We're currently in that inevitably awkward stage between quarters where students have to face the question of doom: how hard do I actually have to try this quarter?
There's a certain level of adjustment we have to go through each year. With new classes comes new responsibilities.
In a previous blog post, I described my style of thinking as a puzzle, how ideas in my head slowly come together, and more often I know the ending before I know the start. But there's also always been something off about the way I process information. In 8th grade, I had a conversation with my English teacher that prompted her to give me a book on synesthesia. I'm not claiming to be a synesthesiac, but I do link the information in my brain in a similar way that synesthesiacs do. I associate pretty much everything with colors; from moods to music to letters to words to days of the week.
I wish I could be someone who could sit through long reading assignments and notes and lectures and absorb everything I'm intended to. But a lot of times I have to force myself to focus. I'm one of those people who always has to be doing something with their hands. I'm always drawing or scribbling during class discussions or notes so I have a way to collect my thoughts without being otherwise distracted. I craft new ways to do things if I don't understand the way something is taught; in music theory, I made up my own method of transposition, in Spanish, I made up my own way of explaining preterite and imperfect. I suppose it's not the most effective way to learn information. It's easier to just learn things the first time they are taught, not a trial-and-error of various methods.
However, if I attempted to change the way I think, I would lose hold of my identity. There's a tendency to make it seem like our actions define our character, but I think what truly defines us is the way we think. I think academy really gives us the chance to explore what that means for us as individuals. We have the opportunity to learn in different ways and utilize every part of our brain as we continue to grow and enrich our experience. But this requires an incredible amount of effort, dedication, and focus.
So how hard to I actually have to try this quarter?
Very hard.
Very. Very. Hard.
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ReplyDeleteAnna, you're (kinda) synesthesic????? That is one of the coolest things ever! I'm fascinated by the concept of synesthesia and how someone can relate colors, textures, pitches, feelings or anything with words or other things. I think that synesthesia provides someone with a greater depth of perspective and knowledge of a subject because a synthesics make strange yet still logical connections between seemingly unrelated things. Unfortunately, schools don't really cater to different learning approaches and instead create a big, generic school map that's meant to work for the entire country. The government still treats school as an industry more than anything else and you are original, putting you outside of the typical, boring factory mold. Your method of unique learning might be a hassle now, but I think it'll be to your benefit in the future. Because you need to think outside of the box for you to understand something, you create a "brain space" so to speak of unlimited thought and ideas. At your disposal is every unconventional thought and process that the likes of Steve Jobs wish they could have capitalized upon. What've you were the person that designed a private or public school chain system that worked for people like you? You have an awesome talent, so keep nurturing your cool way of thinking!
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