Growing up experiencing three drastically different school systems was an interesting experience, to say the least. I got several different educations, not just in an academic sense either, I believe each school system taught me something about life and myself (I’ll mostly be speaking on the latter). I also want to mention I did not switch schools at any point because I was a troubled kid or anything bad, it was just time for a change.
1. Home-school
I was Home-schooled from kindergarten until fifth grade (2001~2009) along with my older brother and my older sister. This system had its perks, like finishing work early then being able to do pretty much anything we wanted afterward. There was a lot of freedom in this system but it was a fairly secluded one for me, despite attending a homeschool center once a week for a few years. Home-schooling taught me that I needed more variety of human interaction, I needed to learn in a richer human environment. I am a very extroverted person and I wanted to be somewhere I could better cultivate my personality in that area. Homeschooling gave me the groundwork for succeeding in the following education systems and an all-around great platform to move forward.
2. Charter Schooling
This was like dipping my toes in the water before true public school (the wild blue yonder). I was at this school from sixth to ninth grade (2009~2013). I was able to accel despite the rigors of a more structured schooling program, I maintained about a 3.8 GPA and created good relationships with my teachers. Additionally, I found an awesome group of friends to hang around with (easy to do in a class of 18-22 people). I learned how to cooperate with my peers here and complete projects to the standards set by my teachers. This is also where I learned that school was less about creating valuable experiences and more about putting everyone into the same mold.
After a few years at the charter school, I discovered that it was more geared towards the troubled kids or those that failed out of public schools. This charter school was held to a looser standard than the local high schools. I needed somewhere with more creative options and even more people. As soon as my brother graduated I asked my parents if I could attend the local public high school. Thankfully they said yes.
3. High School (The Final Frontier)
Okay, public school is definitely not the final frontier, but it was the last government-required program I had to go through before graduating. I was in public school from tenth grade to twelfth grade (2013~2016). This was the biggest step for me in my education. I felt like I was throwing myself into the ocean of youth and angst (I was). The first thing I noticed is that everyone really wasn’t looking to break out of the parameters and atmosphere of the school. My past experiences drove me to look at things differently, and I was put off initially to see how much people had conformed to the one certain mindset. This is where I had the most fun, I was friends with a lot of people who were in vastly different cliques and just had a good time.
Even though this schooling method was the most difficult, it was all worth it, to see the interworkings of a system that processes most of the youth today was quite incredible. Part of me wishes I was able to attend this school for all four years of high school because I think I could have done more if I started there the same way/time as everyone else.
Overall, I wouldn’t trade my education experiences for the world and I take a lot of pride in the diversity I was able to see in each system. I feel like having been through both conventional and unconventional school systems that I’ve gained different insights and perspective that most people do not have.