Because I Said So
by UMES Senior Marina Anoh
Education for the masses; has our educational system failed us?
Reading, writing, arithmetic, is that enough? When I was in high school I received A’s in most of my courses. I graduated top of my class and was on the honor roll every quarter. This was something that my parents are very proud of till this day. The question in all this is whether or not I deserved these grades. I was always a very bright girl from a young age or so I was told. When it came to doing work my family instilled the value of education in my brain like words to a page. Education was the one thing my father told me “They” could never take away from me. Now, ask me who “they” are I wouldn’t be able to tell you. But still I believed he was right about that because how can someone really take away what you know since it is not a tangible object.
As I progressed through life I came to see that what I knew or at least what I thought I knew were not really things I learned in the class room. Little did I know that when I went to college I would be in for the shock of my life. Now, I am not going to sit here and say that everything that I learned in high school was of no use because it was. But, I will say that when I arrived to my university I was surprised at the work load and the level of understanding that I was expected to have, especially going into my major requirement classes. I am a fast learner and so I came to the learning curve quickly and soon it was no longer a challenge. But everyone isn’t like me, there are people who will find this challenging.
University students graduate in 5 to 6 years instead of 4 years. According to David Zorn in an article called Reading, Writing and Arithmatic Are No Longer Enough ( http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-zorn/career-college-trend_b_1616691.html) we were once leaders, but the U.S. now ranks 20th in the world in graduation rates, and that’s only higher than two other countries – Canada and Russia. We must all start to do what we need to and take part in assuming responsibility for this. As university students especially at an HBU we have to work hard and graduate as we are the future of our country. I believe we are becoming lazy and content with graduating late and sometimes not at all. I don’t blame the educational system. I do not blame the schools; I blame us for wanting the easy way out of things and not striving for more in life.
Today is a new day. As students we have to work hard and know that nothing in life will just be given to us. Because I didn’t really have to work hard in high school for the grades I received I found myself struggling in later work. I say that to say this, our educational system is put in place to help us gain knowledge but I found that in some cases it could also hinder us. I see some of my classmates say “oh at least I’m still graduating”, and there is nothing wrong with that. But I can’t help but wonder why they are graduating late. Were they well prepared for college? Were they just not focused? Or maybe, they were just victims of a failing education system? Whatever the reason may be I say no more.
Enough is enough.
The times of taking math 109 four times before passing are over. The days of getting D’s and F’s in Chemistry are times of the past. We must want to do well in school then continue our lives. Not stay here forever. When we graduate we are already in debt. Adding two and three more years to that amount is completely senseless.
Enough is enough.
The times of taking math 109 four times before passing are over. The days of getting D’s and F’s in Chemistry are times of the past. We must want to do well in school then continue our lives. Not stay here forever. When we graduate we are already in debt. Adding two and three more years to that amount is completely senseless.
4 years should be our goal, no more no less.
Why? Because I said so.
UMES Family!
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"I do not blame the schools; I blame us for wanting the easy way out of things and not striving for more in life."
ReplyDeleteI'd have to disagree. There is a systematic issue where our education system failed to prepare high school students for college or even the work force.
Second, this is victim blaming and it's outright irresponsible. All schools are not funded equally. By one's zip code, I can tell what type of education he/she has access to. You don't create a whole population of people (students) that are suddenly unable to keep up with demand of course work, there are several fundamental flaws in our education system from the K-12 grade levels, local to national policy/legislation, and other varying factors. I don't know why it's easier for people to believe that something is wrong with the entire body of American students rather than the government and legislation that shapes the environments in which those students thrive or perish. Sure, so people may be unmotivated. But that's an issue on the individual level. Single individual behaviors are rarely relevant and remove the focus from a system that needs radical solutions and less demonization of victims!