I Let My Classmates Copy My Homework and Assignments Almost Every Year I Can Remember

I'm as awkward as they come, and I embrace that. I don't like to pretend that I'm not because that's simply not true and not me, and that's okay. Of course, my social life did suffer in it's behalf, and I always had trouble fitting in and making friends. My classmates didn't tend to talk to me unless they needed something, that being, homework and assignment answers.

Now, don't get me wrong. I didn't give into what they asked because I wanted to feel included and "part of the group" so to speak. I never considered that to be a prize that I wanted to achieve, and I've always been totally content in my own little bubble, and thus in my own little world. I gave into what they asked because in my view, it was a choice and we each got to decide how we wanted to survive the year.

I don't exactly benefit from giving out my work because I didn't cherish their acquaintance if you can call it that at all, and they didn't benefit from it either because if they don't learn the material, they're going to suffer during the exam, and they're the ones who chose to put themselves in that situation to begin with. That has nothing to do with me.

This decision began when I was toward the beginning of fourth or fifth grade. Our class had a substitute teacher around this time. Someone had asked me for the answers to a multiple choice assignment, I let them have what they asked for and I was caught and got very extremely disciplined on the spot.

This was left on the notes that the teacher got later on, and when she returned the following day she scolded the entire class for tolerating cheating and not having morals, but because she actually respected me as a student, she never ended up blowing up at me on a personal level. All she could manage to do was stare at me in quick glimpses when she looked across the class, when I know darn well other people wouldn't have been let off. In fact, I think there were people that weren't part of it whatsoever that took it harder than I did.

It sucks. I was very loved and cherished by my teachers these years, and it was good at first, but over time I noticed that because of their perspective on me that they formed when school hardly started, I could get away with almost anything I wanted, while the students that were known to "act out" would get in trouble even when they were displaying good behavior. I can't necessarily say I hated this because I was on the lucky side of it, --it saved me a ton of scoldings personally-- but I did recognize that it was unfair and totally messed up, and it got to the point that I would almost rather be yelled at. I grew tired of them tolerating behavior that they hated just because they considered me a good student, and not letting certain ones hear the end of it just because they don't know how to teach a lesson properly, weren't prepared well enough and needed to take up time.

Favoring a student over another within the classroom is a disgraceful thing. I've seen with my own eyes that when a person is criticized or overdone with discipline it's embarrassing and it can stick to a person's mind for the rest of the day, so much so that they can't focus on anything else. Not only has that teacher ruined that class for them, but pretty much every other subject that comes afterward, depending on the person and if it's for a scenario that wasn't that deep, it's especially irritating. Those little things can be the very drop that's causing a person to fail their classes or not thrive as well as they could. It obviously goes against everything teachers are for when the reason for failure can be tied back to them. Aren't they supposed to be the nudge of our success? Aren't they our future?

Nobody is perfect. There is no such thing as angels and devils when it comes to class. Some people make more mistakes than others, but that doesn't mean they're a lost cause and they should not be treated like they are. Everyone has some sort of potential and teachers need to prove to be advocates that will guide them to use that potential for the greater good.

Besides, school should teach a whole lot more than arithmetic and writing to a prompt. At school, we learn how we are supposed to act and be in the real world. We learn how to interact with others, how to take responsibility for our actions, and how things like cheating our way through things or doing the bare minimum effects our reputation. I could've probably learned how to better deal with those circumstances if the staff in our schools used their superiority in a well-mannered way and students that were constantly belittled will have the energy and see the worth in working harder than they do for what could be years. Situations like this form habits that isn't easy to part ways from.

I waited to be properly scolded for doing what isn't right in the rules of school and it never happened. I always got out of it clean while few people got out of it covered in mud when they didn't deserve it, and I stood up for them to very best that I could, but nothing helped. That's why I hope teachers realize what power they have and that they use it correctly. It needs to stop being abused.

Favoritism kills. When a student begins to belittle himself, the future dies.