The Special Prize of Learning by Analisa

The Special Prize of Learning by Analisa - March 2018 Scholarship Essay

Lifelong learning has always been instilled in me, especially by my mother. As long as I can remember, my mom has always encouraged me to learn about new things, to set high goals for my educational experiences, and to work hard to achieve those goals. Since before I was born, I knew that higher learning education was a part of my plan. Coincidentally, my mother was an elementary school teacher for several years. As a young child, I remember my mother working every day and then continuing her education to earn her Master’s Degree in Elementary Education. When she wan’t taking classes, she would always read - she still loves to learn new things and makes it a point to read every day. When my mom was teaching, I did spent a lot of time in her classrooms and learned a lot about how to talk to children. If I had to describe how I would explain the importance of continued learning to a second grade student, this is what I would say to him or her:

“I know that college might seem very far away to you right now, but I promise you that it will be here before you know it. Do you know that going to college and learning new things during your entire life is very important? People who learn new things receive many special prizes. If you go to college, you will earn a degree and that is a very important, special prize. A degree will allow you to have a wonderful job and hopefully, it will be a job that makes you very happy. That, too, is a special prize. You should also continue to take classes and learn new things after you graduate from college. Maybe you want to learn something that you didn’t have time to learn about at college. Taking more classes will help you to meet new people and learn about many other beliefs and opinions, too. Meeting people and discovering different points of view is also an important prize. Do you know how easy it is to learn something new every, single day? All you need to do is pick up a book and read! Books are very precious things that helps us to make new discoveries. Discoveries are also very unique prizes that you can win all of the time by continuing to learn new things. I hope that you never stop learning. Learning is the most precious prize that you can give to yourself.”

I will always continue to learn and am grateful that this desire for life long learning was encouraged by my mother at such an early age. I do feel that I have won several “prizes” by counting to learn something new, every day, and will continue to follow my mother’s example.