Kateland Kirk

March 1, 2020

Education 1100

Sara Spaniol

Born into a typical white, Catholic family, I was raised as a part of the majority in the

United States. I am a mix of many nationalities including Irish, Italian, Lithuanian, Scottish,

Czechoslovakian, and German. Although I am many nationalities, I am mainly Irish like a good

majority of the U.S. population. Being Irish I have not experienced any discrimination. There is

the occasional joke about how Irish people drink a lot, but it does not result in unjust treatment

like other races experiences. In fact, I can go as far to say that it is fun being Irish because

many people celebrate my culture with me. Growing up my family had big St. Patrick’s day

parties with the typical Irish dishes like corned beef and hash. Many of my friends would

celebrate St. Patrick’s day as well because they are of Irish descent too. I remember St.

Patrick’s day parties at school, and now that I’m older, people my age go downtown and

celebrate at the St. Patrick’s day parade. It is fun celebrating an accepted culture; however, I

realize not everyone gets this luxury. It is important to realize that there are many cultures in the

classroom and to celebrate/recognize our differences. Because I come from an accepted

culture, it is easy for me to be ignorant to the fact that people are not as welcoming towards

other cultures. As an aspiring teacher I strive to create a welcoming environment for all cultures

and races. We can all learn something from one another.

My childhood education began at a catholic grammar school. I attended St.

Alphonsus/St. Patrick’s school from kindergarten through 8th grade. I want to mention my

classmates were all white except for one student who was Mexican. Looking back, that must
have been very hard having been the only student who wasn’t white. Aside from being a

predominantly white class, because St. Alphonsus/St. Patrick was a religious institution, there

were many discussions about morals. Traditional subjects were taught, but in addition, there

was religion class every day. We would read the bible, discuss Catholicism itself, morals,

values, and our goals for the future. The overarching goal of my school was for students to lead

a successful life by following the moral values of Jesus Christ. Being the oldest sibling, I felt the

need to set an example for my younger brother and please my parents by following the rules the

Catholic school set for me.

One fault to Catholic schools is making you feel guilty when you made a mistake. Even

my smallest fault made me feel extremely guilty, and I struggled with this throughout my

childhood. Like I stated earlier, the goal was to live through Jesus. Jesus was essentially

perfect, and I felt defeated or not good enough when I messed up. I remember when I went to

Lemont High School, a public high school, it made me realize how little those mistakes matter.

Public high school made me realize how amazing my life really is. There were kids who couldn’t

afford lunch, had very few clothes, and had to work to support themselves and their families. My

life was nothing like theirs. I did not have struggles similar to theirs. I also had noticed many of

these kids were not white. I had never seen this before because I had never gone to school with

anybody different from me. I grew up very sheltered. These people were struggling to get by,

and I was feeling guilty about daydreaming during church. Going to public high school made me

realize how fortunate I am, and that I have no real struggles in life. Rather than focusing on my

little faults that the Catholic school honed in on, it should be my goal to help people and future

students who are struggling rather than focusing on my own small faults. Although I may feel

like I need to improve, there are others who need help more than I do. I needed an outside

source to show me that it is okay to mess up from time to time. As a teacher who will be
teaching in a public school, I need to recognize that students come from many different

backgrounds. Almost everyone struggles somehow, especially minority students. There are

many more obstacles for them to overcome. Not everyone comes from a situation similar to

mine. I believe that by attending Catholic school and then public school after, it helped open my

eyes to the reality of students' struggles. I will take these experiences with me in my teaching

career.

In addition to my culture and education, my socioeconomic status also shaped me into

the person I am today. In high school I started working when I was 16 years old. I worked on

Tuesdays and Thursdays for 4 hours each day, so in total I only worked 8 hours a week.

Although it wasn’t a lot of hours, it was enough for me because the only expense I had was to

pay for the insurance for my car. I was given a car when I turned 16 years old. I was given my

mom's old 2006 Ford Edge. The car was paid off, so the only thing I had to pay for was the

insurance. I remember being jealous because some of my friends did not have to work and they

were given a brand new car. My friends were given Jeeps, Infiniti’s, and Audi’s and their moms

and dads paid for it all. I remember being embarrassed that I had to drive a rusty, old SUV. I

also got angry when I couldn’t hang out because I had work. I am from Lemont, Illinois which is

a relatively wealthy town. Compared to the community, I am middle class. I wasn’t wealthy

enough not to work, but I also didn’t have to hustle to support my family. I know that kids from

Lemont are very privileged, but I struggled with not comparing myself to them. I am aware that

this is not how the rest of the world lives; however, it’s hard to not compare yourself when your

classmates live in gated communities, drive Audi’s, and wear Gucci belts to school. Now that I

am older and have had to buy my own car, I have a car payment and insurance. It wasn’t until

this experience that I realized why those kids in high school worked so much. Not only did they

probably have a car to pay for, but many other expenses for their family. When I become a
teacher I need to be cognizant of the fact that not everyone lives like kids who are from Lemont.

Students come from all different socioeconomic backgrounds. As a teacher it is my job to

provide all students with the same academic opportunities regardless of their home life. Some of

my students will have to hustle, and some will not. Either way, I need to realize that not

everyone grows up differently which can affect their attitude in school.

Just in the first 19 years of my life, my culture, education, and socioeconomic status

have shaped me into the person I am today. I wouldn’t change anything. I am grateful for all the

experiences I have had thus far. My hope is that I can take these experiences with me and

create a safe, culturally accepting classroom when I become a teacher.