My Educational Autobiography

Briefly looking back at my educational background, I think of happy moments. I loved elementary school. I excelled in my school work, I had great teachers, I had many friends, and was very active. After taking the time to sit back and reflect on reality, I am able to remember moments that shaped me as a person. Moments in life that even though at the tie I was unaware, we were life-changing. Many of these things were moments that i did not understand fully at the time, but do now after I have grown-up and gained more knowledge. Thinking about these things makes me wish for that sense of naive, carefree nature that I once possessed.

My first memory of school was my second year in pre-school. I lived in a very small town in central Illinois where my mo had grown up. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend two years of preschool so that I could get all of the education possible. Being the first born, I was privileged to many of the things that my two younger brothers missed out on. My mom was a stay at home mom and was able to work with me constantly, and with that help, I was able to read quite a bit by the age of 3. I was very bright for my age and talkative (as I have seen in home videos!), but once I started preschool, I no longer had the same attitude. I was very shy and did not make friends well. The teachers were very concerned about this and my mom was confused because I was completely different at home than what was happening at school.

Looking back at this situation, I see that I was very used to being the only child at home, and with that came a lot of attention When I had to share that, it confused me and I did not know how to handle it. I remember a conversation with my mom and my teacher saying that if I did not learn how to work with other children, I would not succeed in school. Even at such a young age, I remember hat scaring me and I realized that I needed to do better because I wanted to do well. From that moment on I haven't stopped talking!

The summer before I started 3rd grade, my family decided to move us from our small town in Illinois, to the Arizona heat. Of course I was very upset, but excited about our new adventures. I went from a school with about 1oo students to a school with over 1000. It was very overwhelming. But, it was very easy to make new friends since there was so many to choose from. Meeting these new friends was the first time that I felt "different".

I had never thought of my religion as being out of the normal, or that having to do with friendships or anything that really pertained to me. I was raised Methodist, a form of Christianity. My family went to church some Sundays, but it did not control my life. When I came to Arizona, I found out that all of my friends belonged to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, better known as Mormon. I did not think much of it at first, and even went to church activities with some friends that invited me. I never thought of this as much of a problem or difference. They were my friends and that is what mattered. It was not until a day when one of my friends brought the Book of Mormon to school for me and told me to look through it and I would want to convert. I took it home with me and showed my mom. I did not understand why she was so upset over this She even went in and talked to my principal about the whole issue. As a 10 year old, I was mortified. My friends go in trouble for bringing it to school and we had to have a conference and talk about why it was wrong to bring religion into a public school.

From that day on, I was viewed differently by those friends that I had become so close to. I was no longer invited to see them because I had a different belief than they did. This was an on-going problem that I faced every day at school starting that day in the Principal's office until I graduated high school. I lived in a community where almost everyone was Mormon. My high school was over 75% that religion and even had a seminary building on campus. Being part of the music program at school, I was faced with this even more. I was one of the very few that were not Mormon. People would not be m friend or stereotype me because I was not their religion This became much more apparent as I got older and started to notice the reasons why I was treated this way. I knew that I was not a bad person and believed in God, but was still treated differently.

My family life directly affected me as a person. At the time I was extremely angry and upset, but now know that I have learned and grown from what has happened. When I first moved to Arizona, my parents were very wealthy. We lived in a gated community with a nice house and anything and everything that we could ask for. We were involved in community events and activities. I know that this made my mom very happy because she was a stay at home mom and there was only so much that she could do without getting bored. After a few years of living here, my family went through some financial problems. These problems directly affected me and still do to this day. More often than not, we had our utilities turned off. We even had to move to a new house. People talk and this got out. We no longer had the same circle of friends or were included in things. I could not participate in certain activities at school because my parents could not afford it. I was embarrassed, ashamed, and upset. Peers at school, and even teachers viewed me differently and talked down to me because of this.

The middle of my junior year, m parents got a divorce. I lived with my mom and had two younger brothers. This closed a door on problems, and opened up doors for others. I now had a single mom who had not worked in 17 years doing everything that she could to stay on her feet. Life was hard. I had to get a job to help out and quit programs at school because I did not have the time or money to participate in. It was very hard for me to do all of those things and stay positive and to continue doing well in school. Luckily, by this time, I had developed friendships with amazing people. They were my support through this rough time in my life and helped me deal with things.

I made it. I survived high school. I had applied to Arizona State University and had been accepted. I was so excited to start my life for myself and move on to bigger and better things. Sophomore year i hit a bump in my road to success, actually, more like a huge mountain. This is something that will stay with me for the rest of my life and has shaped who I am today and how I view life. My mom was diagnosed with cancer. She passed away a year after. My entire life was a whirlwind of emotion. I tried going to school but could not stay focused. I failed out of all of my classes that year. I had to work full time and move out on my own. I now had different priorities, instead of going to a frat party with friends, I had to work all weekend so I could pay my bills.

Instead of letting that get the best of me and failing at life, I have decided to grow from this. I would not be the person I am today without these life experiences. I believe that it gives me more wisdom than the average 23 year old possesses. I not only know book smart things, but also know about life.

I am a white female living in suburban Arizona with no physical or mental abnormalities, but yet, I am a minority. I have been a minority for the majority of my educational experience. Whether it was a religious minority, financially, or family set up. I strongly believe that this affected me as a student. I think that I would be a very different person today if these things had not happened to me. Good or bad I am not sure, but definitely different Reminiscing about my childhood, I remember taking some lighter situations a lot more dramatically, and also not realizing how bad some other situations were. I took things for granted. I let a lot of life slip through my fingers because I was angry or let my struggles affect me. I am now attending my 5th year of college because of the year that I took off and then my change of major. It has taken me a long time to come to terms with the fact that I am different than most people.

As a future educator, I will use my personal experiences to help get me through. I will use my strength and help of my friends to help me get through the first rough few years of teaching and getting accommodated to it. If I have a problem with a student, I know that I should not judge. Every child has a family, a background, a culture. I will not get that full story by just seeing that one side of them at school. I know what things to look for and to always be open to talking and listening to them and hope that I can be there for them when I can be. I want to be a role model. I have suffered as a minority in many ways and have come out strong. I want my students to see that and know that they can survive too.

I am open to learning new things and cannot wait to learn from my students. They will all bring something different and unique to the classroom. I hope that my experiences will help me be the best teacher that I can be. I want my students to look back and think happy thoughts, to say that they had a great teacher, good friends, and most importantly, had fun learning.