Personal Narrative My Education Public school systems need to be more sensitive to their students. Parents play the major role in determining a child’s academic outcome, but the school system needs to notice children who don’t necessarily acknowledge their gift. These children need guidance -- I believe it is the schools’ responsibility to provide it to them. I have been through a situation that makes me feel strongly about the subject. My example is an indisputable case in point. Math is my forte. By the time I was six or seven, I fully comprehended the concept of variables and algebraic expressions. Its fascinating to me that when I pick up a math text book, as long as I can pick up on a concept that I have already seen, I can …show more content…
I was considered a middle-average student. I only averaged a low C in grade school and middle school math. Why? I was bored with it. Doing long division in your head is stupid. So freshman algebra rolled around and I loved it. After two weeks in the class I was three and one half chapters ahead of the teacher. He would only assign the odd problems for homework, but I’d do them all. Geometry was even cooler. But thinking back, not one of the teachers even commended me for doing so well. My father noticed I was good at it, but I thought he had to tell me I was good; he was my father. The next year, my junior year, I started to become a more social person. Not having the proper guidance to balance my education and social life, I started slacking. I pretty much gave up on school, moved out of my parents’ house at 17, and thought I had the world figured out. Somehow I still managed to graduate with a 3.2, but I never gave college a half a thought. I was busy being an idiot. My father always encouraged me to do well in school, and he was very proud of me. He always told me the importance of math and how being good at it would offer me a good career, but I was a teenager. To me, him telling me to do my math so I can get a good job ranked right next to him telling me to take out the trash. I needed more encouragement. I needed proof that math was actually used for something. Not one teacher ever pulled me aside and said, "Hey you’re good at this. This
Being the oldest of four children, it was always hard me to learn things fast. My parents weren’t able to help me with schoolwork because they both dropped out of school at a very young age. As I entered high school, I was terrified of all the hard classes I would be taking. Although I am not the best in every subject, a topic in which I have excelled in is Mathematics.
There are many subjects that I enjoy in school, but the one topic that stands out to me remarkably is mathematics. There are numerous measures in which analytical skills have helped and influenced me in life. One of the many ways math changed me was when I started community service. Another way it helped me is the way I look at other courses I currently partake. Lastly, math influenced me to study the analytic ways of it further in college.
Remember going into second grade and fearing those one minute division tests? I remember very clearly how afraid and intimidated I was. I panicked because I was scared that I was not going to get a good grade on it. To my surprise, I did not get a high score on it compared to my classmates. I was devastated because I had tried really hard on it. After that, I hated math until seventh grade. Math was my worst subject, and I acknowledge I was terrible at it. I hated it so much that after years of hating it, I developed a passion for math. After some years of practicing math, I fell in love with it. Entering middle school, Algebra was introduced. I loved Algebra because I was not only adding numbers, I was solving for certain variables at the
When I was little, I was always good at math, before 8th grade, when I was in Germany and I came to America. But that changed when I faced the most difficult challenge yet Honors Geometry. Shy 8th grade me was too embarrassed and reluctant to ask my teacher for their help in math and it led to some very big consequences. Because I didn’t try to ask for help, I didn’t do as good as I could’ve and I didn’t reach my academic goal of getting the Golden Tassel.
I have always considered myself a mathematician; however, that did not keep this subject from being difficult. Math has a glorious way of growing you up. For me, it began in the first grade where I was introduced to the multiplication table; my instructor used to test us with mental exams and I remember enjoying it like I was playing a game and winning.
As a mathematics major, the concept that most people overlook is that I did not choose to study mathematics because I do well at it; I chose to study mathematics because it makes me smarter. In fact, all throughout junior high and high school I was in remedial mathematics classes and worse, I did not even place into a freshman year mathematics class in high school. I had to re-take 8th grade mathematics. However, something about mathematics excited me. Maybe it was the fact that mathematics never came easy to me and I wanted to prove to myself that not only could I pass mathematics classes, I could actually understand and excel at them. For me, mathematics is not about the arbitrary numbers, trivial solutions, meaningless formulas, or repetitive computation: it is about the progress of knowledge and human understanding.
As I proceeded to take the course of my own experience throughout school, my interest in mathematics developed when I turned twelve. I was fascinated by how math connects with life since then my objective has been to comprehend and be able to use these concepts throughout my life. Afterwards, when I got into high school the idea of majoring towards mathematics was concrete, and there was no doubt in my mind that this was what I wanted to achieve. Although I couldn't decide if I wanted to be an accountant, an actuary, a data analyst or a software engineer; they all needed different skills, and they were all skills I was interested in acquiring. So, when I met my freshman math teacher in high school, I was speechless because he demonstrated
In my eighth grade Algebra I class, I finished with an 89%, the first "B" I had ever earned in middle school. While a relatively decent mark, I knew I could do better. In the class, I had solved problems simply by memorizing the processes and regurgitating them to the best of my ability. Tired of not understanding, I decided to change this rigid mindset of memorizing to a mentality
Mathematics is a subject that I grew up despising. However, since the eighth grade mathematics and I have been building a bond. Summer of eighth grade year, I took an advanced Pre-Algebra class that would create a path to AP Calculus. My goal for entering that program was all about entering high school with 10 credits and a decent GPA. As the years went by I became proud of what I had accomplished. Ninth grade year, I took Algebra II, a course that is offered to sophomores. The following year, I took a break from Algebra and learned geometry. Summer of sophomore year is when I started to comprehend the true benefits of Pre-Algebra. Again, I was offered the chance to take an advanced course of Pre-Calculus. Six weeks, five hours, five days of Pre-Calculus. I often had migraines from all the information that I had to process, but it was worth it. When the class ended and I learned that I would be entering AP Calculus, I was ecstatic! I had really done it. I had achieved my first high school goal. I was in an AP class and I did it all through hard work.
When I was in elementary school, I was put with all the other smart kids. I was not really exceptional I just had a good memory and, therefore, good grades. Still it was our small group that was the first at our school to take Algebra I in the seventh grade. I would stay fairly average with math for the next two years. When I took Precalculus in 10th grade I had a realization. Halfway through Precalculus I realized that what a waste of time those elementary school groups were. I discovered that math was not about memorizing equations. Math was about using those equations to solve complex problems. For the first time I realized that my strong memory was not vivid enough to surpass the issues I was going to face in my future math classes. I ended up pulling my very first C in Precalculus. I
Until third grade, I was homeschooled. Kindergarten through second grade, I worked in workbooks at my own pace. From third grade to sixth grade, I didn’t hate math, but I wasn’t a fan of it either. I had the same teacher for both 7th and 8th grade math, and that is when I started disliking it. I have always been good at math once I figure it out, but I don’t overly enjoy doing it. Ninth through eleventh grade I had a one hundred or higher (extra credit) in math because I was in regular on-level classes. Tenth grade year was my favorite though. The teacher was really kind and would take the time to explain if I didn’t understand. Twelfth grade, though, made me hate math. The teacher did not like me and told me I needed tutoring because I “obviously”
I remember being asked several times during grade school what my favorite subject was. I did not know for a while until third grade. I was outside at the school playground and one of my friend’s mom had asked me. My answer was uncertain at first, so she asked me if I was sure. I then thought about how I enjoyed learning math and practicing it. I smiled and confirmed that math was my favorite subject. After giving this answer several more times adults asked why or would say that it is possible my answer will change over time, and peers would say they hate math or do not understand. This moment was important because I began to take note why I like math, what aspects appealed to me. I questioned if I enjoyed just because it came easy to me.
This Dalis Hernandez, I've done a couple of observation hours in your classroom these past two semesters. For my education class we need to interview a educator that works with students with disabilities and it's only fourteen simple questions. I was wondering if you would be interested?
Many people are just born to be athletes and charismatic speakers. Genetic predispositions, charming personalities, and the ability to speak without stuttering are all examples of how many humans can easily progress through the world. However, mathematics has always been a strong suit of mine. Up until about the seventh grade, school - math in particular - was very difficult. Learning how to balance all of the different subjects and topics was a hassle, but during eighth grade, I was introduced to Algebra.
Jason Gibson’s article “Why Learn Algebra?” is detailed and persuasive. Not many people think or believe that math is important. Many of us don’t realize how much we use math in our everyday lives. Math or algebra, which ever one you prefer to call it, is all around us. Gibson gives good reasons as to why math is important and how we use it in our everyday lives, “We can all imagine situations where basic math serves us well - calculating your change in the grocery store for instance.”