I'm More Than Just a Number

Another one of our students commented on an earlier post. What she said is worth pulling out and putting in a post of its own. Here's what Becca had to say:

I'm not sure if I'm really "allowed" to post here. I was just looking at one of my teacher's blogger profiles and upon noticing that so many teachers were "team members" on this one, I got a little curious.

I've grown up attending LPS schools and I'm not going to lie, sometimes, it is hard to feel like little more than a number in the system... In elementary school, I was always around number 21 or 22 in class, my last name being towards the end of the alphabet; I still have the same student number that I used for my lunch number drilled into the back of my brain; in middle school we started looking at printouts of our grades where we were "coded" by yet another number; and at AHS it's pretty hard not to get lost among the sheer number of students milling about the halls. Not to mention GPAs and all the other numbers you are branded with upon entering high school.

But upon returning for my fourth and final year, things were pretty much noticeably different right from the beginning. Part of that might have to do with the simple fact that I'm now a senior, but I don't think that's entirely it. I feel like this year I'm finally expected to do more than simply regurgitate the information that I've been spoon-fed. I feel more like my education is in my hands and I can do with it what I will. And I'm going to be honest; that's so much more appealing than "this is what I want for you to learn, and this is how you're going to learn it". And again, part of that might still have to do with the fact that I'm finally mature enough to handle this.

So I guess what I'm really trying to say here is "Thanks". You all do so much for us as your students. The future is scary, as Mr. Fisch's pp presentation clearly shows, but I feel pretty good knowing that my education has been pretty well taken care of by LPS. It feels good knowing that to you, I'm more than just a number.

Thanks, Becca, for sharing. You're not only allowed, but encouraged to comment on this blog. As you've hopefully noticed, this blog is all about your education - so we certainly need to hear from you and your classmates. I think you being a senior certainly has something to do with the changes you're feeling, but I hope what we've been talking about for about a year now and are really starting to implement is also responsible for some of that change. Hopefully future students won't have to wait until Senior year to feel like more than a number.

Tags:

• constructivism
• education_change