February 2018 Guest Post: Amy Coval, Carlsbad High School
Each month, a student from one of our high schools will write a guest post for the Superintendent Blog. The students will be asked to reflect on one of the characteristics described in our Graduate Profile. This month, Carlsbad High School student Amy Coval reflects on the characteristic of “Lifelong Learner.”
Carlsbad Unified Graduate Profile: Lifelong Learner
“Graduates have the passion and vigor for learning that will fuel them through new opportunities and challenges.”
Throughout my time at Carlsbad High School, I have learned a plethora of new ideas and information. In my honors Biology class freshman year, I learned DNA replication. In AP European History, I learned about some of the greatest thinkers, artists, and scholars to have ever lived. In my journalism class, I discovered my passion, and learned what I wanted to do for my career. All these ideas are undoubtedly valuable to my education. However, the common theme between the entirety of my classes was the many ways they taught me to forever be a student.
The first day I stepped up to the podium in Mrs. Padilla’s English 2-H class, I was mortified. 40 kids sat before me, 80 eyes blinking at me, waiting to hear me speak. Her class was (and still is) based strongly upon a foundation of public speaking, something that made my whole body feel like Jello. With a shaky voice (and even shakier knees) I discoursed a quite short presentation on our class novel.
Flash-forward to senior year, and I have had Mrs. Padilla for every consecutive English class yet, and I have never been more comfortable speaking in front of a group of people. Despite the fact that the presentations consisted of analysis of Romeo and Juliet or To Kill a Mockingbird, I attained lifelong speaking skills as well as a newfound sense of confidence.
When I look back on past courses I have taken, I realize just how much I absorbed outside of the curriculum. I adopted critical thinking and communication skills; I l developed time management and organization. These crucial aspects of my education have provided me the opportunity to learn far beyond the classroom, whether it be a university, career, or foreign experience. My teachers have laid the foundation for the ways in which I gain and retain information. My peers have taught me to never become complacent in my pursuit of education, to always be curious. My counselors and the administration have given me a platform to interact with those above me, and they taught me to ask for help.
Outside of my education, I have played varsity water polo for three years of my high school career. The experiences I have shared with my team have been the most rewarding and profound I have ever had. Aside from skillwork and conditioning, the sport gave me opportunities to adopt ways to be a lifelong learner. Being a part of a team, you learn how to rise and fall together; you share the mood-boosting wins as well as losses which bring the toughest blows to team morale. Through all of this, I have learned the concepts of dependability, responsibility, and respect. The girls on the team showed me collaboration and friendship, but also kept me accountable and prepared. All of these ideas have prepared me for life after high school, and I am forever thankful for the lessons they have taught me.
All of these skills have prepared me for life beyond high school. Carlsbad High has provided me with an unparalleled pathway to becoming a lifelong learner, surrounded by people who have each contributed to my abilities, in their own unique way.
---
Amy Coval is a senior at Carlsbad High School. Next year, she plans to attend a 4-year university to study journalism. She has been on the Lancer Express staff for three years and is currently the co-Editor-in-Chief.
