Gina

The Moment I Knew I Would Succeed in Life

There is always that teacher in high school that you have a really strong connection with.  Maybe you can relate to them on a personal level or maybe they have changed the way you look at learning and education.  For me, I had a connection with a teacher but I cannot say that it was what most teacher- student relationships look like.  It did not look so good in the beginning but I can honestly say today that he brought things out of me that I never knew I had.  

 My Spanish teacher my junior year of high school happened to also be my volleyball coach.  My coach before him was like my ‘school mom’ so when she got promoted and a new coach had to step in, I was not very happy about it.   My school was tiny, only 600 students in six grades so I was bound to run into the same people every day.  There was no way to avoid him.  I saw him for about an hour a day in my Spanish class, then while working with the athletic director for my internship he always popped his head in to say hello or talk about the upcoming game.  And of course even after the exhausting school day had ended, I saw my coach at practice for a grueling three hours.  In each of these interactions he played a slightly different role which made our relationship very complicated.  In the classroom I participated when I could but for most of the time I worked hard and remained as an average student in his class.  Everyone knew he was my coach so if a silence came over the room there was no doubt that he would call on me.  Then while working as an intern for the athletic director, my coach would come in and chat like a friend.  We would talk about the school drama and talk plays for the game that night.  Finally, while being on the volleyball court he was a whole different person.  Pushing us and critiquing us, and sometimes not in the most polite way needed for a bunch of high school girls.  He was there to see me succeed, and to fail, to cry and to celebrate.  Throughout all of these ups and downs my coach and I had the reputation of never being on the same page.  Drills he loved were the same ones I hated, the days I was doing well would be the days he decided to be extra picky on form or speed.   We would fight over small things during practice and the eye rolling was mutual: our sassy attitudes and stubborn personalities tended to collide. Even with these disputes we always maintained some sort of respect for each other.  This line was a thin one between student- teacher, friend, even sometime like brother- sister since he was only nine years older than me.  The joking and teasing had never been a problem, until one day.

It was a normal day yet, the only difference was that the day before my team had a pretty intense practice.  Lots of running and conditioning as punishment for our poor playing.  This made class the next day a little awkward since I still hated him for the ten court sprints the night before.  Anyway, he was asking the class questions in Spanish that had to do with the lesson that we were learning.  The question was, “Who is the nicest person you know?”  Being the great friend that she was my friend Madeleine said in Spanish that I was the nicest person that she knew.  I gleamed with pride, so touched that someone had said that about me with no prior conversation or some kind of inside joke.  That heartfelt moment ended quickly when my coach made a comment that caught me off guard in front of the whole class.  The joke questioned my character and implied that I was not nice and that I complained a lot.  He laughed after making the comment, but the feeling in the classroom completely changed. 

My smile instantly dropped into shock.  I could feel the tension in the room as everyone turned to me intending to hear a response.  I said nothing.  I just looked right at him.  I could feel my heartbeat become heavy.  The class continued yet all I could think about was his comment.  Why would he say that in front of everyone?  It would have been more appropriate to make that joke at practice when all us girls were begging to get out of running the sprints or to stop doing pushups, but here?  I kept looking to my group members to see if they understood it the way I did.  I could tell from their faces that they agreed with me.  Sitting through that class was torture.  I was devising a plan of what I would say to him.  Usually I am not a person to take things personally or to become involved in a confrontation but this was different.  I could not pretend that nothing had happened.  Questioning my character was something that insulted me more than anything else could.  I waited until the bell rang and for all the other students to leave before I spoke to him.

The classroom was now empty.  I packed my things, ready to make a quick exit if it did not go well.  I walked up, not my coach, the person who sees me falling on the court and leading a team to victories, but to my teacher who is responsible for teaching me a second language and for instilling a light in me that will make me want to learn. I said, “I just want to talk about that comment that you made in class.”  He looked back at me with confusion.  He didn’t say anything.  I told him that he had crossed a line with me and that I had felt disrespected.  That I wanted to be treated like every other student while I was in his classroom.  I made the point that my character was not to be questioned and that he should watch the words that he was using as they conveyed an undesirable message.  I acknowledged the fact that we always tease each other so he may not have known that I would take it seriously, but I did.  While the words were coming out of my mouth, tears were also streaming down my face.  I did not know why I was crying but this visible response made him take me even more seriously.  He quickly apologized and was almost speechless searching for the right words to say. I heard the second bell ring, warning me that the next period was starting.  We stood there for a moment, his eyes wide open looking straight at me, and my blushed face and wet eyes looking down at the floor ready to get out of this awkward situation.  I told him that I had to go and I rushed off to my next class.

This confrontation was all I could think about for the rest of the school day.  I knew that I would have to face him at practice in a few hours.  Later that same day I did receive an email.  I assume that after regaining his composure and thoughts he knew he would have more to say to me.  Even though that confrontation was hard to do, I knew that from then on that I would be okay in life.  No one would be able to disrespect me or to walk over me.  I showed a level of maturity that I had never put to use before.  If I could confront those kind of situations in the professional manner that I had, I could live a life without misrepresented confrontations.  If I could have confidence in my feelings and beliefs like I was that day, I will succeed in staying true to myself.  That moment made me realize that if I could embody the strengths and emotions that I knew I had than I can accomplish anything. 

That conversation with him also changed our relationship.  We suddenly understood each other.  He know where our line of friendship and teacher was.  The respect that we held for each other was improved.  The eye rolling and arguing went away and in came an indescribable flow.  Because we knew my feelings better, he was able to coach and even teach me better.  Not many teachers are able to fully understand their students like he was able to understand me. Yes, our relationship was not like most student- teacher relationships.  Sometimes I think back to how I am grateful for what he did there.  If he did not make that comment would I have known what I know now; that I am a strong girl who is confident in all of my abilities and is ready to face the world and succeed.      

A Liberal Arts Education Is a Preparation for Life

            When at a restaurant the best advice is to eat a little bit of everything.  No one rejects that notion.  Why not have a small number of many dishes instead of being attached to one oversized portion?  And why do people not use this same advice when thinking about a college education?  Is it better for college students to be working through one oversized subject or should they go for the tasting menu, exploring the humanities in a broad-based liberal arts education? As President of Harvard University, Drew Faust, stated in her commencement address at West Point Military Academy, the leadership skills gained from the addition of humanities gives us, “ ‘the ability to analyze, communicate, and write’ Faust said” (Powell).  Faust and I definitely share a common belief in that.  I would not have chosen a liberal arts education myself if I did not have faith in fact that this school would make me an overall better person.  The skills cultivated from a liberal arts education are most important in becoming successful citizens of society.

            First of all, what are ‘liberal arts’?  This term is rooted in the ideas of the Enlightenment and can be traced back to the philosophical thinker, Socrates.  The initial idea was that the liberal arts would emphasize, “…freeing the mind from traditional beliefs accepted uncritically” (Hoeckley 1).   As defined by Christian Hoeckley from the Institution for the Liberal Arts at Westmont, “A liberal arts education is a broad education providing a student with a wide range of information and broadly transferable intellectual skills” (Hoeckley 1).  The liberal arts higher education system has evolved since the Enlightenment but it can similarly be described as, “encompassing virtually all nonprofessional higher learning, from the natural and social sciences to the humanities and the performing arts” (Scheuer).  Personally, I just define the liberal arts as more than just core classes.  This kind of educational system includes classes that are required but may not be focusing directly on a certain major.  The question being debated is how this kind of curriculum will give students the help they need to obtain a job after graduation.  If they are not learning exactly what they will need in their career field, is it paying off in the end?  One of the key differences of the study of the liberal arts is a wide variety of required courses.  The classes are spread out among many areas of study.

            By only studying one subject, there are things that will be left out.  Studying Physics does not use the decision making skills of History.  Studying Business does not incorporate the writing skills of English.  If a college student is forced into one set curriculum, they will not be using every part of their brain.  Taking Perspectives on China freshman year made me think and problem solve in ways that I have never done in my business classes.  As described in an article on the Wheaton College website, “the brain needs to be drilled in different techniques” and by doing this, our brains become a, “more useful tool for critical thinking and analysis” (Soholt).  These brain ‘workouts’ will benefit the student and ultimately give them the ability to connect the dots from concepts and ideas between different subjects.  Never before would I have belived that the topic of Greek religion would end up coming up in my statistics class this semester.  To me, that makes all of these subjects actually mean something to me.  It becomes more valuable information than I thought I would forget after the exam. Not only does a variety of frameworks aid the learning and understanding of information in college but it will also produce better citizens in society.  News anchors speak about topics from global warming to terrorism and from the stock market to education.  Unless you have knowledge in an assortment of areas, will you be able to make correct assumptions and understandings of what is happening in our world today?  The answer is no.  With a background in philosophy, history, literature, and religion a person will be able to confidently speak about the state of the world today.  If chemistry is the only thing learned in college, will it be useful when you are an adult?  The point being made is that learning a variety of subjects is beneficial to the mind and can create broader thinkers in the future society.  It will provide skills that are transferable in areas in education and everyday life.  

Another area being strengthened by a liberal arts education is reading and writing.  These skills are essential in any desired field and have to be strengthened throughout college. Reading and writing skills also vary by subject, and being exposed to different subjects, as the liberal arts do, these abilities are reinforced.  When reading history from primary sources, one must be able to use the terms and lessons that they have already learned to then unpack the meaning from an ancient or complicated source.  When reading poetry the student has to be able to think more freely and creatively to understand an encrypted lesson.  This same concept is applied to writing as well.  When writing a lab report one has to be able to simply describe what is being seen under a microscope or how to conduct and experiment again.  The language and detail in this kind of writing assignment is extremely different than an essay for example.   For a literature course, writing needs to have a deeper meaning.  An essay in English must contain a thesis and points to back this up while also using constantly changing vocabulary.  As described on the Yale College webpage, “gaining the ability to think critically and independently and to write, reason, and communicate clearly” is a main attribute of a liberal arts education (Yale College).  I do not trust that universities who are focused on only one kind subject are setting their graduates up for success like a liberal arts school.  Who knows, I may end up completely switching my career field when I am 40.  Though it will be touch, I know that I will have the skills needed to pursue anything I put my mind to because I have essential literacy skills that other people may not.

With all of these points leading to the argument if a liberal arts education is beneficial to a student compared to a concentrated business or science school, why do people disagree?  As Caroline Bird wrote in her essay entitled College Is a Waste of Time and Money, “The big advantage of getting your college money in cash now is that you can invest it in something that has a higher return than a diploma” (221).  I disagree with her beliefs.  What is more valuable than education?  Bird is undermining the life skills being learned in college, but more specifically at a liberal arts college.  She is very upfront in the fact that she believes college is a placeholder between high school and the ‘real world’.  Her essay focuses on the price of education at a liberal arts institution being too high and the results not being valuable enough compared to the money being put into it.  Even though the private, broad- based colleges do cost more, the life resources being gained are much more important to a student’s future.  Bird writes, “A liberal-arts education is supposed to provide you with a value system, a standard, a set of ideas…” and think that is exactly what it does, even though she tries to point out that it does not (Bird 224).  How can someone say that an empathic awareness, a set of moral and right standards, and a collection of ideas and concepts that spread across all disciplines, are less valuable than a specific degree in biology or finance?  It is apparent to me that she did not attend such an amazing school such as Stonehill College.  It is a fact that students who go to these kinds of institutions do get jobs. Actually, “…employers readily identify the creative, communicative and problem-solving acumen … the most valuable attributes of new hires” (McNutt).  These attributes are most common in liberal arts majors.  It may take longer and the tuition may be higher but all of these factors do not take away from its exceptional significance.   

The student who studies at a liberal arts institution will be lead to a path of communal engagement. “The liberal arts have traditionally been defended as instrumental to two key elements of democracy: critical thinking and citizenship” (Scheuer).  The broad based education system is not based solely on professional or entrepreneurial skills, yet it does support them.  This kind of system will first of all encourage the traditional dimension of citizenship, voting, volunteering, and advocating which help towards greater participation in society.  The liberal arts is also pinpointed to encouraging economic citizenship, “which means being a productive member of a community: doing something useful for oneself and for others” (Scheuer).  Finally, as they would have studied in college, these students will grow into adults and specifically parents that will also instill cultural knowledge into their children.  This ongoing effect of worldly, knowledgeable, and understanding people will bring society to a better level.  All of these skills come from students who study the liberal arts because they encounter the ideas of morality, justice, and social responsibility in their everyday classes.  I am confident that all of the liberal art school students before me, especially those from Stonehill, will be large contributors to the world.  We will be the ones cleaning up the local areas, because we know the effect that littering as on our planet.  We will be the ones protesting a bill that will send jobs overseas because we want to be there for the people in our towns and communities.  Students who study a significant amount in things more important than accounting and organic chemistry will be able to change the world.  These people make the best citizens of society. 

The goal of an education in general is to grow as a person.  Students should want to come out of the four or five years in college as more aware and diverse people than when they went in.  After graduation a student should then become a better citizen of the society in which they contribute to.  By taking the chance to enroll at a liberal arts institution, take it. Explore the Chinese culture, the Jewish belief system, the philosophy of death, the art of the essay, and the Italian language.  Do not just be a business student, be a well-rounded person.  These students will be getting much more than educated at college.  Students who chose to study the liberal arts will be a greater contribution to society in too many ways to even count.  Watch out world, because we are coming to take over, to respond in crisis, to grow communities, to educate our children, and to make an everlasting legacy of the importance of a liberal arts education.

                                                             Works Cited

"A Liberal Arts Education." Yale College Undergraduate Admissions. Yale College. Web. 19 Apr. 2016. <http://admissions.yale.edu/liberal-arts-education>.

Bird, Caroline. “College Is A Waste Of Time And Money.” The Norton Reader. 13^th ed. Ed. Linda H. Peterson. New York and London: Norton, 2012. 217-225. Print.

Hoeckley, Christian W. “Liberal Arts Traditions and Christian Higher Education:  A Brief Guide.”  Westmont.edu. Institution for the Liberal Arts at Westmont, n.d.  Web. 12 April 2016.

McNutt, Mark I. "There Is Value in Liberal Arts Education, Employers Say." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 22 Sept. 2014. Web. 19 Apr. 2016. <http://www.usnews.com/news/college-of-tomorrow/articles/2014/09/22/there-is-value-in-liberal-arts-education-employers-say>.

Powell, Alvin. "To Speak, and Move Others to Act." Harvard Gazette. 24 Mar. 2016. Web. 12 Apr. 2016. <http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2016/03/to-speak-and-move-others-to-act/>.

Scheuer, Jeffrey. “Critical Thinking and the Liberal Arts.” Academe 101.6 (2015): 35-39.   Academic Search Complete. Web. 14 April. 2016.

Soholt, Alex. "#MyWheaton." 6 Benefits of Liberal Arts Education. Wheaton College, 10 Oct. 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2016. <http://www.wheaton.edu/Student-Life/My-Wheaton/2013/10/6-Benefits-of-Liberal-Arts-Education>.