Moreno 1 Valentina Moreno Professor Vana DerOhanessian English 144A 15 October 2013 Change: A New Frontier Most people

can spot a huge difference between college and high school, I can only say that my experience was different. In my youth, I progressed an interest for learning, and through the years, it has become my motivation for pursuing further education. However, due to my familys financial difficulty college became an uncharted dream through the course of my life. Anxiety and stress have always brought up a point in my life where I question my position of attending college, and whether I deserve it. Moreover, as I push those thoughts away, I couldnt help but notice how college and high school are vaguely set apart from each other. For many reasons, I would have never thought that I would be attending college, being misguided by the school system had almost led me astray from this path. Even so, I always had people to support and inspire me to move on, but the future has always scared me, whether I question my role or who I will become in the future, change does not seem like an easy road. Applying my mind to school was never that demanding as most of my classmates would complain, in fact, passing a regular class was easier than it was difficult. I didnt find out until further on of middle school that I was an autodidact, it explained a lot why I had a knack for learning anything that Id find fascinating. Wanting to learn was something that came natural to me, and I never thought of my trait as something strange. My normal classes always made me feel anxious, because I never felt welcomed or comfortable in a class where I was branded as the geek. I entered AP classes because regular classes were doing a disservice for my academic experience, and I wasnt really learning anything new. I notably noticed the difficulty and challenging atmosphere of a college-level class. I wasnt treated any different from other students, and it didnt matter whether you were wrong or right, I truly felt in place in such a class. Notably, I could become prepared for any further outcomes in the future. As I entered

Moreno 2 college, it wasnt to my surprise that the challenge and workload of my classes would be demanding and somewhat difficult. I did not make it this far because of my school, As Mike Rose states, Jack MacFarland couldnt have come into my life at a better time." [p.5] I had my own Jack MacFarland, in fact; I had many of them who got me into the place I am today. The people who made all of that imaginable were my AP teachers and my college counselor, Mrs. Kronstadt, a woman who went out of her to make everything possible for me. Mrs. Kronstadt was someone who believed in her students; she looked at everyone and saw potential within us. She never gave up on a student, and she always dedicated her time for every one of them, often times she encouraged us to aim for something big because she knew that we were capable of it. As in Roses experience like every high school, the school system didnt encourage or informed any students of the possibility of college, the majority of the time it was the teachers who presented the opportunity to attend college. My AP teachers went out of their ways to open up possibilities for most students, because they had placed all their faith on their students. As it states in Roses writing, I developed further into a mediocre student and a somnambulant problem solver [p.2] in average this is what most schools want of their student, they only follow the instructions of what the Board of Educations have commanded them, but there isnt an ounce of academic integrity or ambition for their students. It angers me to know how little faith the school system or administration has in their students, and because that many students arent motivated to continue further onto college. Instead, the Boards of Education points their fingers and blames the parents on how well they raised their children or on their student's previous academic background, but they dont notice the damage they placed on their students. I cant help but notice that the only ones that encourage their students to go further in educati on are the teachers. Though academically both my college and high school might not differ entirely, culturally they are definitively different. Because a high school schedule is very solid and consistent it has produced a bad habit that prevents me from becoming more flexible. In college, my schedules of classes are very few and have a huge gap of free time in between that I am not used to, doing homework does help pass time

Moreno 3 while I wait for my next class. But I cant neglect the fact, which it feels strange having too much time before another class. Getting comfortable in college has not been entirely easy, but through the weeks I am slowly adapting to this change. Another aspect of having a different life in college is the workload and responsibilities that are given to you. Like most teachers in high school, it wasnt unusual for them to remind the class of assignments constantly. In college it all depends on your professor, and they dont have to remind their students because as a young adult its a student responsibility. The second thing that I mentioned was the workload, in my honest opinion; I believe that college gives less work than high school did for me. This might be because of the many subjects I had to take a day; rather in college you take fewer classes than you did in high school. But I do expect a lot more from my college, and through the course of every week I am getting exactly what I hoped for out of college. I could have achieved more, but it would be wrong for me to look back on what I could have done better, because I know that I am capable of achieving just as much anywhere. Though I do at times often question my position and privilege of being here, I have come to slowly understand that through all the choices Ive made, this one was the best. It all depends on the experience of the student to see the similarities and differences between high school and college. Through my own eyes the transition from high school to college wasnt any different in academics. But through time management and home assignments, it greatly had a different atmosphere. In most cases a huge transition like this might be frightening, but if you carefully think and prepare beforehand it wont be. Going to college is almost like a dream to me, being in a place where I know that I belong is too much to ask for. Though I fear the future and I feel slightly awkward with this sudden change, I can safely look back and see the support I have from my family and friends. Life is about taking chances, and it is those chances that develop and shape the person and environment you will be in the future.

Moreno 4 Works Cited Rose, Mike. Lives on the Boundary: A Moving Account of the Struggles and Achievements of Americas Educationally Underprepared. New York: Penguin, 2005. Print.