Education Brings out the Best by Natalie

Education Brings out the Best by Natalie - December 2014 Scholarship Essay

As humans, we are constantly learning and changing. Perhaps one of the most altering events that everybody in the United States is entitled to, is an education continuing until the end of high school. We cannot deny that the education we receive during the first 18 years of our lives changes us. Our education system attempts to mold every student into a successful citizen. It provides us with priceless knowledge and prepares for adulthood. In my last years of high school, I have found my education to be rewarding and has changed my outlook on my world drastically.

When I came into high school as a confident freshman, I was not in the slightest worried about making grades. I had breezed my way through middle school with an ego inflated by a solid 3.9 or 4.0 GPA. I rarely studied for tests and found myself excelling in even my weaker areas of math and science. When I began my high school courses, I figured if I paid attention in class, then I would continue on with a decent GPA. I relied solely on my academic talent. That first semester of high school turned out to be altering to my approach at anything. I started doing poorly on quizzes in math and biology. I could not figure out how to raise my grades. Finally, it dawned on me that I needed to put in more effort and do more then what was asked of me. I had always done my homework but I realized then that that would not be enough for me if I wanted to be better than average. I began to take home my books and began studying hard. I learned how to create a work ethic that would bring me success not only in the classroom, but in other areas like sports and at my job.

This extra work paid off for me by my sophomore year, when I learned how to study effectively. Something that my education has taught me is simply how to learn. One has to step back and realize that they do not know everything and that there is always more to learn. We will never be an all-knowing species so there is no point in acting like we know more than we do. There is nothing wrong with asking questions and admitting that we do not know the answers. This piece of wisdom that I have acquired over my years of schooling I have found to shape my personality. It has brought to me a great sense of humility. Long gone are the days for me when everything was easy and I could be in the top of my class with little effort. I have realized that there are many gifted people in our world and that I am not as intelligent as I once thought myself to be comparatively. That will not hold me back though. A strong work ethic can carry one far.

Another way education has shaped my life is by allowing me to understand other people. I took two phenomenal english classes over my freshman and sophomore years of high school. These classes really allowed me to delve into our human mind and get some idea of how our mind works and what motivates us as humans. We read short stories exposing the worst in our human culture. The common themes that ran throughout these short stories consisted of sins: selfishness at the root, followed by greed and hypocrisy. These sins were disguised in beautiful things such as a flower or a gorgeous woman. It made the discovery of these flaws even more disgusting and repulsive. These two classes were my first blunt exposures to the flaws in our human nature. The classes helped me understand the motives of people and sympathize with their actions and mistakes. Being aware of our human nature has also helped me try to get away from my own selfishness and begin to think of others more often. This has shaped my life in a positive way. I can see in myself now when I am being selfish or when I am being a hypocrite. The knowledge I gained is very applicable to my life and I will always bear those lessons in the back of mind.

Education has undoubtedly shaped my life in more ways than I realize. Most significantly though for me, it has developed my personality and has given me hope and excitement for my next educational experience at the college level. My prior educational experience I feel has prepared me well; I am aware that I will have to work harder than I ever have in order to reach my personal academic goals, but that is something that comes along with aspirations.