In A World Where Youth Hold The Power....

 How was your youth?

As a child I went through to catholic school from kindergarten through middle school. Once I hit high school I decided for myself to go to a public school, I had a better high school experience than some people and the transition did not affect me. When I looked around me in this big school that one grade was bigger than the previous school I came from it was a rough first day going from class to class not knowing much but that was the worst of my experience. I joined sports and made friends which made it even better. Overall, I had a decent high school experience but with such a huge school there was some students that did not have such an experience. I had family in the same school as I was, eventually I graduated and they did not. This is where I relate to the article In a World Where Youth Hold The Power.

That's me the day of graduation. (I had a major headache at graduation)
Photo: http://patch.com/rhode-island/woonsocket/villa-novan-grads-celebrate-four-years-of-hard-work

I was fortunate to be able to graduate within the four year span. When reading the article there were a couple statements that really stuck to me. Nwando Ofokansi said it well when she stated in the article, "YIA is where you realize that youth have much more power than we're given credit for". At the end of my high school career during the college application process I was told to apply for CCRI because 'I had a better chance getting in there than my other choices'. This is where I completely agree with Nwando's statement if life was determined on test scores and classes we would all be not given enough credit for what we can actually do. I also agree with Giovanni's opinion on schools and teachers, "Schools don't seem to grasp this yet (leading with students rather than being the boss of students). Teachers tell you what to think and never actually ask what you need or encourage critical thinking". In school most of the time its either you agree with your teacher or you are wrong. Teachers need to provide a safe environment for students to speak their mind and have a creative environment.

The senior class started in August with about 350 graduates, 
when June came around only 276 actually graduated.
Article: http://read.uberflip.com/i/138248-the-valley-breeze-woonsocket-north-smithfield-6-20-13/9 

The Woonsocket High 2013 graduating class started out with about 350 students and by June dropped to 276 students graduating. There were many factors in this equation but if students were given the support needed for some to pass classes the graduating class may have been larger. Not everyone needs the extra support or will even accept it but having teachers available to help students learn the way they learn best would help some students feel more comfortable in class and in school. This is where the YIA model of notion (leading with..) could have been a helpful resource if it was available in other communities.