Struggling with Math by Gabriela

Struggling with Math by Gabriela - April 2019 Scholarship Essay

Throughout my school years, I’ve always struggled with math. I tended to get really frustrated with it and wanted to give up most of the time. I would feel slow and behind from others which made me dislike the subject. It was hard for me to ask questions because I had that mindset to just try to figure things out on my own which did no good. I would chase the grade not the knowledge but it wasn’t until freshmen year that changed the way I felt about math and about my learning skills.
Midway into the school year. I was chosen out of 500 to participate in a math program that would provide tutoring and lessons by students from UCR. I attended a session every Saturday for a few months which helped a group of students strengthen our math skills. I would also present how I would solve for answers, which definitely helped me become more comfortable with public speaking and confident with my problem-solving. This program not only helped me with math but it also allowed me to interact and collaborate with new people, which helped me taught me how to work with other people’s strengths and weaknesses. It took me out of my comfort zone and taught me how to think outside the box. These are definitely some useful skills this opportunity has helped me gain and make stronger.
I feel very fortunate to be given this opportunity because it helped me gain new skills and become more of an optimistic person. I became more and more determined throughout the rest of my school years. This opportunity contributed to helping me to deepen my understanding of certain mathematical topics, develop new strategies, and pushed me to become a more open-minded person, as I learned that anything is possible. I have been able to understand the subject better than I have before and now am enrolled in AP Calculus which is less of a struggle for me which I am truly glad that I took advantage of this opportunity.