Calculus: From failure to life lessons by Juliana

Calculus: From failure to life lessons by Juliana - July 2023 Scholarship Essay

I have always excelled academically, especially with mathematics. As a fifth grader I was the first student to be moved up a grade level as the 5th grade level math was far too easy. Being advanced I took Algebra 1 as a seventh grader. By the time I was a sophomore I was taking pre-calculus. Through all of these courses I passed with straight A’s. But an education shift lead to struggles down the road.

For the first semester of my junior year of high school I studied abroad in Hungary. While this experience was the best decision of my life, and I have no regrets in going, nothing could have prepared me for the struggles that were to come. Leaving for a semester meant that I could not take a math course my junior year. Jumping into senior year I chose to take AP Calculus as that was the next course option in my educational journey. With a school year and two summers, it had been over a year since I had taken a math class. AP Calc is not a class for the faint of heart either. Not only did I struggle because of the difficulty of the course, I struggled recalling the topics learned over a year prior. Math builds on previous years and calculus is very dependent on the topics learned in pre-calculus. For the first time I struggled in my math career.

Discouragement and frustration were a constant throughout the course. This was a new feeling for me and the further into the class I got the greater these feelings grew. I learned better study methods, coping methods, and most importantly, that I don't always need to be a perfectionist. As a student who graduated with a 3.9 GPA learning that I didn’t have to be perfect in everything was not easy. AP calc was causing me stress and limiting my sleep. Eventually I learned that in order to succeed in other areas of my life such as other classes and relationships I had to just let go of the perfectionist attitude I was putting towards my AP class. When all sudden done I passed the class but I wasn’t perfect. Looking back I am thankful for the lessons I learned as I know they will be very important as I move on to a more difficult portion of my education career. By failing I ultimately learned how to succeed.