Simplify by Ben

Simplify by Ben - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

My AP Physics teacher really annoyed me. At the beginning of the school year, I was looking forward to learning some very interesting material in the course. The class started out like any other. The teacher welcomed us into his class, and within weeks we were deep into the curriculum.

On one occasion, I asked him about a particular detail that was troubling me, and upon giving me a minimal explanation, he said, “Don’t overcomplicate it. I can tell already that you’re probably going to get a 5 on the AP Exam, but kids like you need to stop worrying about all the minor details like this. Just use the methods I’m teaching you, and you’ll be fine.”

I could tell immediately that this advice was absurd. I had built my impressive list of academic achievements by one principle: understanding everything as deeply as I possibly could, never leaving out any details. And now this one physics teacher I had only known for three weeks was telling me to abandon that strategy? “No way,” I thought to myself. “What does he mean not to overcomplicate? What kind of teacher would ever tell me not to learn interesting details like this? Is ‘overcomplicate’ even a word?” (Strike one for me—it’s in the dictionary.)

I calmed down from my frustration and continued with my studying. But I would soon discover that I wouldn’t be hearing the end of that advice any time soon. I continued going to him with questions, and each time that he responded with “don’t overcomplicate it,” I would halfheartedly voice my agreement, get a bit more annoyed, and return to studying. In fact, I wasn’t the only one upset. My mom started to get frustrated, as well, as she heard of his unwillingness to teach me the details in favor of suggesting that I overlook them.

But as the school year went on, something interesting happened. As my teacher continued to offer this advice, my mom started to agree. When we would talk about my progress in the class, she would often encourage me to accept his guidance. Despite this, I continued to refuse to change my ways, completely taken aback that anyone thought that actually learning less would help me be a better student.

After many months, I began to understand what my teacher truly meant. Far from suggesting that I try to learn less, he was suggesting that it was better to spend my time focusing on the most important things rather than picking at irrelevant details. I’ll admit that it took me far too long to truly take this advice to heart. Maintaining this mindset still requires a lot of effort, and I fall far short of attaining it all the time. But I keep improving, and I continue to be more and more satisfied with my understanding of what I learn as a result.