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Danielle Cadena

Dr. Preston

AP English Literature & Composition

 5 June 2015

La Fin

                “I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” This quote is the best way to exemplify how the past four years of my high school as education. High school can be described as a time where kids do menial tasks for points in a system that assumes comprehension and understanding are the same thing. There’s a wall that separates learning and schooling and for years I’ve just been another brick in the wall. I’ve been stuck in a system that has refused to change so I kept my mouth shut about how much I hated school and accumulated point after point to showcase myself as an A student that was attractive to universities. I longed for a place that was not confined by a wall, a place in which I could be myself and learn. Little did I know that the well-rounded student I had strived to become would not be the hardest part of the application?

                The impending personal statements were by far the hardest. What would I right about and would it be good enough? The first few months of senior year are a blur. It was consumed of applications, vulnerability, schoolwork, and stress. So, for the first few months in this class I behaved as I would in any class by completing the daily ins and outs. Honestly I didn’t expect

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anything new and different from the class until Dr. Preston had understood our stress and as a class we devoted Wednesdays for college and cake. I think in the beginning the trust that we were given all of us were confused because we hadn’t experienced this before. For the first time choice was put in our hands. While we didn’t choose to read Hamlet, we chose to read it as a class which helped immensely. I loved learning about how so very human all of Shakespeare’s writing is. There’s a reason that his writings are timeless and it’s because everyone can connect to the characters in one way or another. He appeals to humanity and connects everyone. I remember as a freshman I had no idea of the vulgarity of Shakespeare and I think it’s funny that now as a senior I finally understand his hilarious puns.

When I was first introduced to the masterpiece I was confused because I had no idea what I was passionate about until I had started writing my personal statements. I found that I have many passions; some in science (even Physics), some in equality, and yet still others in learning about people. I’ve always wondered why there’s much more hate in the world than there is love. So I set my masterpiece sights on learning from others and showing empathy. Throughout the masterpiece presentations I’ve seen the common thing of passion and stories. Listening to someone talk about what they’re passionate about is one of the most infectious conversations you could have with someone. And through my masterpiece I explored those people and passions. When I first talked to Marcel I would have never guessed that he was passionate about philosophy and non-empirical science. Since interviewing him for my masterpiece I find those

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subjects absolutely fascinating and I want to learn more. Hikaru’s love for technology is going to lead him to amazing places in the future. I can’t wait to see what he’ll come up with. he same

goes for Bailey and her art. She creates wonderful pieces and has a story worth telling in how she got to where she is today. Listening to Alec talk about psychedelics is fascinating because he’s so knowledgeable on the subject and I can tell that he is really into all aspects of it, not just the science. Laike is an incredible artist and I love how her work portrays her story. The unifying theme I saw throughout the masterpieces was that when people share their story and something they’re passionate about, they shine and it allows others to see a different side of them.

In the beginning, we chose “how to hack our education” but as the year has come to a close I have found that while myself and others have chosen to take part in this experience, some have misused the trust they’ve been given. Yet despite our ups and downs in the class, it was a good year.