Personal Reflection

     Growing up, my entire reality of what the education system looked like was solely based on the American way. The country I grew up in shaped how I viewed school and created a way to measure a successful education system. Kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, and high school ultimately prepared students for college. Continuing my education beyond high school was never a question in my life. The next phase of life obviously included undergraduate school.

     College isn’t the reality for everyone in America, obviously. Plenty of people decide to immediately join the workforce, serve our country, or follow their dreams. American society has created this ideal educational experience that is completely situational. A student’s potential after school isn’t based on which secondary school you were directed to or how long you decided to make your transition year. American students’ opportunities are reliant on educational history and social class. As discriminatory as it may seem, students are defined by test scores and academic achievements starting at an early age. The emphasis throughout schooling was generally on meeting specific test scores on things such as the MCA’s and NWEA’s.

     Once in high school, your grades define your opportunities. The higher the grades, the “better,” university you will continue to. A combination of grade point average and test scores determine your future. Expensive tuition and student loans are a factor in many students’ lives. The hefty price tags deter many students and social class often decides what university a student will attend. Once a student has completed their four years in high school, the option to continue to the university is almost assumed. In my graduating class, roughly 80% of students continued their education after high school. The decision of what university to attend and what to major was the focus throughout school. Teachers, counselors, tutors, and mentors all emphasized the importance for college. In my experience, the American education system is incredibly geared towards the continuation of students beyond high school, meeting state requirements, and testing students. 

     Throughout my education in kindergarten, elementary school, and middle school, there were more tests, but students all stayed in the same set of schools. There weren’t separate schools for smarter kids or kids that had less potential. All students were given an equal opportunity throughout these early years. We were all taught the same subjects and measured our learning by standardized tests. Our first big test each student took was in our junior or senior year of high school. The American version of the German Abitur was either the ACT or the SAT. Our classes were primarily comprised of classes focused on subjects such as history, English, math, and science. We have some classes for finance, cooking, psychology, and other subjects, but there aren’t many schools with programs like Ireland’s transition year.

     This perspective may seem overly critical of a successful education system that America has developed. Yes, there are definite downfalls to the way the American educational systems measures success, how grades define students, and how everything leads and prepares students for the four year university and often shames students who chose various paths, however this system is extremely successful. America created a fully-functional system that prepares millions of students for life after high school. In my experiences, I was a strong supporter in the education system. After graduating high school, I felt incredibly equipped and prepared for college, I had mastered reading, writing, and certain areas of math, history, and science. Although the system has flaws, there is no denying the great things the schools provide and teach their students.

     Without the experience of traveling and having these cross-cultural interactions and experiences, I honestly don’t think I’d have the same attitude about other countries and their education systems. Experiencing different ways of teaching children has eliminated any sense of ethnocentrism I previously felt. Sometime throughout my research, I truly began to understand equifinality within a specific context. We’d spent weeks studying the word and applying it to different aspects of this trip, but as I learned more about other schools systems, I began to see understand how interesting and important equifinality is. Obviously, America and various European countries have extremely different systems. Both continents are successful and educate millions of students every year, but educate in extremely different ways. This research helped me understand that no way is the “right way.” There is no specific way that works the best. There doesn’t need to be a superior way. Both countries have equal, yet different education systems and that is completely okay.

     In Ireland, I had one of the most influential moments in my definition of equifinality. The integrated of religion and education within the public school system shocked me, but also interested me. I was fascinated by the way the public embraced religion and it was considered a “forbidden topic,” like back home. It was so cool to see how the students were able to learn about either Catholicism or Protestantism. Although I loved the thought of this integration, it was hard to admit that it would never be possible within the United States. While the idea sounds so amazing and so many would benefit from this change, it would not be accepted.

     Throughout my research, it not only forced me to think about other countries and their education systems, but also forced my to reevaluate my definition of education as a whole. If you would have asked me three months ago what defined education, I probably would have replied using the words classroom, textbook, or teacher. Ask me now, and I would reply using words like experience, cultures, and conversation. This project helped me transform my perspective and helped me realize that some of my greatest learning has been wandering around foreign cities, talking to others in a hotel room, or experience other cultures and realizing my own reality isn’t the only one. This trip and this project specifically opened my eyes to what education truly is and how learning is not confined to classrooms and textbooks.

     Whether German/Austrian, Irish, or American, students are being educated. the gift of reading, writing, math, history, science, foreign languages, and so much more are equipping students with the skills they need to succeed in life. At the end of the day, education is education. Education is not bound to classrooms, tests, age, textbooks, geographical boundaries, or anything else. Education is something experienced daily. Through reading, conversation, and experiences, people of any ethnicity, religion, age, or social class can learn and grow.