A Child’s Education

I remember being introduced to the world of reading. I was sitting with my mother on our aged sofa in the corner of our living room, stumbling upon the words of The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister. I was delighted by the different colors of scales on the rainbow fish. Connecting foreign words to colors on the page made it easier to comprehend the content of this simple paperback book. After a long day of work as a nurse and cooking dinner for her family of five, my mother had the patience to sit down and watch me ponder upon the words in front of me. I was excited to show my mom what I was capable of doing and how I was growing up to be so intelligent. As a five-year-old, I was thinking this would be the biggest challenge I’d ever have to face, but I know well enough now that I was just opening up a pathway to a bunch of new knowledge. Enthusiastic about my new skill, I was hoping that by the next day I’d be able to read a chapter book from front to back, like my older brothers. My mom encouraged my excitement for reading although she knew it would take some time before I’d be reading book series like Goosebumps and The Magic Tree House. She didn’t doubt my ability to be like all the older kids who very well knew how to read. Reading my first book was an exciting moment as I felt like I was one step closer to being a “big kid”. My interest in reading became stronger.

I continued to read when one of my parents had the time to sit down and help me with new books I’d bring back from the book fair at school. As I went onto second and third grade, I found other things to occupy my time like making friends and spending time playing outside with the neighborhood kids, rather than reading. Reading was only so exciting for me for a short time period. After a while it wasn’t as exciting because it was no longer a new skill, it became basic knowledge for everyone as I grew older. As my elementary years went on, I didn’t read much because I felt as though I could always find something more entertaining to do. My lack of reading led to me falling behind on my literacy skills. Other kids in class were reading every night, and I found myself struggling to keep up with the pace my classmates were at.

My third grade teacher, Mr. Dunn, realized that I struggled in English class. He informed my parents and suggested we schedule for me to meet with a tutor twice a week. The thought of this irked me, making me think I was less intelligent than all the other kids in class who didn’t need to spend time with a tutor. I was embarrassed to be taken out of class individually and leave all my friends, who I now viewed as brighter than I was. I hated a part of myself for not being able to keep up with my classmates.

Twice a week I would be excused from Mr. Dunn’s class after lunch to work on my reading comprehension with Mrs. Parsons, an aid at South River Elementary School. Mrs. Parsons had to be one of the sweetest staff members at my elementary school. She was always checking to see how I was doing and she always presented a positive attitude, but in my adolescent eyes I thought she was out to get me. If I read a sentence wrong, she would have me read it multiple times until I read the sentence correctly. As a third grader, I didn’t understand that she was criticizing my reading as a way to help me. Instead, I thought she was picking out my flaws to make me feel bad about myself. For this reason, I hated reading with her in her little room at the end of the corridor. In fact, I hated reading in general because I wasn’t good at it and it frustrated me. I didn’t enjoy the little books we read word by word; it just wasn’t as enjoyable as it was with my mom that first time. To this day I never think to read during my spare time. It has always bothered me that I have to read sentences, or even paragraphs, multiple times to be able to comprehend the content. It embarasses me, to this day, that I am not a skilled reader. Yet, I have never had the ambition to make myself a better reader by practicing during my free time, because I would rather avoid my frustrations by doing something that brings me enjoyment.

I continue to struggle with reading comprehension even as a college student. However, over the years I have been able to recognize this about myself and have figured out what helps me improve my skills. I realize that as a nursing major these skills are crucial, so I intend to continue practicing them to better myself as a student and a future health care professional.

Due to my experience as a child, I question if there is a better way to get kids extra help without pulling them out of class individually. I even wonder if the school system knows that doing this can have a long term effect of how kids feel towards learning. Many kids have stories similar to I do, where their ambition to learn is diminished because of the confidence that is taken away from them. When a child is young, one of the most important things they will learn at school is how to work with others. If a child needs extra help, they shouldn’t be taken away from the other students who get to work together in class. I think that instead of singling them out in front of the other students, a compromise could be met by meeting after school or during a time that would be beneficial for both the student and teacher. This way, students will be able to work with others in class, and also be able to ask for help with what they are struggling with after class. There may be better options available to resolve this problem, but if there is a solution I think this should be resolved immediately for the sake of a child’s education.