Hw 40- The People Make The Person

Talking about school doesn't seem to be interesting to alot of current teens because we don't really have anything to look back on. I believe that when talking about school with older people you strike them back to the 'ol glory days' and how they used to chase the pretty girls or how they had the times of their lives. But then you get the sour adults who tell you about how the starting quarterback gave them daily swirlys.

Which begs the question...What makes school fun? or not fun?

I got this idea by from watching movie to be honest. One movie in particular The Wood which is basically about a bunch of guys that are looking back the 'glory days' and how they may or may not have let the loves of their lives slip away.

My first interviewer...Lets call him Thomas.

Q: What was your favorite time of the school day?
A: The morning...No wait the late afternoon.
Q: Why?
A: (forced laugh) One being 16 had alot to do with it. I mean who likes to be cooped up for hours shuffling from room to room. I mean I also liked lunch too. But its embarrassing to say that I liked getting out of school so that I could see my girlfriend.
Q/R: Aw, that's sweet. So would you say that knowing that you would see her made school fun?
A: Not really, I had to wait until after school to see her so in that context school just seemed like something that had to be done in order to so what I really wanted to do.

My second interviewer...Lets call her Suzie.

Q: What's the most important thing that you remember about school?
A: I don't know. (laughs) It was so long ago girl!
Q: Well would you say it was classes or friends or relationships...?
A: Work I guess, I was very studious. I liked to get my assignments in on time. I liked making sure that everything was done when it had to be done. I remember having one close friend but she moved away in my junior year.
Q: If you had to use one word to describe school what would it be?
A: Necessary.

My third interviewer...Lets call him Ben.

Q: If you had to describe school using one word what would it be?
A: Uh...hard?
Q: Why would you use that word?
A: Well its my first year of college and I think I went into it in a stereotypical mindset that once I reached this step in my life that I would be free to do what I wanted and that somehow it would be easier I guess.
Q: Huh, if you could eliminate school as a component in your life would you?
A: No...Yeah...(laughes) parts of it.
Q: Which parts?
A: The parts where I was failing or taking tests or fighting with my friends or single.

My fourth interviewer...Me.

Q: If I had to describe school in one word what would it be?
A: Weird.
Q: Why?
A: Because we all follow rules but we can't really place the origin of them, we wasted the youngest years of our lives in school to then waste more years of it paying for it and in some cases are not even promised a job. Mostly we are defined by numbers and our ability to remember.
Q: Would you say that school is fun?
A: Sometimes. I feel like school is made up of the people. Sometimes its fun to be around people and sometimes its not...

Part B

When I was interviewing Thomas and Suzie it got me to thinking about youth. I think that in someways when reminiscing about school we come down to one question: was it fun? I would say that we enjoy our time better when we are having fun and enjoying ourselves. Since we spend a good chunk of our lives in school being talked at, we tend to judge school as fun or not fun. Making a connection it seems like we remember school as fun relating to our popular status. As shallow as it sounds it seems to be true.

But why?

Is something only fun when you have people doing whatever you say and staring at you on a daily or hourly basis? Hmm... I think the things that make school fun is mostly the people and possibly the grades. I mean if you want to get somewhere in life (depending on the society that you are living in and what you have been taught to believe)

I think the people part of school is the most interesting part of school because no matter where you go in life you are going to meet all different kinds of people and alot of us can learn and pick up some people skills. We might not need trigonometry or chemistry as much as we need to know how to get to know people because you'll never know who you might meet or who might change your life. It seems to me that we all have this view of 'BOO School!!!' but somehow we all show up at 8:30 (sometimes later) to be talked at for hours without knowing why. And we have never thought to question it.