School Years of Avrelia F

[avrelia]

mrissa asked yesterday about schiool experiences in her LJ, and I answered with a short, but meandering comment. Now I decided to repost it here, for your amusement.

Be amused:

Did you have a good high school experience?

I would say yes, I remember my high school with pleasure – not that I would want to do it again, but I am glad that it happened with me exactly the way it did. I cannot say that it is comparable with High school myth in Northern America, being that my school was an unusual institution in the strange times, and in Russia.

What do you think is most wrong with the way your schooling at that age was conducted?

Do you have anything you think was institutionally most right with how your schooling was conducted?

Both right and wrong have the same cause: our education was rather chaotic (wrong), and experimental and free-spirited (right.) My high school years (two) started with the fall of Soviet Union, in the strange and confusing and hopeful atmosphere of the early nineties. We actually were a group of history geeks, who chose this high school on our free will (the regular school structure in Russian schools is that we have “classes” of thirty students as permanent groups who have all classes together, which brings a cool sense of unity with people, whom you otherwise wouldn’t be caught dead together.) so, two years in group of like-minded, but very different teenagers who thought very highly of themselves were a blast. We had lots and lots of history classes, lots of literature, and some subjects that didn’t usually exist in Russian school in that time. Plus, the principal and the teachers were listening to us in many concerns.

Do you have stronger, less strong, or similar feelings towards grade school? Junior high/middle school? If you went to college, college? If you went to grad school, grad school? If someone says "your school," which one do you think of?

I have the feelings of the same strength – the eight years before high school left a strong mark on me, as well as the university after. My school? They all are “my school” in different ways, but the university the most, I guess, bred that feeling of patriotism, where I will defend till the last breath that they are the best and are always right.

Did you have one best year of your schooling, where you were learning the most and figuring out the most about yourself? Did you have more than one? Did you have one worst year? Did they correspond with best/worst years otherwise, or did you separate out your school life and your outside/home life?

The best year was the third year in the university (law school), when the learning itself was giving me the most enjoyment. The high school years were great, too, and the year before high school. My worst year in terms of schooling? The closest I can think of my seventh year at school (I was 13), since I don’t remember much about it. My overall worst year was when I was 15, but in terms of schooling it was fine.

Was there a time in your schooling when you really enjoyed the books assigned to you to read? What kind of books were they, or, if you remember, what books? Did you otherwise manage to find good books to read, mostly, or did you go through dry spells in your reading life when you were younger?

Books and I? There was never a dry spell, always too many to read. I read chaotically, children’s books, adult books, fiction, non-fiction, sf, fairy-tales, classics, poetry (since fourteen) (fantasy started to be published in Russia later) Books in school program I enjoyed when I managed to read them before they were assigned and over-analyzed at school – before the new literature teacher in the high school, with whom we went beyond the confinement of rigid old school program and had actual meaningful discussions – on those books that were “in the program” and those that were not.

Comments

[gobi-rex.livejournal.com]

There's a lot in your post I can identify with. Basically I'm nodding and saying, "Yes, yes, I know what that's like." Well, except for the alternative high school and law school parts.

Curiously, my seventh year in Russian school was also my worst. My grades went down and I just couldn't seem to get my brain to function at a good enough level, even though I understood everything and studied hard. I think it was some kind of a hormonal teenage thing. Plus, my mother was in another part of the world at the time. I recovered in the middle of 8th grade.

the regular school structure in Russian schools is that we have "classes" of thirty students as permanent groups who have all classes together, which brings a cool sense of unity with people, whom you otherwise wouldn't be caught dead together.

This sense of camaraderie (forced, but still a sense of community) is something I missed very much in American high school and first 2yrs of college. But at the same time I appreciated the relative anonymity. A part of me is glad that I spent my late teenage years in a different school system. And a part of me wonders how things would have turned out had I stayed.

Our literature teacher was the 'old school' lady, a competent one, but one whose teaching was heavily influenced by her specific political beliefs. My class never got a new one. Luckily, I was still around when our history teachers changed guard and damn, the difference was astounding.

p.s. love your icon. It's Breakfast at Tiffany's, right?

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

Yes, it is Breakfast at Tiffany, I wandered recently in the unchartered LJ watres, and found it. Look up the author in the keyword, there were many pretty icons there.

The more I know about other school systems the lessI am able to say which one is better - every one has awful flaws and some good ideas. But I can talk about my schools lots and lots, and it is late, so Ihave to came back to it.

This sense of camaraderie (forced, but still a sense of community)

Yeah, the constant competition with other classes in the "parallel", the necessity to take classes together (and skip classes together of not at all), common interests, the feeling of a familiarity with - for better or for worse - there was a lot good stuff in this structure.

[lillianmorgan.livejournal.com]

My high school years (two) started with the fall of Soviet Union, in the strange and confusing and hopeful atmosphere of the early nineties.
It's so intriguing for me to hear about people living out history. And I guess it takes on even greater resonance after the event and you sit back and think about it. What were your feelings at the time?
Books and I? There was never a dry spell, always too many to read.
LOL! I have a constant problem between the number in my shelf and the number that I've actually read!

[avrelia.livejournal.com]

It's so intriguing for me to hear about people living out history. And I guess it takes on even greater resonance after the event and you sit back and think about it. What were your feelings at the time?

the fun thing for me is that when you areliving history you don't feel it like anything special, you just live it. Not the ffluffy times, but they seems much nicer now. Though when I look back from here, it also looks very strange.

I was much more excited when I heard stories form my friends - like the one from a German girl about her father who dig up an anciet roman road on his field, etc.