West Perry High School
Elliottsburg, PA
Wow! It's been a long time since I've been at this school, or even looked at a picture of it. Brings back alot of memories.
My educational experiences would align with middle-class schools talked about in Social Class and the Hidden Curriculum of Work. It was about getting the right answer and bringing a good grade home on the report card. There was not necessarily alot of creativity requested in social studies and science projects. In fact I remember social studies as being quite boring and bringing home my only D ever or a report card; it was in social studies. This concerned my Mother alot and she questioned the "D"because I always brought home Bs & As. When I explained how boring the teacher was and that I just couldn't focus or keep myself interested in the class she scheduled a time to come in and sit in the class and observe. She obviously thought I was making up an excuse to cover up for my bad grade. After attending class with me she acknowledged and agreed with my opinion of the teacher and some how excepted my "D" and told me to do better on the next report card. It was surprising to me that it stopped there. What? no meeting with the teacher or principle to discuss this teacher's approach? On the flip side, my 11th grade social studies teacher was young and made learning social studies fun and I received As in his class.
Class definitely mattered. I didn't realize it now, but after reading the articles assigned in class and watching the assigned movies, it's apparent that groups of kids were targeted for college and others were not. I and students like me signed up for business courses. Business Accounting, typing, short hand etc. While other friends in my circle were taking college prep courses. I don't recall being given a choice in these classes; although it's been a very long time and memories fade. If a counselor had pulled me aside and had a conversation about what I wanted to be or do and shared with me the opportunities that college has to offer my life would be alot different now. Nobody in my family had gone to college. My older siblings joined the services and that was not an option for me. Somehow I could not see myself allowing somebody to scream in my face and demand I take orders from them. My Mother agreed for me to go to HAAC (Harrisburg Area Community College) however also gave me the opportunity to take 1 year off after high school and then start attending class. This was a mistake - I never went.
As parents, we want our children's lives to be better than ours and education is an important part of how that can happen. My children know they will be attending college; no question about it. The conversation in our house is not about "if I go to college", but "when I go to college" and "I want to go to this college". That's a great feeling as a parent to know your children see the value in education and their minds are already on that path.
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