Life should not only be lived, it should be celebrated. Those who only live don 't live in reality only those who celebrate live. And, each moment has to become a celebration." (Osho, 1984, p. 47) I try to make every moment a celebration so I can look back and see where I started to where I am at now. I try to take on challenges in life that I have never done before, e.g. writing in APA format and Citing. College helps me take these new challenges head on, so I can stay on the right path in life.

This school was built in 1971 and is beautifully designed. This school currently has a “no wall,” open-concept. This statement can be very intimidating when picturing what it may look like but the flow works wonderfully. As soon as you walk into the school there is color and pictures everywhere which is inviting for students, families and visitors. Starting with the front lobby of the school, there are news articles and pictures of history of the school. This history includes memorials, awards and even the first computers used at East View. On the other side of the lobby there are pictures of East View’s affiliates and them working hands-on with students. Looking down the bright halls you see a wide variety of all the great work the students complete in the classrooms including artwork and writing examples. The faculty and administration working in the school are phenomenal. Each adult one would encounter will go out of his or her way to make sure you are welcomed. As you look into classrooms you see the teachers and students working very hard. Teachers are “digging into” instruction to get students ready for standardized testing with Otis-Lennon School Ability testing in the first and second grade. In third grade, the students will take the New York State’s English Language Arts and Mathematics tests. Doing well on these exams reflect the teacher’s performance just as much as the students. The teachers work to make sure every student does well and is