Learning to Live Successfully by MANOGNA

Learning to Live Successfully by MANOGNA - July 2022 Scholarship Essay

Eureka! I finally figured out the ratio between acceleration and angular acceleration for a solid sphere rolling down a ramp. At that moment, I could feel a sense of excitement and satisfaction coursing through my veins.
The first time I was exposed to Physics was in a virtual school environment and due to the pressure of the impending pandemic and a huge amount of asynchronous work, I did not have an opportunity to interact with my peers or teachers to ask about doubts and did not have an opportunity to fully comprehend physics. On the other hand, I was always fascinated with physics and was determined to expand my knowledge thoroughly, even if it was difficult. Therefore I took the AP Physics C class to build a better foundation and emphasize the key concepts of physics. For the longest time, I struggled in AP Physics C l because I could not apply the knowledge I learned in the class. Also, I experienced an immense amount of social anxiety and imposter syndrome in the class because I felt that I wasn't smart enough to be in the class.
However, I was determined to overcome the challenge and completed multiple practice problems, watched many videos to practice, and attended multiple tutorials to get my doubts cleared. Over time I developed my techniques for remembering the connections between concepts and was excited to challenge myself with difficult problems. The moment I understood the effect of my hard work was when my teacher pulled me aside after class and described the growth he noticed in me. I would have never been able to experience that moment of pride and happiness if I did not challenge myself. By experiencing the fruits of hard work and the benefits of stepping outside of your comforts, I learned about myself and grew into a confident young person that yearned for mental and emotional growth.
Unfortunately, not many students are lucky enough to be exposed to this ideology before college. Many students are pressured to fit in and work to just achieve a good grade instead of being pushed to challenge themself to truly understand the foundational concepts. During my journey to understand what method of learning worked best for me, life did not stop. I still had to learn to balance taking tests in other difficult classes and maintain my commitment to extracurricular activities. This is one of the main problems with our current education system. The process of learning is represented as linear growth and there is this harmful ideology that “every hour studying is equivalent to a 10-point increase on the test” but that is not realistic by any means. The amount of studying can only be effective if the student is studying in the right methods. Fortunately, my parents have given me the intellectual freedom to avoid running after grades but instead focus on my self-improvement.
Despite the months of studying and that one “Eureka” moment where I figured out the ratio between acceleration and angular acceleration for a solid sphere rolling down a ramp, I still had more to learn and other concepts I needed to master. The ideology of working towards a subject for “credit” is truly flawed at its core as it places borders on the child’s mind for success. The biggest mistake a human can make is defining success as one goal and pressuring themself to only move towards that one goal with all their being. However, in reality, success is a lifestyle. You should be living successfully, not trying to be successful.
The idea of being successful should be embedded into every fiber of your being for everything you do. The
The education system should teach kids that being successful is not about being better the next day but living successfully every day. Some may misinterpret this ideology as a way of pressuring people to be their best every day but the truth is far beyond. The true meaning of living successfully is implementing the ideology of trying and balance in everything you do. Instead of focusing your life on “just making enough money to buy a house” , working towards making yourself happy with each day can truly make a difference. To instill this ideology within students, there can be ways of teaching them to cope with failure by destigmatizing its meaning and appreciating students regardless of whether they fail or succeed. Another way is by allowing students starting from high school to make decisions on their own about their studying, instead of forcing them to get a 100 in every single class, they should go into the mindset of choosing what their priorities are and knowing where to put their mental efforts into. If a child does not enjoy singing then their future should not be jeopardized by their inability to sing. However, this system will only work if colleges also change their mindset of admitting “well-rounded” groups of students to “well-rounded” individuals where the individual success rate is only focused on the individual and not how they are compared to others their age. If this radical change is implemented into education, then we would have more people who genuinely love what they are doing and fewer people worrying about pressuring themself to be someone they are not.