Junot Díaz talks books, high school, and heart break
Wednesday, February 01, 2012from Manhattan Times
Story by Sherry Mazzocchi
Rosanna Cuevas, of northern Manhattan, was one of about 200 people who crowded into the Gregorio Luperon High School to hear Junot Díaz speak this past Fri., Jan. 27th.
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao was in town for a Family Literacy Day event.
The afternoon forum, organized by civic group Acción Comunitaria La Aurora, Teatro Las Tablas, Word Up Bookstore, The Manhattan Times and The Bronx Free Press, also featured free books provided by Barnes and Noble.
Cuevas brought her daughter, Rossaura, 9, hoping the talk would inspire a love of literature.
And much of what Díaz spoke about was directed at parents such as Cuevas.
If you are here with children, he told the audience, then you believe in the power of reading. His parents, he explained, would tell him that education was a wonderful thing, but they didn't act on that idea.
When caught reading books, his mother instead told him to go out and play.
Díaz said that no one knows what a child will eventually become—and they shouldn't be judged quickly. Instead, Díaz said it's better to keep ideas about your children flexible and not label them.
During his high school senior year, Díaz was absent 130 days. He had a GPA of 1.7. But his mother never called him stupid or told him he would end up in prison.
Instead, she kept saying, "This kid is going to be brilliant."
Because she never condemned him for not doing well in school, Díaz said that created a space for him to change and become an academic and a writer.
When a teacher in the audience asked him what would have motivated him—and children like him—to come to school, the answer was revealing.
"Remember that person that you loved the most and who absolutely broke your heart?" he asked. "And remember how useful and productive you were the six months after your heart was broken?"
Kids in school are getting their hearts broken all the time, by parents, friends or just life.
"And then we expect them to be kicking a** in school," he said.
But they need time to mourn.
Díaz's father left their family the same year his older brother got cancer.
"There was no teacher in the world," said Díaz, "who was going to keep me from a dysfunctional heart break in my senior year."
But schools are like stopwatches, he said. If kids don't mend according to the school's timetable, they're labeled as "bad" students. But in reality, they are just sensitive.
"The only reason kids act tough is because they are protecting something very delicate inside. Who acts tougher than the black and Latino community? I don't know any communities who act tougher than us," he said, "besides some communities at war."
Rosanna, who arrived early and sat close to the front, said Díaz's books resonated with her, especially the themes around growing up in a poor neighborhood. Like Díaz, she is also from the Dominican Republic. She especially likes the strong female characters in his work and says they were true to life.
"He definitely portrays the Dominican immigrant community in a funny and lively way," she said. "All my friends who read the book [Oscar Wao] loved it and swear by it," she said.
Díaz was her adviser at Syracuse University.
"I thought he was a great role model," she said. "He was funny, laid back and very approachable."
Caroline Peralta, who grew up in Morris Heights in the Bronx, is an aspiring writer and also looks up to Díaz as a role model. She said that reading about the Trujillo era in Oscar Wao filled in part of her own heritage.
"My mom doesn't talk about that," she said.
The founder of Word Up bookstore, Veronica Liu, was also in the audience. She found the talk very inspiring, and said Díaz has a profound impact on the community. When she first decided to open a bookstore in the Heights, the first thing everyone mentioned was Junot Díaz and his work.
"He hasn't been to the bookstore," Liu said, "but he's kind of like a...patron saint."
Biography
Junot Diaz
(1968- )
Place was never something I took for granted, not when I had two geographies in my heart. I take special pleasure in naming things as well as I can, since all I was taught as a kid was to give things false names. Or to give them no name at all. I find these public/private discussions repressive whether they're being generated from within our community or without. How in the world can anyone form an authentic self when there are so many damn rules about how one should act in the world? Us writers, we're just throwing words up into the wind, hoping that they will carry, and someone, somewhere, sometime, will have a use for them. - Junot Diaz
Junot Díaz (born 31 December 1968 in Santo Domingo) is a contemporary Dominican-American writer and associate professor of writing at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He moved to the United States with his parents at age six, settling in New Jersey. Central to Díaz's work is the duality of the immigrant experience.
Life
Díaz was born in Villa Juana, a barrio in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He was the third child in a family of five. Throughout most of his early childhood he lived with his mother and grandparents while his father worked in the United States. Díaz immigrated to Parlin, New Jersey in December, 1974, where he was re-united with his father.
He attended Kean College in Union, New Jersey for one year before transferring and ultimately completing his BA at Rutgers College in 1992, majoring in English; there he was involved in a creative-writing living-learning residence hall and in various student organizations and was exposed to the authors who would motivate him into becoming a writer: Toni Morrison and Sandra Cisneros. He worked his way through college: delivering pool tables, washing dishes, pumping gas and working at Raritan River Steel.
After graduating from Rutgers he was employed at Rutgers University Press as an editorial assistant. He earned his MFA from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York in 1995, where he wrote most of his first collection. Díaz is active in Dominican community, the fiction editor for the Boston Review, and a founding member of the Voices of Writing Workshop, a writing workshop focused on writers of color.
Work
Junot Diaz is best known for his two major works: the short story collection Drown (1996) and the novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (2007). Both were published to critical acclaim. His fiction has appeared in The New Yorker magazine which listed him as one of the 20 top writers for the 21st century. He has also been published in Story, The Paris Review, and in the anthologies Best American Short Stories four times (1996, 1997, 1999, 2000), and African Voices.
En Espanol:
| Junot Diaz habla sobre libros, la secunaria y el dolor en la adolescencia |
| Wednesday, February 01, 2012 |
Historia y video por Sherry Mazzocchi Fotos por Sherry Mazzocchi e Isaacc García Junot Díaz saluda a padres y estudiantes durante un evento reciente de lectura familiar celebrado en la Escuela Secundaria Gregorio Luperón. El foro vespertino, organizado por el grupo cívico Acción Comunitaria La Aurora, Teatro Las Tablas, Word Up Bookstore, Manhattan Times y The Bronx Free Press, presentaba también libros gratis proporcionados por Barnes & Noble. Cuevas trajo a su hija, Rossaura de 9 años, esperando que la charla la inspiraría a amar la literatura. Y de lo que trató Díaz, gran parte estaba dirigido a padres como Cuevas. "Si está usted aquí acompañado de niños", le dijo él a la audiencia, "entonces usted cree en el poder de la lectura". Sus padres, según explicó, le decían que la educación era algo maravilloso, pero no tomaron acción sobre esa idea. En su lugar, cuando su madre le atrapaba leyendo libros, lo mandaba a jugar. Díaz dijo que nadie sabe en que se convertirá un niño eventualmente—y no deberían ser juzgados con rapidez. En su lugar, Díaz dijo que es mejor mantener flexibles las ideas sobre sus hijos y no poner etiquetas. Durante su último año de secundaria, Díaz estuvo ausente por 130 días. Tenía un GPA de 1.7. Pero su madre nunca lo llamó estúpido o le dijo que terminaría en la prisión. En su lugar, ella se mantuvo diciendo, "Este muchacho va a ser brillante". Dice Díaz, dado el que ella nunca lo condenó por su falta de rendimiento en la escuela, creó un espacio para que el cambiara y se convirtiera en académico y escritor. Cuando un maestro en el auditorio le preguntó qué le habría motivado—y a niños como el—para ir a la escuela, la respuesta fue reveladora. "Preguntó, ¿recuerda a esa persona a quien usted amó más y quien destrozó su corazón totalmente? "Y recuerda, ¿cuan útil y productivo era usted seis meses después de que le destrozaran el corazón"? En la escuela, a los chicos les destrozan el corazón a cada rato -- padres, amigos o simplemente la vida. "Y entonces esperamos que den de patadas en la escuela", dijo él. Pero necesitan tiempo para lamentarse. El padre de Díaz abandonó a la familia el mismo año en que su hermano mayor tuvo cáncer. "No había maestro en el mundo", dijo Díaz, "que impidiera un corazón destrozado y funcionando mal en mi último año de secundaria." Pero las escuelas son como cronómetros, dijo. Si los chicos no se enmiendan de conformidad con el programa de la escuela, se les tilda de "mal" estudiante. Pero en realidad, solamente son sensibles. "La única razón por la cual los chicos actúan con rudeza es porque están protegiendo algo muy delicado por dentro. ¿Quién actúa con más rudeza que la comunidad negra y latina? No conozco a comunidad alguna que actúe con mas rudeza que nosotros", dijo él, "excepto algunas comunidades que están en guerra." Rosanna, quien llegó temprano y se sentó al frente, dijo que ella se identificaba con los libros de Díaz, especialmente los temas de crecer en un vecindario pobre. Al igual que Díaz, ella proviene también de la Republica Dominicana. Especialmente, le gustan los carácteres femeninos fuertes en el trabajo de Díaz y dice que eran muy reales. "Definitivamente el caracteriza a la comunidad dominicana inmigrante de una manera muy chistosa y vívida", "Todas mis amistades que leen el libro [Oscar Wao] les ha encantado y juran por él", dijo ella. Díaz fue su consejero en Syracuse University. "Yo pensé que él era un gran ejemplo a seguir", menciona. "El era chistoso, tranquilo y muy asequible". Caroline Peralta, quien creció en Morris Heights en el Bronx, aspira a ser escritora y se fija también en Díaz como ejemplo a seguir. Indicó que para ella, leer sobre la era de Trujillo en Oscar Wao documentó en parte sobre su propia herencia. "Mi madre no habla sobre eso", siguió comentando. Veronica Liu, fundadora de la librería Word Up también estuvo presente en el auditorio. Ella encontró la charla muy inspiradora, dijo que Díaz tiene un impacto profundo en la comunidad. Cuando ella decidió abrir una librería en El Alto, lo primero que todo el mundo le mencionó fue a Junot Díaz y su obra. "El nunca ha estado en la librería", dijo Liu, "pero él es una especie de...santo patrón". Response Questions: Choose one of the following options for your response: Explain and use specific real-world examples and evidence to support your response. Option 2: Reply to a classmate's post:
Challenge: Post your response in Spanish! |
My parents expect me to do 150% in school. If i need help ask a teacher. If i need to stay then stay for help. Teacher expect me to get more active in class and stop being lazy and work. They expect me to be a great student top of the class type in my view. My friends expect me to know everything there is but understand that i don't always know what to do. Society wants me to be like a college dean or a doctor. I fell pressured in school because i see everyone wanting to do good and i want to be like them achieving many things. Hey my goal is to make a change in the world and if doing my best in school is then so be it!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you so much because everyone around us expect us to be perfect and can't accept us for who we are. Like we try are best most of the time so why cant they be happy. Like times have changed and so have expectations and criteria so try to work with us instead of overworking us!
DeleteI also agree with you because my parents like to talk to me as if I am also perfect. I tell them I am not but they don't want to hear "excuses". Teachers also want me to be less lazy and I just cant because school is boring at many times. some of the time half asleep anyways. My parents also want me to be perfect at math which for me is the hardest subject without a doubt, hands down, but it seems like they do not care
DeleteI agree all teacher expect us to be the top student they want us to precipitate in each class to always to work they don't believe in bad days they don't understand we aren't prefect no mater what we try so what being perfect is boring messing up and falling down the hill might hurt but it really feels great when you get up and clime up at the speed of light racing to the top, our future because this is our generation
DeleteI totally know how you feel because I am lazy but when it comes right down to it I can do good but I all do want to achieve GREATNESS but don't know where I still want to do good in school. Because without me doing great, at the best of my abilities then how would i now if I'm ready to start on my way to collage. I do feel pressured to do well especially with what Mr. Lenzner said today but that pressure motivates me to a point where I am going to try the best in school to see where I land as a student.
DeleteI agree with ya because people like to judge you mostly on your failures. But it's wrong because no matter how hard we try we can't always achieve everything we try to accomplish. I feel that failing gives us a better motivation at becoming something we want to become. I say this because we'll learn from our mistakes and make them better and we can prove to ourselves that we can do better.
DeleteMy family expects me to succeed. My mom's expectations are 90 percent and above on everything; test classes, quizzes writing assignments etc. I also have high expectations for myself because I know my capacity, I also expect 90 percent and above because I know I can do it. My teachers expect highly of me too. Some of my friends do expect high grades from me, the ones that know me well, but most don’t. I don’t believe my society expects me to do good because they think that we (Dominican/Hispanic teens) won’t graduate from High School either because we’re involved in gangs or drugs or because we got pregnant. There are some times when I feel pressured by my classmates because they also have high expectations, and the also get very good grades. I do think that we do have some type of flexibility when it comes to who you want to be because of all the opportunities we have here in New York.
ReplyDelete-Lhia, 9LE
Mi familia espera una profesional. Las expectativas de mi mamá son 90 %y más en mis exámenes, clases, ensayos etc... Yo también tengo altas expectativas de mí porque conozco mi capacidad, también espero un 90% o más porque sé que puedo hacerlo. Mis maestros también esperan mucho de mí. Algunas de mis amigas esperan una nota alta, las que me conocen bien. No creo que mi sociedad espere que nosotros ágamos bien porque piensan que nosotros (adolescentes Dominicanos /hispanos) no tenemos la capacidad de graduarnos de la escuela secundaria porque piensan que todos estamos involucrados en pandillas o drogas, o porque quedamos embarazadas. Hay algunas veces que me siento presionada por mis compañeros porque ellos también tienen altas expectativas y también sacan muy buenas notas. Creo que tenemos un poco de flexibilidad cuando hablamos de quien quieres ser, por todas las oportunidades que tenemos aquí en Nueva York.
Delete-Lhía, 9LE
my parents expect me to do 100% in school because they want me to be a good student and be someone in the future because they always say that if you don't get a good education you won't never get a good job.and i think that is true because i sometime predict what i going to be in the future if put my efforts in my study.teacher expect me to get good scores in my grade and to never give up. and i think it is important because that helps my goals. my friends expect me to do better and better in class. society expect me to be someone in the future and be what i would like to be. i fell pressure sometime because i talk to my parents about my future and sometime their disagree with it because ''we are poor'' and we should be someone in the future that that is something easy to do, and also for many reason. if you want to be someone in the future in you really wants to do it, do it and don't let anyone breaks your future,or dream. my goal is to be a TV host, or help poorest children.
ReplyDeleteI agree with scarlet in the fact that parents are always wanting the best for us. Also I most say I do feel pressured to be a certain way of being a good student and being the best .
DeleteMy parents expect to get 100s as my grade but i disagree totally with them because its not possible and I don't get grades like that. My teachers also push me to do better be but sometimes teachers push me way too much. To me passing is passing. At times I do feel pressured at school because when I am failing I get stressed out trying to pass the class because you still have to keep your other grades. I just want to pass my classes and graduate, and get a college degree.
ReplyDeletei agree with this 100%, parent push kids way too much. they push them to the point where they feel way too pressured and have so much stress and end up doing worse. my mom also has her expectations of my grades way too high and i could never find a way too explain to her that my grades wont ever be 100
DeleteMy family expects me to graduate from both high school and college. I also expect that I graduate from high school and college. My family expects me to receive 85 percent in every class, if not, better. My teachers and I also have high expectations in terms of my grades at school. My friends expect me to get high grades too because in every quiz or exam, I'm usually among the top three highest scores in my class. In fact, teachers say that I'm a very smart student, if it wasn't for my behavior, I would be a A+ student. A lot of people don't think that because us kids are bad outside of school, doesn't mean that we're not gonna graduate and have a successful education career. There are times where I set the standards higher then where i usually have them due to other classmates having higher quiz grades or exam grades. Kids should believe in their selves because New York has some of the BEST colleges.
ReplyDelete-Sixto Mescain 9VO
Special shout out to Erika Cabrera, the smartest student I ever met in my entire life.
DeleteSixto, I've come to an understanding that you feel like you have very high expectations in your life, you do yourself and so do others for you as well. You also feel like you have the ability to be a better, greater student if you didn't have such behavior at school at times. I agree with you, because the society we live in especially coming from Latino families there is a lot of hope for all of us. For example, coming from my house where only three of my sisters went to college, there is a lot of pressure to be a good student and get somewhere in life. My mom is constantly reminding me in order for me to get somewhere in life and be successful and not go through struggles I need to pass High School and get into a great college. I've been under some great deal of stress trying to receive 95% and above in all of my grades. But that's the beauty of it all, setting an individual goal for yourself, you can have all the motivation and all the hope from others, but if you don't try hard and believe in yourself you aren't doing anything right. From my family, I am expected to have 100s and 95s and above. When I don't it's like I did something totally wrong, from my friends I'm seen as the 'nerd' or the 'smart one' they also have high standards for me. Every time I get a quiz back, they ask me what is my grade and before I tell them they always joke around, and say "She got a 100" I try and fulfill all of the high hopes, but I don't want to crack under the pressure, so I do what I possibly can. I think overall, I have very high standards for myself, but everyone has flaws and I'm still trying to work mine out.
DeleteI definitely am not the smartest, but thanks on the thought of it.
DeleteErika, thanks for agreeing with me. Thats exactly what I mean, thanks for helping the reader have a better understanding of this. I also come from a house where four of nine of my siblings were successful through High School and through their college career. My mom tells me the same thing, in addition, she tells me that if I would like to have nice cars, nice houses and a good job that I should stay in school and graduate from college. I wish I was like you as far as grades are concerned. I think that you're a very smart person that has extremely high standards and that you also work to the best of your ability. You're truly someone that I can look up to.
Delete-Sixto Mescain 9VO
I think we all have that type of pressure at home. It's only right, because if nobody at home cares then who will care? You can be even smarter than me, just put in the extra effort and maybe you can be Valedictorian in the 12th grade! Just have high hopes. Nice to know that I have people looking up to me. Keep it up, and you will be successful.
DeleteErika, you're a GREAT motivator!
Delete-Alexis, Jimenez
ReplyDeleteFor me as a student and as a person my parents expect me to get perfect grade and always be in my best behavior even though it rarely happens. In school it’s more fair cause they have fine expectations. It’s not too high and not too low. When you do better you have to always do better than you’re currently score and I am happy with that. Not always being expected to be perfect. Teachers and students in my opinion are the same way, society is another story though. This pretty much depends on which people cause much of society isn’t really united but small groups like for example some congressmen have bad expectations of Latin people but others try to help by making programs. I do feel sometimes pressure cause of this but in my opinion is for the best because I wouldn’t get anywhere without the pressure. This pressure helps shape my identity and what I want from life.
My parents actually expect me to get 90% in all subjects. Though they do give me alot of pressure like when they keep asking me how Im doing in school and how they always take away youru favorite stuff if your not doing good.
ReplyDeleteHello all-
ReplyDeleteI appreciate you sharing your stories and family expectations. Diaz says, "How in the world can anyone form an authentic self when there are so many rules about how one should act in the world?"
What 'rules' is he talking about?
Also, we can define society as large or small as we want. You have talked about the societies of the classroom and the home. What about the 'societies' of your friend groups, DR, the street, American, Republican, Democrat, Washington Heights, sports teams, fan groups, etc. All of these are 'mini societies.' Are there 'expectations' within these societies and how do they shape us?
In my opinion, by rules Diaz meant to follow these sort of unspoken norms of what society wants or expects us to be. Its like a rule because if you don't follow it and turn out like society expects you be , you can often expect to be outcasted or turned away. That of course doesn't mean that all people do follow them .
DeleteMini societies within out communities shape who we are by showing us what the majority of people in the group think is right and you form your own identity and opinions based on it whether you agree with them or you don't.
I think the rules, that Diaz is referring to, is how someone carries themselves as adults. How people communicate with each other. People have expectations from specific people from specific backgrounds, so they make "rules" regarding how these people should act. I believe that when you grow up and have a specific job, you have to change absolutely everything about you in order to "fit" into the type of people that specific job wants.
Deletethough being at school and being at home are 2 different things i think that both of our teachers and parents expect the best from us students and kids. at home our parents are always aware of our work and if we are getting good grades at school, well teachers do the same they are constantly checking with us student to make sure we to our best to master any learning target and also to be a good example for others. just to add on i agree with @Erica Cabrera because there is always someone at school or at home who makes us feel pressure in which leads us to not do so well, not just with school work but also at home.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. I know that parents and teachers want you to the the best you can so they push. Yeah there is always someone you pushes you so far that instead of doing well you end up crashing due to all the pressure that's being put on you.
DeleteMy parents have very high expectations for me, and one of those expectations is to receive an 90% or higher in every class. My family has taught me that without an education we won't succeed and be successful in our lives and that all great leaders and people who have made change in the world have all received an education. My teachers and school set high expectations for me too just like my family, of which I am very thankful for and grateful for. My friends also set high expectations for me because they believe in me and they know what I'm capable of doing either it's in school or swimming. I do feel pressured almost all of the time. At home, when finally arriving at about 8:30pm everyday after a long day from school and swimming. I come home extremely tired and don't really have energy to start doing my homework but I always think to myself hard work, hard work, hard work is what gets people far in life and I can't quit and let my family, friends, society and myself down. In class, there have been many days where I am really too tired and feel like laying my head down because I didn't get sleep the night before but I keep my head up. I keep my head up because there are many people in this world including myself, that count on me to be successful in life and make a change in the world and I always remember that there's a light at the end of the tunnel. In that light at the end of the tunnel there is where all of my family, friends and community will see the change that I will have made in the world.
ReplyDelete-Anthony Vargas, 9LE
i agree with you Anthony. is what they say, without an education theres no success !
DeleteAnthony, I agree with you for several reasons. My parents also have very high expectations for me and even though I sometimes disappoint them, they still continue to have those expectations because they know if I keep trying I will end up being successful. My parents taught me that education is the key to a good life, and they set their lives as an example for me since they weren't able to finish school because of the hard times in the Dominican Republic. I agree with you also with feeling pressured. You are into swimming Anthony and I think you'll feel more pressured than I do but even though I am not involved in anything big like you, I feel pressured to due to my homework every night and sometimes I just so exhausted that I don't try my best but no matter what, I still turn in the assignment because I know that if my parents had the opportunity to go back in the time and have a completed education they will. My parents aren't the only one's who support, so I agree completely that my family friends and community support me as well and they make me determined because I would want to make everyone proud one day and make them see what all the effort put in to push me to do better has done. -Kathy Tavarez, 9LE
DeleteI do agree with Anthony because I say the majority of people I know have high expectations for me. Yes i was raised as a kid that an "80% is just an 80% but, a 100% is for you," my mom used to say that. When I brought home a 90% my mom tells me every time where are those remaining ten points. I used to think about that during test and I felt the pressure but, I never let it get to me. However, i felt that when I brought the 100% home i felt ignored. I know the reason why my mother ignores me. She ignores me because I am suppose to bring that home all the time and be accustomed to succeeding now because once your older you would have the mind set of succeeding due to your childhood. I understand how you feel but, we need to "takeover" the feeling of being pressured because the spotlight is on us and we might regret it now but later when we grow up if we didn't maintain the spotlight you would want it again. Why should we let ourselves be pressured if pressure is what causes us to succeed?
Deletepara comenzar yo pienso que nuestros padres nos ensenan la disiplina que ellos un dia aprendieron. ellos siempre quieren lo mejor para nosotros y que tengamos la mejor educacion posible para llegar lejos algun dia. aunque hay muchos obstaculos y personas quienes siempre buscan la manera de destruinos y hacen que nos sintamos mal yo pienso que la unica manera de seguir adelante es que cada ves que te caigas le vantate , no importa quien este o no este al rededor tuyo.
ReplyDeletei agree with anthony, is what they say without education there's no success!
ReplyDeleteBrian Concepción
ReplyDeletePara mí, mi familia siempre tiene grandes expectativas para mí como una persona y estudiante. Mi mamá, especialmente es la que siempre está empujándome a usar toda mi inteligencia para sacar una buen nota a lo último en clase. Después de eso es mi responsabilidad de usar las estrategias que ella y los maestros me enseñaron en mis estudios. Después de eso, como una persona mi mamá, y mi familia me confían, y esperan lo mejor de mí en respecto de mis responsabilidades.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMy parents expect to do 100% in school, my friends expect me to do well in the class and don't be lazy.My teachers expect me to do better in my classes.The society expect me to be a professional in the future. My goal is to get in a college with high grades.
ReplyDeleteMy parents have very high expectations for me in school. They want me to get very high grades so that I can go to college. When i get bad grades in school they get very dissapointed. Since my parents have these expectations for me I trie my hardest to get good grades in school. So far I have succeded in doing well in school Iusually get 85-90 on classes. Students in my class think that I am very smart because my grades are high. Since they think that I am really smart I want to continue to do well in school so that they don't think i'm stupid. Another reason why I do good in school is because my community say very bad things about teenagers in my community since some of them are in gangs. I want to prove that I am not one of those bad people that steal from people or cutting school. I feel that all the pressure that adults are giving to kids in our community are good for them because this can help them stay in school and not outside doing bad things. If it wasn't for the support that adults give us some of the students that are still in schol woudn't be their now.
ReplyDelete“Half or more of Black, Hispanic and Native American youth in the United States are getting left behind before high school graduation while 75 percent of white students graduated from high school in 2001, only 50 percent of all Black students, and 53 percent of all Hispanic students got a high school diploma in the same year.” Now all these statistics sounds crazy and unbelievable to me. Why are Black and Hispanic students at the low rank of graduating high school? As a Hispanic girl that grew up in Washington Heights from two Dominican parents, this worry's me. I am expected to succeed in school and outside of school; especially my mom she puts a lot of pressure on me and has high expectations for me. One of the expectations is to have at least an 80% OR HIGHER in all my classes. Not to give up and to have try very hard in all my classes. In school I am under a lot of stress as well. For example, in school teachers expect you to have all your homework and assignments completed if not their would be some type of consequence. Since teachers expect me to have all my work done I try to do it and be a good student even if I don’t like the class. But for me education comes first, and I try to do well and succed. Also, in WHEELS we are expected to succed in school and outside of school and become great persons for socity. I am always feeling pressure and under stress with my grades because I always try to improve and do better. My mom is always tellig me to go study whenever she sees me on the computer. Afterall, for me there is flexability to be who I want to be also social pressure plays a big role. I am a nice person and most times my grades refelcte it as well. I would like that the statistics change of graduation percent of Black and Hispanic students!I think that these statistics have changed and improved over the past years. We can all do it no matter where we come from, because if Junot Diaz did it and he grew up in a poor neighborhood then we can all do it! if we belive in our self’s and set goals then is possible.Furthermore, I think that small/beginning schools like WHEELS are taking the initiative in making sure that neighborhoods with low income also succeed in education.
ReplyDeleteMy family expect the best from me meaning that i need to both graduate college and high school to become successful in life and accomplish my goals.I to expect that from myself to graduate high school and college with exceptional grades.They expect me to try my hardest in all my classes and at lease receive an 85% or above if possible.My parents set a very high expectation for me on my work my friends do too but all i can do is try my hardest.Kids should exceed the expectation but remember that they tried there hardest and that is what matters and even if they don't get to the greatest colleges they leave with the satisfaction of knowing they've done their best
ReplyDeleteI feel expectations form your parents are suppose to be high. What parent does want to see their kid surpass them as a person. Anybody my mom has ever talk to and met me always said i got a good future. My mom couldn't finish her education because she had responsibilities raising me. So I feel I owe both of us a degree in something. Plus I already know I'm going to be the same way with my kids so i got a degree making good money then they cant talk back.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Erika and Sixto. Parents expect thier children to do good or better said great in school and this is not encountering how hard school really is. Books are a part of our everyday lives and if we dont take advantage of school, we will loose the great oppurtunity we are capable of having. This is the reason that we all aim for success and try our hardest to succeed in school and in life. Our families want the best for us but there will always be someone who will try to throw us off the cliff and throw our dreams away but in order to not let that happen and reach our goals in school and in life, we must try our hardest and most important of all, we cant give up. Setting an example for others and becoming thier rolemodels means alot to me especially since reaching my success in school does too.
ReplyDeleteMy parents always tell me that school is my only responsibility. That if I am not doing good in school then it is like I am not doing anything with my life. If my parents see a failing grade in my report card they don't leave me alone until I fix it and I believe that this is because they care about my grade as much as I do and I do appreciate that. They do sometimes push too much that that can make things worst sometimes .But parents expect their kids to graduate from high school and work their way to a good college which are most of our goals too because as a right now school and good grades are our only responsibilities. I believe that all parents want is the best for their kids and doing good in school is the best for us.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Katy because my parents also tell me that school is my responsibility. My parents expect me to do good in school because they want me to be someone with a good job when i grow up. My mom often gets mad at me when i have a low grade in a class and i understand her. That't why i do better in class because i know that she just wants the best for me. My dad also wants me to go to college just like my sister right now. Not only my parents but also my family, my aunts want my cousins to graduate from high school and from college also. I need to study in my house or stay after school so i can have good grades in school and so i can be ready for college.
DeleteI agree with katy because my parents always tell me that school is my only responsibility and that the only thing i have to do in my house is get good grades. I do believe our parents push us hard to do our best in school because they want us to be successful in the future. I do known my mom wants me to go to a good college and be very successful when I'm older but in order to do that I have to do good through out my high school year.
Delete-Arlin Guillen
I agree with Katy, parents feel like school is our job and we have to succeed in it. Its basically what is shaping our personalities and our future life. In my case sometimes I just think of school as school and not as a job, but then again friends and teachers are the ones that make me want to actually feel like its a responsibility that I must take care of and that if I don't, than I'm not doing anything right. Its a sense of accomplishment when you've worked really hard for a grade and a strong sense of failure you feel when you don't get the grade you were aiming for.
ReplyDeleteMy parents expect me 70% it depends on what I do in school and how the grades are near good average if I am student. If was like a person they think that I am a quite a person like my father so it show what I am. My teachers expect me to try to talk more often and participate on in class to show that you know that you are learning. My friends expect to try to talk louder so they can hear for what I am saying. I feel pressure sometimes if I don’t the answer of the question or I need help on something with a teacher I feel pressure. The most pressure is to go many places to do many things to increase the stress so I always tired. I believe that social pressure doesn’t affect what you do in your life or what are you shaped with for the problems that affected the person.
ReplyDeleteMy parents expect so much things from me as a student, they want me to get 85's and above, and they don't want me to slack off at school for any reason, they want me to the best of the best, so they set goals for school for me, they take my video games, so i can't get distracted at all. As for a person, they want me to live my life to fullest, by doing what i need to do at work, taking care of my own health, and also taking care of younger siblings and cousins in this generation. as my parents always say "Think BEFORE you act"and what my parents mean by that is that they don't want me to do things right away, they want me to put some thought on what i want to do.And they also tell me don't think about love to much, there's a different time for that.
ReplyDeleteMy parents are always telling me to do my Homework before I play Playstation 3. They also tell em that I also need to get atleast an 85% or above on my grade if I want to go camping in the summer. Every time my mom comes home she always tells me "did you do your homework. My friends always tell me to do good in school so that we can have a road trip when we finish college. I dont feel any pressure because I have friend that have my back when i need it and my family because they help me when they know that Im depressed. The people I know help me with my problem,grades,and social problems
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DeleteI agree with Junot Diaz because he was a teenager before and he knows about it. My parents expect something from me and they don't know how hard it is for teenager to be great students. In school we as students should give our best to be successful and to do great things in the future. In the U.S and around the world teenagers choose not to graduate but they should because without it we can't be someone in life. When Junot Diaz said that is hard to be a teenager i understood because every adult in life knows how hard it is. Teenagers should graduate because school is the path to survival.
ReplyDelete-Alfha Gonzalez
I agree with most of the students who have written stuff. My parent don't and wont accept less than 95%. I just care if i am passing but no because my parents don't understand that i am passing and i really don't care by how much. i feel that parents with high expectations are going to stress their children out and cause a mental break down. The student will be getting pushed away from where they see and feel stress to a much more easier way to avoid the stress and still get an education.-Keanu abreu 9LE
ReplyDeleteI understand that every parent have high expectations for their child and expect them to try to reach those high expectations but the thing is that as we are reaching higher school grade like 9th, 10th etc. We the students have a lot on mind and try so hard and we get a grade that we wont expect to get. For me, my mom always tells me not to make the same mistakes that she did, she wants me to get atleast above a 90% in almost all my classes but I tell her that sometimes its alittle to hard to get high grades knowing that work each year gets harder and the work is required a lot of work. I know that for some students that when they study for a test or quiz and when they take the test or quiz they end up getting very nervous and just forget the important facts and panick. Its normal because that always happens to me but over the years for certain things I can relax and end up remembering what I need to remember.
ReplyDeleteI myself have expectations but none that I know that will be very hard to reach. My expectation is in the beginning of the school to get above a 85% then during the middle I set another and I try to keep that exectation until I know that I can continue with it. I learned that parents only wants what is best for their child or kids, but what they dont understand is how hard it is to be pressured by the teachers and the parents themselves. Therefore, my expectations aren't as high but ones I know I can do.
-Rachelle 9SM
My parents expect me to do very well in school. They always say to do your best as you can and give as much energy for your work as much as you can. They also say that if you need help on a problem or even a lession, dont just sit there and expect to know everything by yourslef, dont be afraid to ask questions and ask for help if you need it. I say to always try your best. Even thought almost everyone says that, i say to give it 100% all or if you want or should be going for is that 110% to reach your high goals.
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ReplyDeleteThere is many expectations that are required for us in WHEELS and from our families. My mom wants me to do the best that I can and this reminds me of how i was reading the article and he said that even though he didn't do great in school his mom still said that he was brilliant. He says "During his high school senior year, Díaz was absent 130 days. He had a GPA of 1.7. But his mother never called him stupid or told him he would end up in prison.
ReplyDeleteInstead, she kept saying, "This kid is going to be brilliant.""
I think that his mom is right about not being judged. Everybody has their own abilities. WHEELS teachers want us to be successful through college and high school and that we can do better then mastery. I do think that everybody can do a good job but nobody is perfect.
There is a little pressure for me to do good for school for many reasons. One is that my mom wants me to graduate high school and college for me to have a better future.This is important for me because it shows how she wants me to succeed on my education. Second thing is that I want to have a good based career on what I want to do. I don't want to end up doing a job I don't love. This is important because at times there isn't many people who like their jobs.-Channel Santiago 9SM
I think that for his motherthat didn't low down his self esteem was good. This is something that couldv'e motive him to be the person he is now. This can also be a motive to those whom aren't considered as part of a normal lifed person.
DeleteI think that for his motherthat didn't low down his self esteem was good. This is something that couldv'e motive him to be the person he is now. This can also be a motive to those whom aren't considered as part of a normal lifed person.
DeleteWhat my parents and grandparents expect me to do is that they expect me to go to and through college just like the saying in wheels that Mr.Kimmel says. I don't have an option because my mom and dad and grandmother and basically everyone in my family tells me that i can't fail and that i have got to go to college and fail any of my grades. My mom went to college and she was studying to be an accountant..but she never got to finish college so that's all i know. I do not know anyone that has actually completed college. Although i can follow in my cousin's steps. My uncle's daughter in California is in her last year of High School and is going into college next year. That's how i want to be like. My cousin hasn't even failed grades once and she is even taking AP courses. Sometimes i feel that I am being a little pressured so it's a little difficult for me to concentrate with all pressure. Recently i have been so far failing Geometry and I am very low in English class. I will do anything in my power not to fail any grade and the worst part is that if I don't get an 80% or above on my regents for geometry i will not be able to get something important for college. So right now i will not give up and i will try my hardest to do my best.
ReplyDeleteByron Garcia, 9LE
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ReplyDeleteWherever we end up in life, there will be pressure. But for most of us, it comes from our families. In mine, I am supposed to be so many different things. From my grandmother, I should be doing so much better in my classes, I could have a high 90 in a class but it just still isnt enough. So to her, it might never be good enough. But I deal with it. My mother is more understanding. Due to her past experiences in her high school years, she can understand why I might not have the best grades. But she does try to motivate me to do better, but it can just be hard. For myself, I just want to enjoy my teenage years, these only come once, but I also want to do well in school, but like I said before, it can be hard, esspecially with other things on our minds like a heartbreak, a death, a sickness etc. and its not helping when you have a teacher/parent yelling at you to focus. Schools tend to think we dont have other things to do in life (even though they say they know we have lives and understand, it feels as if they dont) then they also think we wont mess up, as if we all get along like ink on paper. We will argue, we will fight, and things we say you will not like, its just humane (in certain situations). Other times friends expect that we must be party animals, and stay out all night and sleep my day away. Its not my fault I might not go to a strangers house, not know what happened in the morning and look a mess throughout the whole way. I restrict myself, and I want to make smart choices because I dont want to look like some kind of delinquint. I am a regular teenager. The best part is that I am myself, and not acting like someone I am not to be in certain crowds. So people can expect the most, or the least from me, but I am still going to do the best I can, for myself and my future and whoever is in it.
ReplyDeleteAmanda-
DeleteI like how you consider the perspectives from all the different people in your life but then default to your own value system as you make choices... Very mature and balanced way to approach the tough decisions in life
For starters my family has high expectations for me. I guess everyone in my family thinks I should do as good as my sister has done in school. She had straight A's in all her classes when she was at Randolph and even had Mr. Espin as a History teacher. My sister was able to get into all the colleges of her choice and with a scholarship to all. I understand why my family would want me to have success in my life. There's already one person to look up to. Sometimes I wonder if people actually notice that I also have high expectations for myself aswell. Getting a bad grade on a test or in general in a class kills me. Not only because I'd be dissappointing my family but I'd be dissapointing myself too. Well in my opinion I think everyone should try and be successful. For example, there are people out there trying to mess up or "take out" latin cultures. Statistics show that Hispanics/Latinos have a higher rate than other races in getting into colleges but actually not finishing. If our generation 'se pone las pilas' we can change those statistics and show the world that we can be successful like others.
ReplyDelete_Yesenia.
I agree with Junot because is true. Parents want you to succeed and be some one important in life but sometimes teenagers don't feel important because like Junot said, they get hear broken a lot. It does not matter who brakes their heart. Also is not only parents is also the teachers, they are always pressuring you to work hard. Friends can pressure you to do something that you don't want to do. If you don't choose your friends wisely some will step all over you and others will pick you up and dust you off. In the other hand Society just pressures you until your braking point. Society makes you feel like you are not worth anything.The only way you can feel comfortable in your world is to be yourself and to ignore what people say. It may hurt but life is like that when you are a teenager
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteMy family has high expectations for me to graduate college or dedicate myself to a sport and become someone famous.Sometimes i don't worry a lot about school because i worry more about my football practices and think about how good i want to be when i get older.However, my mom tells me if you want to make it to the NFL one day you're gonna have to to do good at school so i can play for a good college football team.I don't have high expectations for myself because i know can do well at anything in school but i just distract myself thinking about other things.Also I agree with Yesenia Negron about latinos not finishing college in statistics or going to college and not finishing.That inspires me to do better at school because I have big dreams to be a football player like Victor Cruz and Mark Sanchez who are both latino football stars and represent us a lot. In my opinion I think you should not worry about getting heartbroken along the way like Junior said just think about the great things you can be and do when your'e successful._Fernando Gomez 9SM
ReplyDeleteFernando,
DeleteI love how you are always connecting sports with life... Success can look more than one way- great post!
Great response Fernando. I agree with you. My family too has high expectations for me, especially my mom. She expects me to have 95 or higher in all of my classes. Every time I bring an exam home or some type of quiz that I don't receive a 100%, she asks me why. She wants me to be something that she never was. She expects me to get into one of the best colleges and to get a scholarship. I also agree with what you said about getting distracted with other things. Sometimes I am a very lazy person and when I get home I just take a nap and leave my homework for the last minute. Other times I just think about Mindless Behavior all the time and I leave school for last. But my mom always tells me that whatever I want to be when I'm older, I need an education. With an education I can be whoever I want, do whatever I want and go wherever I want. I also agree with Yesenia about latinos not finishing college. Whenever I see the statistics I want to be one of the ones that changes the numbers to a better one. Education is very necessary, and with it we can do whatever. Its like having wings. We shouldn't let anyone tell us that we can't and if they do, prove them wrong. Stay Mindless -Arlene Salcedo♥.
DeleteConsidering the fact that my parents are immigrants and me being their eldest child, they have very high expectations from me, they have high hopes for me to succeed, and to set a good example for my baby sister. There's definitely pressure by your parents to get into to college, their always nagging you saying that you have to do everything you can to be very successful as an adult. In addition there's pressure from, you teachers because they want you to succeed as well, having friends around you can bring even more pressure because you want to succeed and go to college with your, being from a society like Washington Heights, there are a lot of low expectations considering the graduation rates, compared to such schools in California for example. I agree with Junot because there's moments where you have heartbreaks, and it affects your behavior and ability to learn, pay attention and do well in class.
ReplyDeleteFor me my grades are the most important goals for me so far. My grades right now will influence my future which is why I always push myself further and further through life. I know that there will be times where things get harder, but it is also when I know I have to give in more effort and keep on trying even harder. I always maintain a goal in the back of my head so that I stay motivated and excited to reach my goal and make it big in the world. The things and people that are around me reflect my mood and how I am trying which is why at times I rather be a loner than in a group of friends. Are there times I will ever be tented to give up? Yeah but I know that when things get tough I need to keep on trying and do whatever I can to reach that goal. I know that at times I slack but when I realize that what I am doing is wrong, I give it my all and it shows in my grades when there are in the 90's throughout the whole page. I do it for my family first, and then for me. It feels good to make your family proud but when you feel confident and successful, THAT is one of the best feelings of all. I can do it with or without people. All I know is that I have to keep on going even through all the stubbles on the road to success.
ReplyDeleteMy family expects from me is to succeed in school and pass all my class 90's and above.My mother specifically want me to be more successful than she was for I can get a good job and get not have money problems and the only way to do that is by graduating high school and college with a beneficial diploma.All my teacher expect to get good grade to get in to the college of my choose or dream.My peers and friend hope of the best I can and to stay in school to have a good education.I believe I can live to my exception just like other in the world.
ReplyDeleteParents are always expecting that we do good now that we are young so that when we are mature we can be independent and have a good life. Parents are always trying to educate us the way it has to be because in the future it prevents us for making a mistakes and living a unhappy life. The same thing happens with teachers. They always look out to you. They always help you try to do your best. You feel pressured if you live in a different environment away from other things that you are surrounded.
ReplyDeleteJuan-
ReplyDeleteMy parents always have high expectations for me. They believe that I will become great and always keep pushing me to try my best. Even teachers are the same way. They give you challenges that continues to builds up every school year and really it's stressful. I think to myself that I want to enjoy my few youth years left but at the same time I want to be better at school. You have to sacrifice either one to get the other. It's a tough and hard life we have to follow. It's a haunting and scaring feeling as well when you have thoughts of people's expectations for you. I know. I always had those had those feelings in my conscious, the feeling of failing someones expectations. "Men are not prisoners to fate, but only prisoners to their own minds" a quote said by Franklin D. Roosevelt. I kept that quote in the back of mind one I read that and made change a few things in me. That I'm not suppose to live towards everyones expectations but the one who I want expectation to meet is my own and I don't want to look back towards my years at school and see that I didn't try my very best when I could have.
Brilliant!
DeleteMy parents expect to do good in school and have good grades because they want me to have a good future. Also my parents also support me for I could have confidence. Also the teachers support you in school because they are the ones to prepares us for college. My friends also support me because they know that I could it and continue to have a good future.
ReplyDelete-Roberto Nuñez 9VO
My parents expect me to be successful in school. They are always giving me advise on why is always good to go to school and why is school helpful for my future. They get worried when I get low grades, and feel really proud when I get high grades. They are always expecting the best for me but, they never put pressure on me. If im doing bad in a certain class they always telling me to join any afterschool programs in order to increase my grades. They always let me speak out my choices and we always end up on a good agreement. Otherwise, with my friends is really different. I have friends who actually try to be successful in school along with me, and always talking about what we can do when we having trouble in a class. I have other friends who tell me that school is worthless, that there is no reason for it. I personally was never pressured by no one to go to school, although my parents always expects me to attend school. Additionally, with my teachers I also try to make an agreement to whats happening during school. They help me and other a lot in many different ways.
ReplyDeleteAs a child growing up we need to strive for the better. Our parents help us strive for the better by giving us the confidence boost that we need. Sometimes we can feel pressured because society, media, family, and other things can be over whelming. We are only teenagers but we have to accept our responsibility to make better for ourselves. For girls it's a little hectic coming from Washington Heights where the money is tight we are minorities if we like it or not, so we do have to strive for the better.
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ReplyDeleteparents expectations of this generation of teens is to do good in school not do drugs work for a future and be good role models for the next generation. teachers expectations for this generation of students/teens is do get good grades go to collage find a good job don't do drugs and tell other the same and to report anything that happens, to the authority's.yes i do feel a bit pressured to be something that other people want me to be because they think it is best for me and will make me happy but its not true happiness if the person doing it made the choice to do it's just doing something to get people of your back.in a way this does shape who i am in personality i guess i like to stand out to feel like im not beaning controlled by anyone i do things to break free from other people's expectations maybe if adults would let my generation make their own expectations then they would see with their own eyes that my generation is not one full of lazy teens who do drugs ,and fight for the little things that they hear but to see us for growing adults setting out to the world one step at a time trying to find what we would like to be in life, us searching for the one thing that we would contribute to this world that would make us happy knowing that we did our part for other people and the following generation, but the way we like it.
ReplyDeletesean
As a student , my mother wants me to do good in school , to try my hardest , to be number one, to seek out success, to prove everyone wrong and get an education but sometimes I feel as a student , my mother gives me no support in education but I also feel like its because she doesn't know how hard it is and because she never had one. In the other case, my father had a better education than my mom but it wasn't good either. He however motivates me even more and more understanding. He helps me open my eyes and go to school because education is key. I feel stressed in school all the time because teachers expect soo much from us. I mean , thats great because it shows that they treat us like young adults and that they think we are responsible enough to handle a specific amount of work. In the other hand , as students, it's hard because sometimes we have other things to do or problems that enables us to do these things. For me, I get stresssed out very much when a work load is given. I try to convince myself to do it because I want to show my teachers that I can be successful and pursue my life dreams. Many times I give up and I have noone to guide me and motivate me while doing homework. I think as teens we need to just try our hardest since we are the next generation and need to absolutly make a change. I want to be a figure , not the crowd or the press because I want to represent my generation in a good form not what any newstory or foriegn people think. Therefore, education is essential.
ReplyDelete