F is for School (2)

I find a soft reconciliation in my writing. Creativity is man's greatest gift to himself and his authentic lasting legacy, perpetuated only by the will of those with a vehement passion for art and the raw emotions that it presents when well crafted. It is indeed the closest man can get to describing himself and his surroundings accurately. However, when faced with the impending judgement of the high calibre individuals at the center of academic advancement, the artist becomes buried beneath layers of dejection caused by the inability to comprehend advanced math or memorize pages upon pages of notes that are relevant to a biologist and a biologist alone. Drowning beneath misconceived expectations of a left brained logical society, where only the concrete is respected, this individualist with a limitless aptitude is forced to conform, and lose his identity within a sea of storming idiocy and misunderstanding.

If logic is the only respected measure of communication, then facts like the 2500+ youth that set aside their futures due to a deliberate ignorance cast on them by society seem to be ignored far to often. The academic system is flawed and although that statement is ensconced in simplicity, it’s over complication by the media and older generations erases said simplicity and replaces it with the creating of various factions of complexity. Archaic beliefs combined with lethargy create this dichotomy, and the ignorance to change the current academic state of affaires has a direct correlation with the current drop out rate in North America. For example, when faced with forced attendance, something that already fuels rebellious ideals that are injected at a young age by mass media and the clichéd emotion of angst, two types of students are formed. One is the unmotivated learner who attends because society requires it, and the other is someone who engulfs themselves in a flawed system and draws merit from excelling in a poorly constructed instrument of education. A system that perpetuates such stereotypes needs to be re-examined and fixed if it's going to be considered the pass/fail institution of modern success.


The search for meaning of life, or more accurately, how to fully use one's potential, is severely strained by this system. What is intended to broaden a students mind and understanding, thus allowing him to choose from a plethora of paths and lives, has become the catalyst for a tragic state of mind to occur within the individual. A state in which uselessness issues itself a position among the elites in mental function. Without the catharsis often associated with tragedy however, this individual is forced to find other ways of confronting this demon cast upon him by the arrogant masterminds of education. The influence and direction of the ancient generation offer a lustrous career, but only with the right grades and attitude. If objected to, or if their illusive dream falls upon deaf ears, they use a cover-all excuse for their inability to comprehend the needs of modern youth. Work ethic or lack there of, is accentuated to the point of absurdity, the modern mantra becoming "work hard, get results." The term doctor, lawyer or professor, are no more careers then they are symbols of a successful person. Each one has a direct correlation to a near fantastical work ethic in all aspects of life and is therefore accepted by society. What happened to an introspective solution? What happened to working smarter? Lost beneath an insatiable lust for enlightenment, it has become. If the work bears no tangible results, and the culture propagates materialism, which runs synonymous with concreteness and immediate results, then the ideal of work becomes its own antithesis. There is, however, no dialectic theory offering a solution here. The problem escalates, and continues to escalate, until it is stopped.

Confronted by such a multitude of paths, each with different levels of honour and tradition, a student feels pressured by the overbearing weight of influence from parents and teachers alike to become something that utilizes their full potential. With so much diversity in the classroom, and such a forced understanding of a variety of subjects, what started out as a means to give each student a taste of what the world has to offer has become a gritty steel enclosed cell that gives not a taste but a forced blood transfusion. A more eclectic method of pursuing a high school diploma needs to be set in place so that students with strengths that are understated by the current curriculum can broaden their pursuits and not feel discouraged by their inability to comprehend chemical compounds.


Ultimately, as a keen eye-witness to this unfolding drama, a drama where the protagonist is acceptance with a desire to cast off the shackles of academic conformity and his foil is a sly sleuthing simplistic hubris possessed by those piloting the damned ship of education, I can say it's an understated epidemic. Give me paper, a pen, and a theme, and I will etch myself between the ruled lines, give me however a formula and a calculator, and mediocrity will flow in ink. My potential lies not in rigid numbers and sadly, only I can know that as true. More unfortunate however, is societies disregard for the opinions of modern youthful scholars, as it is them and them alone who possess the cleft to their inner workings and true potential.