P!nk

P!nk
Glitter in the Air

Thursday, November 4, 2010

"You're smart, just not how they want you to be."

While just talking with a friend, I got into how I can't wait to graduate and live my life. So of course all my thoughts on the education system and society pile on in. I personally do not get any sort of fulfillment by sitting in a classroom or reading textbooks. And I definitely don't get anything but discouraged when I receive grades continuously over... my whole life... that are not as good as I'd like and that do not represent how much time and effort I put into my studying. The education system... and our society in general give all credit to those who are book smart, and overlook most everyone else.

School isn't the place for me. I want to live. I want to spend my time helping people, inspiring people, writing, working around music, traveling, meeting people, going places, seeing things. I want to learn by doing and by experience. Forget classrooms, and textbooks, and being told I'm not smart enough with letters and numbers. I have a lot of passion and a lot of things I'm interested in, and when it comes to something I enjoy and I care about there's no stopping me, I'll do a lot, but I have to be given the chance. And I'm sure there are plenty of people out there who are the same way.

I personally don't even want to work for money, I just want to do what I love for free. Obviously I have to work for money, I can't survive without it, but I'd rather spend my time helping people in ways that don't pay. I want to make a difference and I don't need money to motivate me to do it... except I do in this society.

There are a lot of different people out there, the education system does not do half of them justice, but we're forced to conform to get by and have a shot at success. You don't have to have all A's to be successful in the real world. A's don't tell you that you're smart and F's don't tell you that you're stupid. All they tell you is that you are how 'they' want you to be or that you aren't. (another friend brought that to my attention while I was saying I've been struggling with my grades this semester even though I've been so engaged, and that 'I'm not smart') Some people can remember every word they read in a text book, while reading at 100 miles per hour. I can't remember half of what I read if I take 100 hours. Some people process things slower than other people, can't think to their full potential under pressure - that's me. Some people freeze up in front of a class - it doesn't mean they don't have anything good to say. Some people are better visual learners, some hands on, some just listening or reading.... but each teacher chooses their style, and the kids who don't learn as well in that style suffer. Teachers should be more concentrating on each individual meeting their potential and succeeding in their own way, than forcing 1 standard for each individual to meet. All that does is set people up for frustration, discouragement, and failure.

On top of all that.... the curriculum needs some major tweaking (to put it kindly). Once you get out of elementary school, you should be learning things beyond one shakespeare and where to put a comma. In an interview of P!nk once, she put it just how I always tried to, they should "teach us how to be better human beings, instead of teaching us how human beings from 300 years ago weren't that great"... Sure history is important, but what's the point in learning history if we don't even know what's going on today?? We're creating history right now aren't we? ... but how many people don't even know half of what's going on? If people in the future are going to learn about what's happening in our lifetime, shouldn't we know what's going on too? People develop an interest on their own over time to pay attention to political and social issues going on, but how many people leave the education system, and enter the real world blind-sided? ... And I'm speaking completely hypocritically right now, as I haven't paid enough attention either, but it's too easy to not pay attention. Maybe if we new what was going on in the world our whole life, when it came time to be a part of that world, to be making decisions and and contributing to society... maybe we would have less issues, less people voting for things that they have no clue about. And if you're aware of more of the hate and problems in the world at a younger age... maybe you'll make more loving decisions in the future. People are too oblivious to so many problems... trapped in their own bubble, and get too consumed with little petty things, that those petty things either contribute to bigger problems, or keep you from trying to solve the bigger problems. People also just need to learn more life skills, and how to be independent and maybe focus on other things than a new shakespeare play every year. Where's that going to get you? Why bother acting it out? That's not going to impact your life. Help people find meaning to their lives, rather than making everyone go about their life the same way.

I feel like I could probably write a whole book on just this topic.. I'll just stop myself here.