#itsyours by Kayla

#itsyours by Kayla - April 2018 Scholarship Essay

The idea of education being yours can be split into two different sections. Each is equally important to me however they differ by too much to be combined. The first way is a more empowering way of thinking about education.
It wasn’t until my sophomore year that I realized my education was mine and mine only. It was then that I realized that if I wanted to take harder classes then it was totally up to me. If I wanted to learn then I was going to have to listen and if was going to understand I would have to study. And to get all of these things the only thing I had to do was ask. My education is mine. I can say when I don’t want to learn anymore or when I am done challenging myself. Granted I have never thought any of these to be true even when waist deep into AP Calculus. It is up to the person or student to learn. The old saying still stands true that you can lead a horse to water but can’t make it drink. I realized this while reflecting on the very few times I have taken a doze during class. While I recovered from missing an hour of sleep those around me had absorbed an hour’s worth of knowledge. I say this to show how the student is responsible for their own education, not the teachers, not the counselors, not parents. Your education is yours and should be taken advantage of because it is a privilege that a lot of people don’t have.
The second way that education is yours is the more obvious statement, being that education is whatever you want. In this day and age you can study whatever you want to. When touring a college campus I spoke with a girl who was studying specifically music education with an emphasis on kids on the autistic spectrum. Education is truly whatever you make of it. If you have a passion odds are you can follow up on that passion in some way with more education.
My education is mine and what that means is that while I do have incredible teachers and staff teaching me different subjects of matter, they do not get to say what I should do. My education is mine and that means that as much as my parents would love for me to go into anything but education they have no say in the matter. I have seen people pressured into doing things that don’t give them joy because of the alluring sweetness of a high salary. My education is mine and that means that if I want to study music ed. then as long as I remain passionate I will be successful.
Anyone can sit in different classes for hours a day, but it takes someone with dedication and drive to focus and engage in learning. Those are the types of people who become successful, those are the types of people who know their education is theirs.