Eyeam A Brain

Paaaawdon me while I brag.....

As I've mentioned, I have chucked my hapless GED studies in favour of taking actual upgrading in order to be eligable to take an applied business technology course in the interest of applying for secretarial jobs. I was told I need only upgrade my math and English for this course. So, I have taken both tests, to find where I place, and how much upgrading I need. Today I found out where I stand.

No surprise, I need upgrading in math. But...

When I came into the evaluators office, she actually had tears in her eyes! Her first words to me were "Marian! You are Bright!" She went on to tell me that my English skills are at university level! For the test, I had to answer questions on writing and word comprehension - I am in the 99th percentile. I also had to write an essay, choosing one from a list of ten subjects. There were easy ones, like "describe your home town and how it compares to where you live now." I decided to stretch myself, and chose "should the welfare system be abolished or not". I suggested in my essay, that, although the system is riddled with loopholes for savvy career recipients to manipulate, it should remain in place. "We must not allow those without ambition to disuade us from extending a sympathetic hand to those in need."

The evaluator was so impressed with my essay, she told me she has been showing it to other teachers at the college! She has also decided to start a 'brag book', to show that dropouts are not necessarily stupid - our reasons for having done poorly in school might be linked to outside issues, and given a second chance, we can really do well. My essay is going to be the first entry into this 'brag book'.

And so - I need upgrading in math, which I can begin as soon as there is a seat available (hopefully sometime this summer). If I don't get in by fall, I will be able to start for sure, starting September 6. As for English, I need no upgrading at all! I am eligable, and then some! We discussed my schooling and career goals, and as I stood up to leave, she shook my hand and said "You've got it going on, don't waste it."

I'm so pleased with myself right now!

It just goes to show, when a person applies him/herself, and stops making excuses as to why they "can't", the seemingly impossible becomes attainable after all. I have a lot of bad memories from my school days, with ridiculously ineffectual teachers (one who actually threw my homework essay in the garbage because "it was too well written and therefore I must have cheated"), and stuff going on at home. But, I must take responsibility for my own decisions as well. After quitting school, I allowed myself to wander through my years, listening to bad advice from ambitionless people who wished for me to stay down below with them. I grew lazy (I admit it) from living life as a charity case, I allowed myself to believe that I was content with much less than I was capable of. I grew sluggish in my thinking because I didn't excersize my brain. Luckily, I continued to read voraciously, and to write. That is what kept my brain from turning completely to mush. I learned, despite my lesser inclinations.

I have always believed that school isn't for everyone. I still believe this. While I understand now, that education is vital for a person to be able to apply for something better than dishwashing, still I think there is something very lacking in the way the system is set up. Think of how many people are out there, unschooled, working menial jobs, held back because they dropped out of school for this reason or that one. It's very easy to declare these people to be unintelligent, or at least, less intelligent than those who completed their education. In some cases, this assumption would be correct, but every once in a while, the opposite is true. I have met quite a few "educated idiots". Now I have myself as an example of the opposite end of the spectrum.

I believe that schooling is a tool that should be used wisely. I believe that informal education, through life experience, reading, and observing, is an equally vital tool whose importance is often overlooked.

So there you have it - eyeam a brain!