Education Journey

Jenna Krueger
ENG 111
Professor Williams
8 October 2023
The Challenges of Growing Up
“Life is so simple when you’re young, though, of course, that’s not what it feels like to
the young”(Cornelia Funke). When I was younger, school was never a major worry of mine. I
was always excited to go see my friends and learn. My relationship with school now is very
different than how it used to be. I have recently started struggling with school more than I used to
and it has been very hard for me since I used to breeze through school. I have had to overcome
obstacles throughout my education journey such as struggling to find ways to study that help me
personally, finding a work-life balance, high expectations from my parents starting at a young
age, and my seventh to eighth-grade year during the COVID pandemic. I struggle with these
hardships to this day but I am working on getting better so in the future I can be successful.
In particular, being gifted as a child has made the biggest impact on my education
journey. Through the entirety of elementary school, I was able to get As on my tests and
classwork without studying or putting too much effort into anything. I remember having spelling
tests: my friends would spend the week prior studying, while I glanced at the list the morning of
and got a 100. I felt smart and confident in all my classes. When I got into middle school I
started to notice a change in the effort required by my teachers. The work got harder and I found
myself in distress. I still had expectations to maintain but did not know how to meet them
anymore. Studying was not a skill I used or thought I needed until then. While I’ve been able to
get by, I realize I should not continue these habits.

Furthermore, my family has also affected my relationship with learning and school. Since
I had always gotten close-to-perfect grades in all of my classes, my parents had very high
expectations of me. They had trouble understanding my new best would not have the same
results as before. It is very frustrating doing the best you can and people not being pleased. I felt
very discouraged. I also have an older sister who is very smart and has been her whole life.
Unfortunately, I have felt compared to her sometimes. She is the type of person that gets their
work done right when it is assigned even if it is not due for another month. Although I know I
shouldn’t compare myself to her, I feel my parents wish I put as much effort in. My parents have
always told me “As long as you are trying your best we are happy,” but it often does not feel like
they mean it. The academic pressure from my family added a lot of stress that I had already put
upon myself. This negatively affected my outlook on school further.
In addition, balancing school and life outside of school was always a struggle for me. I
have danced since I was three years old which led me to have a busy schedule, especially when I
started doing it competitively. At my old studio, I used to dance around four out of five
weekdays from one to four hours depending on what classes I had. My old dance teacher also
had a policy for the competitive team: you were required to keep As and Bs on your report card
to stay on the dance team. Although she encouraged prioritizing school over dance, I still found
myself procrastinating on my homework. My practices ended pretty late so I was almost always
too tired to do it. Now, I am at a new studio where I thankfully only dance for approximately six
hours a week, split into two days. However, on the days I do not have dance, I have work straight
after school which contributes to me being unable to get my work turned in on time. Between
dance, getting a job, and schoolwork load increasing, my time management has only gotten
worse.
Lastly, an event that has affected the way I learn now is COVID. It was during my last
few years of middle school when everything was moved completely online. I continued to not
have motivation without someone to keep me on track. I did not try as hard on my work since we
weren’t in person and I did not take school seriously over the computer. COVID made it very
difficult to communicate with teachers about questions and assignments. There were also many
more distractions in the comfort of my home than there are normally at school. It was very easy
to get sidetracked while on call/in class so I did not retain as much information as I would have if
we were in a real classroom. It was a lot easier to be on my phone and I worked in my bedroom
because I did not have a separate dedicated space. This made it so that going back in person felt
unnatural and challenging.
Ultimately, these events have played a major role in my education journey and why my
relationship with school is the way it is. From writing this paper, I learned there is a lot that has
shaped me to be the person I am now. I am more aware of my strengths and weaknesses when it
comes to my education. I am still finding my way around juggling life, school, and getting my
work done on time. Procrastination is one of my biggest enemies and although I will always
struggle with it on some level, in the future I strongly believe I will get better. Finding ways to
keep myself engaged at school and at home when I need to complete homework is something I
can also improve. This paper helped me reflect on my past self and what I can do presently to
affect my future in positive ways.

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Jenna Krueger

The Challenges of Growing Up

get by, I realize I should not continue these habits.

upon myself. This negatively affected my outlook on school further.

unnatural and challenging.

affect my future in positive ways.

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