Child and Teen

        

    

By: Kaye Dionne O. Aledon

        Quality education has two words, easy to define, but to compare for a “child me” and “teen me,” quality education is more than words and complicated to define. Let’s start with “child me." I rarely reflect on how I perceived quality education in my early years. I mean, I do agree that I was still a child, living my best life. However, just thinking about those days where I was sitting in a class, our teacher was discussing a topic, and I was so participative and would always get the correct answer whenever the teacher asked me something. I was so free back then, and it feels like I can do whatever I want. I was a consistent honor student, and it honestly feels like nothing to me back then. 

        My family, on the other hand, was so happy, and we will always go out and eat at a restaurant. For me, it just feels like a random day, and I was just happy to go out and eat. Here comes the “teen me." This is where I become more thoughtful in life. Being “thoughtful” for me means that I tend to think more. It means that my mind is so full of words every day, 24 hours, non-stop. My view of quality education these days is that I fully notice it. I was still the same years ago; I am participative, still an honor student, and will go out to eat and celebrate with my family. However, pressure comes in. 

        Pressure from my family, you may ask? Big no. They are the most supportive human beings that I treasure with my life. This pressure is just me. It comes from me, and it naturally occurs within me. This breaks my inner child cycle. I am now overthinking things as to what my future will be. I cry when I get a low score in a small quiz in class. I rush and procrastinate. And many more. This is the pressure that I was talking about. See the difference between the “child” and “teen” me? How can a carefree child have turned into a thought child? 

        This changed my whole perspective of the two words, quality education. I believe that quality education isn’t just the knowledge and skills we earned from school; it is the process of our growth as years and years have already passed by. This is a major challenge that most educators are experiencing nowadays. All the pressure, overthinking, and procrastinating have an impact on a learning experience. But, as days went by, I realized that these challenges are all part of my growth as a human. These challenges may be too hard to face, but I know that it will be a lesson for me to learn. 

        The reason why I was sharing this life background of mine is that I want everyone to know my perspective about quality education. This has a huge impact on our society since quality education has the ability to shape a child’s future and understand oneself. Additionally, the use of technology nowadays has an advantage and disadvantage for educators like me. As I’ve noticed, technology is a huge help for educators like me since I can be able to use the internet to interact, gain more knowledge, research, and develop digital skills. However, technology can also be a distraction. In my case, the reason why I procrastinate is that I have access to social media and I like to watch non-educational content. So far, technology has been helpful for a student like me.

        As a teenager, I have the power and ability to promote quality education. With the use of technology, I will be able to relate my story to every educator. Truthfully, my growth has not yet ended. I will continue on growing because quality education has helped me in so many ways. I am proud to say that I still haven’t achieved what my goals are in life, but I was able to learn the process of who I am and what purpose I serve in life. This is quality education, speaking.