Asking to Success by Dominique

Asking to Success by Dominique - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

I would say that among the best lessons to be taught to a person are the lessons that build you up and that you take with you for the rest of your life. There's something special about when someone in your life goes above and beyond to prepare you for greatness. This is what happened between my middle school math teacher and I. I worked with her a lot in middle school in preparation for the inter-county Math Fair on Long Island, NY and in my 8th grade math class, and I always asked a lot of questions. I always wanted to make sure that I understood what I was learning and how to improve my research and presentations. She was so welcoming to my questions, and she made me achieve a silver and then a gold medal in the Math Fair for the two years that I participated. She also helped me succeed with flying colors in my algebra class.
My Math Fair project was a particular challenge because I was researching and using very advanced topics for my age such as physics and mathematical equations involving summations and advanced symbols to explain the relationship between mathematics and gymnastics. My teacher not only welcomed my questions, but she encouraged them! She helped me improve the way and the quality in which I delivered my project to the judges in research papers and in presentation, amounting to prestigious medals being won for it and praise from the judges regarding my paper to the point of it being posted online.
From my experiences with my teacher, I became accustomed to asking questions in everything I do. Whenever I am learning, I am filled with questions because I feel personally obligated to understand what I am doing. Otherwise, it is no good. I cannot properly retain or follow through with what is before me if I do not fully understand it. There is an excellent quote from an inspirational speaker in my life that I came across later on: "If the purpose of a thing is not clearly understood, abuse is inevitable." This quote only reinforces my convictions about asking questions. Whether I am in a classroom or receiving instruction on how to do a job or a task, I am going to ask questions and make sure that I thoroughly comprehend what is laid before me. It is a powerful secret to my success in what I do. It's how I have gotten good grades in school, how I learn procedures or dance routines quickly, and so on. I am not afraid to ask questions, and I greatly owe that to my math teacher in middle school. I do not really keep in touch with my past teachers, but I still speak with this teacher to this day. In fact, I just had brunch with her last week with my mom. She has just had that much of an impact on me.