Enjoyment of School
School. I know this is kinda weird but I used to like going to school when I was in elementary school. I did not like waking up early and I would complain about having to go to school. But, when I was at school I enjoyed it. School was a place where my friends and I could hang out together all day. We were all in the same class so while the teacher was teaching we would be whispering in the back. At lunch we all sat at a table together trading food and joking around. During reassess we would have massive games of freeze tag with the whole class. For the entire 30 minutes we would be running around the grassy field never getting tired. School was not stressful then: the homework was essentially nonexistent, worksheets and projects replaced tests, and there weren't actual grades
My enjoyment of school continued through all of elementary school. When I reached middle school I stopped liking it as much. We were separated into "teams" so I was no longer in a class with all my friends. During lunch we could no longer all sit together and there was no more recess. What changed the most was the workload. We went from having almost no homework to a few worksheets a day. The homework was manageable because one could usually finish it in class. While we did have to study for tests, they were few and far between. In middle school we got to choose our electives. I was able to choose classes I found interesting. I still liked school because even though it was different I still got to see my friends every day and make new ones from different elementary schools.
I think my enjoyment of school changed the most when I came to Uni. Going from 7th grade at Urbana to Subbie year at Uni was rough. It was the first time we had loads of homework and studying that would keep me up late at night. While making the transition was hard going to Uni also gave me new freedoms. While at Urbana you needed a hall pass just to get a drink of water at Uni we were able to leave school and go buy food. I loved this new freedom. As we got older the workload and stress got heavier. The freedom Uni gives us was no longer novelty. While the classes I am taking I enjoy because they are about things I find interesting we don't do much anymore. When I was an underclassmen and missed a day of school I would be behind on notes, homework, and general learning. It was never worth it to miss school because there was so much work to make up for after. Now as a senior I feel as though there is more value in not going to school. I can sleep, do homework, and college applications. When I miss a period or even the whole day of school I don't even feel as though I actually missed anything by not being in the classroom. I can come back the next day and pick up where I left off.
Isn't it sad that as Uni students some of us find it more valuable academically not to go to school? That ditching all our classes will be better for us because we aren't actually missing anything?
*I don't want to say "I don't like school" even though I kinda am. I do like coming, I like being able to socialize with friends during free periods in the lounge*
My enjoyment of school continued through all of elementary school. When I reached middle school I stopped liking it as much. We were separated into "teams" so I was no longer in a class with all my friends. During lunch we could no longer all sit together and there was no more recess. What changed the most was the workload. We went from having almost no homework to a few worksheets a day. The homework was manageable because one could usually finish it in class. While we did have to study for tests, they were few and far between. In middle school we got to choose our electives. I was able to choose classes I found interesting. I still liked school because even though it was different I still got to see my friends every day and make new ones from different elementary schools.
I think my enjoyment of school changed the most when I came to Uni. Going from 7th grade at Urbana to Subbie year at Uni was rough. It was the first time we had loads of homework and studying that would keep me up late at night. While making the transition was hard going to Uni also gave me new freedoms. While at Urbana you needed a hall pass just to get a drink of water at Uni we were able to leave school and go buy food. I loved this new freedom. As we got older the workload and stress got heavier. The freedom Uni gives us was no longer novelty. While the classes I am taking I enjoy because they are about things I find interesting we don't do much anymore. When I was an underclassmen and missed a day of school I would be behind on notes, homework, and general learning. It was never worth it to miss school because there was so much work to make up for after. Now as a senior I feel as though there is more value in not going to school. I can sleep, do homework, and college applications. When I miss a period or even the whole day of school I don't even feel as though I actually missed anything by not being in the classroom. I can come back the next day and pick up where I left off.
Isn't it sad that as Uni students some of us find it more valuable academically not to go to school? That ditching all our classes will be better for us because we aren't actually missing anything?
*I don't want to say "I don't like school" even though I kinda am. I do like coming, I like being able to socialize with friends during free periods in the lounge*
So, as I'm writing this, I'm at home because I'm too sick to go to school and I totally relate to what you were talking about with there being little benefit to going to school. While I'll probably miss out on learning some pretty interesting stuff in my classes, I'm so swamped with work and college apps that being alone at home grinding away at work is probably the best use of my time.
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