What were some of the values and attitudes toward education expressed in your family? How have these influenced your thinking and your practice (as a student)?

It is funny that this question was asked because I have really been thinking about my view on education this week after the saga of my MTH 123 class and reading the literacy articles. Both of my parents have masters’ degrees, and becoming teachers seems to be a family occupation since my mom, aunt, and uncle are all teachers. So, being a teacher’s daughter education has always been valued in my house. I have always been encouraged, but not forced, to work hard in school and further my education. I have always been told that “school comes first.” My parents have always reinforced the idea that hard work pays off, especially in school. My mom always says that no one can take away an education.

It is funny, though, how my brother and I grew up in the same house with the same parents, and we both have totally different views on education. My brother is 26, has dropped out of college three times, and could care less if he goes back to school, while I cry at the thoughts of getting a B. How are we so different? I guess because growing up in the same has does not make us the same people; we are two totally different individuals. I have never struggled in school (except in math), while he did. I was rarely rewarded for A’s and B’s, but he was. I got the phone taken away for a C, and he got to drive the car. It’s weird, but I guess we both have different factors that motivate us. I am easily motivated by getting an “A” in a class and really learning the material, and he “just wants to get by”.

The importance that my parents placed on education has made me see what how empowering knowledge really is. I want to gain learn because I know that knowledge is power. I still have this hang up about grades though that I did not used to have. In high school my parents would lecture me a little bit for a B in an easy class. Now, if I get a B in a hard class I about have a nervous breakdown. It is funny how the tables have turned. I have been trying and trying to come up with a reason for my stupid behavior and have been unsuccessful. The only thing I can think is that somehow I have gotten my wires crossed. My thinking lately is that an A = mastery, and that is not necessarily the case. I can think of a few classes in which I got an “A” and I could not tell you ten things that I learned, while I may have got a “B” in another class and could tell you 20 things I learned. One thing that I have learned through some soul searching this week about education and my values is that the most important thing is what I take out of a class, not the grade I get. Like my mom says, “Education is something that no one can ever take away.”

What drew me into Speech-Language Pathology? That is a really good question that I do not have a great answer for. My mom is a teacher and when I was in about the 10th grade she started talking with me about what I wanted to do after high school. She suggested either Speech or Occupational Therapy because she had seen many kids in both therapies in her school. I shadowed a few OTs and SLPs, and it did not take long for me to decide that I wanted to become a SLP. I shadowed SLPs at schools, in clinics, and hospitals, which brings me to the reason why I want to become a SLP. My cousin’s sister-in-law is a SLP at the VA hospital. I went there and was fascinated. I got to see a barium swallow test performed, along with many other things. I loved it. I know that grosses some of people out, but when I left I thought “I can do that.”

So why do I want to become a SLP? Well, while I was shadowing, I saw that as a SLP I would have an opportunity to help someone improve their quality of life. There are so many jobs out there where you will never know if you make a difference in someone’s life, but a SLP will make a huge difference in their client’s life. SLPs help people communicate better, thus improving their quality of life. Without communication, what is life? So, one reason I want to become a SLP is to make a difference in someone’s life. Another reason is that a SLP has so many options; they are not restricted to working in one particular setting or with a specific group of people. For example if I were to become a teacher I would only work in a school setting and only work with a certain age group. As a SLP, I can work with people from the ages of 4 to 90. I could open my own practice, teach at a university, work in the school system, work in a rehabilitation facility, or a hospital. A SLP is not restricted to working with only one area either, like the way a science teacher can only teach science. I could work with people who have trouble communicating or even swallowing. The possibilities are endless, which also means I can never get bored. Variety is the spice of life.