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The Education System Then and Now

My experiences as a student, sub and instructional assistant

By Ariel KellyPublished 4 years ago 2 min read
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(As an instructional assistant)

Education for me was almost a get away. Growing up in an urban environment makes one think that they are in an experiment almost. PBS, Create, History Channel and The Smithsonian were all ways where I could travel without leaving Indiana. For my friends and I, being told by almost every adult that we had something to prove because we were from the "worst district" gave us all some short of fire under us all.

Unfortunately, I would learn that there were aspects that were beyond our control. By the time I made it to the sixth grade, my teacher made it a point to emphasize the importance of spelling. It did not dawn on me that we never picked up a math book until I was in the 7th. We did not open a book, work out a problem or even take the math portion of the ISTEP standardized test. The irony, that teacher went on to be a member of the council while the principal was let go.

Fast-forward to college and I was surprised at how similar it was to high school or even elementary. What made the grade, and what our teachers were trying to show us, were the closer points that we had to find in ourselves to make sense of it all. The gritty parts of learning--making it a part of our everyday life. Learning became more and more a thing that I could get from anyone or anything.

Graduating seemed surreal and the reality of putting this degree to use hit hard--along with motherhood. I was fortunate to find a job in my field but it would not yield itself to be a career with more school. I was able to work as a a substitute teacher and instructional assistant and it was during this time that I saw the cynicism, political aspects and just plain old not caring. Teachers who made it their life's work to empower the youth found themselves going against a growing tide of new policies and other distractions. I saw how kids of color were blatantly treated differently, often worse, than their fairer counterparts. I saw kids with traumas being mishandled and not handled and the few good hearts who wanted to help didn't have the resources or capacity to understand how to help.

Not all of my experiences were negative but when the wrong people are given authority it can make work environments and learning environments toxic. The "Mean Girl" mentality like the movie running rampant in the adults which can validate negative behavior. Superiors worried about numbers and stats as opposed to retention and comprehension.

It seems like over time, with more and more resources being available to once "undesirables" came the watering down and pushing of this particular institution. Young boys who have the potential for greatness being lost in the shuffle of the "Preschool to Prison Pipeline".

pop culture
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About the Creator

Ariel Kelly

I prefer to be called Ari, much easier than constant corrections.

I am a freelance writer and artist (paint and makeup).

I love history, movies, literature, "pop" culture (because it will be what we leave behind to a degree) and music!

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