Fall

MY LALA MY LIFE
Alondra Diosdado
Mr. Steed
English 12
May 20, 2016

08

A schools purpose is to teach children and young adults english and math so they
can survive in a drastically changing technological world. While this is the primary
purpose of schools, they also go beyond that mission to impact and change pupils on an
even more personal level. It might be common for a school to impact a student mentally,
but there are different types of ways to do that.
Miss Alex, a teacher at Beyond Academics Inc., stated, Children see the world
differently than adults do and I know their ideas are worth listening to, Ms. Kyria from
the same school said, Kids feel a great sense of empowerment when they can
confidently express their opinions, These two quotes describe both the mental and
emotional way schools impact students beyond academics. From personal experience, the
point of school is to learn something new and useful. Then, we go home and practice it to
prove the next day we understand the material. It is as simple as it sounds. Now these
quotes mean when students are allowed to be heard, something changes. Students begin
to feel confident and their self-esteem grows. Like Miss Alex and Ms. Kyria stated,
students need to be able to express themselves, be it about a math problem or a family
problem. Children see the world a little differently than adults do What Miss Alex
means is when people are between the age of 4 - 17, most of them are problem free and
all they need to focus on is passing elementary, middle, and high school. When someone
does not have issues such as paying bills, paying rent, paying for a car, paying for
groceries, or any number of other concerns blinding them, they tend to see things a little
differently. Meaning, students see problems different from adults and may see a side to
situations that adults do not see.

Additionally, young adults, who are part of single-parent household, find it

difficult to concentrate at school. As a member of a single-parent household, I can attest
that family is a big distraction while at school. I can not go a day without thinking about
how we are going to pay our rent for the next month and I tend to not focus on what I am
supposed to be doing at that moment. According to Nicholas Zill from FamilyStudies.org, teens from a single-parent families show more symptoms of anxiety and
depressionas well as more distractible and impulsive behavior, School has impacted
me in relation to this because there have been teachers and staff willing to help me and
lend me their attention while I talk about my problems. They have given me priceless
advice to help me understand things a little more clearly. I have grown wiser due to their
advice and my hardships and that is how I am impacted.
In addition, statistics from stageoflife.com have shown how positive teachers have
impacted students and much more. Eighty-nine point five percent of students report
enjoying school and 98.6% of students report that a teacher has positively impacted them.
Positive non-academic impact is crucial in the lives of many students. I know a staff
member who was always willing to hear what I had to say and willing to give me advice.
I feel comfort knowing there is someone at school I can run to when I have a problem or I
am feeling upset.
Ninety-five percent of teens have felt inferior at some point in their lives. This
means schools should be able to demonstrate self-appreciation to the students. Meaning
when a student is, for example, neglected at their house and feel they are not worth
anything, schools should post posters My principal, Cynthia Cuprill, has taught me by the
way she loves herself and proves it by dressing nice and doing her hair and talking to us

about self-love. It impacts me because I want to follow in her footsteps and make sure I
love myself just as much as my principal loves herself.
Motivation is key. The reasons a student may be unmotivated according to
cmu.edu include: individual students may suffer from physical, mental, or other
personal problems that affect motivation. Motivation is something that energizes,
directs and sustains behavior, it gets students moving, points them in a particular
direction and keeps them going, (Frederick Blumenfeld, & Paris, 2004, Maerr & Meyer,
2004; Reeve, 2006). When I am intensely motivated in school, I feel happy, I feel
hopeful.
When I move on to college, which is the next phase of my life, I can easily say
that school has impacted me by directing me in the path to success by motivating me.
Sometimes all I ever need from school is motivation. That is the greatest impact a school
can have on me.
No one really needs anybody to hold their hands and show them how life is done. But
when someone asks for help and the other person points them in the direction they need
to go, everyone is satisfied. From pre-kindergarten to 12 grade, all a student wants to
th

know is where to go and how to get there. The schools should point their fingers in the
directions the students should go and when the student achieves success, they will be
impacted by the hard work and dedication, both they, the teachers, and the staff put into
their future. Whether it be academically, mentally, emotionally, schools do not have a
limit as to how they can impact students.There is no such thing as a broken family,
(C. Joybell). Fifty-four percent of children in kindergarten have anxiety and depressed
problems because their parents are divorced (Family Studies). When a child comes from

a troubled environment into a freely confident environment (school), they learn that they
can be equally confident and happy instead of just feeling troubled at their house. From
personal experience, school is my way out and I do not have to think about how
dysfunctional my home is. When it come to 3:30 in the afternoon and it is time to go
home, I do not want to go. I would rather stay at school. School gives me more comfort
than my home. That is not something that is academically required. That is extra and it
impacts.

WORKS CITED
www.beyondacademicsinc.com/#!blank/az9nl Faculty and Staf
www.weareteachers.com/blogs/post/2015/06/29/light-a-fire!-10unconventional-ways-to-motivate-students
www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/motivating-the-unmotivated-student/
www.goodtherapy.org/school-counseling.html
www.stageoflife.com/StageHighSchool/OtherSources/Statistics_on_High
_School_students_and_teenagers.aspx
www.family-studies.org/how-family-transitions-afect-studentsachievements/