To be a student in high school is best defined in one word, hell. The Media has always portrayed school as a place where teenagers have adult actors, showcasing either the queen bee, with the glamorous wavy hair, power walk, surrounded by groups of sycophants with perhaps 3 or 4 actual friends, all high on the social pyramid. Or perhaps that one nerdy girl, who is supposedly portrayed as the plain Jane at best, or just supposedly plain on ‘ugly’. The adult, makeup actors don’t really fit the bill.
Jocks, nerds, goths, the image of high school has been compartmentalized into these perfect, square little boxes, with nothing in between. And of course, the drama. What cliches there are, the teens have lived through it. Reality is unfortunately much grimmer. While the school does, in fact, serve as most students’ social hub, its topmost focus, is on getting into a good college. Considering today’s high school students withstood the pandemic, this was hardly an easy task. No matter which generation, high school students have all experienced much the same; harsh classes, and limited deadlines, all with even harsher teachers. The stress levels of students are at an all-time high. Personally, I, along with my friends have considered taking an occasional hike to Ledges, and if we somehow ‘slip’ down the cliff, well. There can be worse things happening.
the roaring times
One group that I had seen most affected with the media version was the younger grades, Although we are only a few years apart, there seems to be a chasm between us. But ever since that Friday, I could no longer be blinded to it. To tell the truth, I always regarded the idea of media influencing kids to be exaggerated. That they would come in with certain beliefs, but will see how reality works. How wrong I was. As I was riding the bus home, I heard the news that someone had a stroke on the bus, it was terrible, the paramedics came by to get him to the hospital. But apparently, a 9th grader just, took a picture of him convulsing. I couldn’t understand, and I managed to talk to an acquaintance, a lower grade, who told me of the appalling situation in middle school. Where in a social pyramid, no one truly cares of what happens, except to climb. Is it enough to cause such appalling behavior? My fellow bus rider believed so.