Not Just a Language by Madison

Not Just a Language by Madison - August 2016 Scholarship Essay

The whole objective of high school is to help you learn and prepare for college. But which subject serves this purpose the best? For me, it was English. This is because English is not focused on one thing such as grammar like many may presume, it teaches you about the real world in several different ways and grows and develops your communication skills.
When people think about English, they think grammar. I mean let’s be real here. What else is there to English? Well… there’s actually a lot more. If you were to take an English course and take a look at the curriculum you would find that the focus is not entirely on grammar, but also on the tone, emotion, passion, purpose, rhyming, literature, and spelling. All of these things are an essential part of English. I find myself thriving each day in English because I have to ask myself questions that make me uncomfortable. Naturally, humans don’t want to question their own beliefs. However, English makes you do this because you have to look at all perspectives of the situation and write about it. No paper is a smart paper if it focuses on your opinion the entire time.
The second thing that stands out to me about the English subject in high school is that much of the literature that is explored can be applied to real life situations. Many of the topics that I have explored or read about in English have applied directly to my life in some way. For example, many of the poems we have read are relatable to me because they deal with whatever I am going through at that time. It is truly amazing to see that something as simple as a poem that you read in English one day can relate to you and make you think about the situation that you are going though differently than you ever thought possible.
Lastly, English is great at teaching you communication skills. This is because whenever you read literature in English, you have to understand the message the author is attempting to portray. Through this, you have to understand all of the characters, the setting, and most importantly the way the author is feeling. All of these are essential parts of communicating with others around you. If the person you are talking to does not understand the context of the situation and how you feel about it, they are not likely to understand what you are explaining. I believe that English has played a huge role in teaching me how to communicate with others because of this.
I have grown a lot as a student throughout the years. I have gone through several courses with a wide variety of subjects. Nevertheless, I believe that English has been the most influential academic subject for me because it examines a wide spread of topics, it exhibits the real world in several ways, and it increases your ability to interact with others around you. English has not only taught me grammar and spelling, but it has shaped me to be a better person. This is why I have learned the most from English.