Circumstances that Affected My Academic Performance
Any circumstances that may have affected your academic performance in high school (e.g., family, work, personal, economic) may be included below. (Maximum 4,000 characters.)
Circumstances that have affected my academic performance in high school are the English language and cultural differences. Although I acquired U.S. citizenship, I didn’t know how to speak English; I could only say “How are you?” Also American culture shook up my values.
In august 2009, I had my first international trip from South Korea to America; Tucson, Arizona. It was actually immigration. At that time, I only knew basic English and used it for survival; I knew only the minimum. I entered a private school, called Desert Christian High School, in my sophomore year. The school’s counselor put me in regular classes and as expected, I fell behind. Math class was fine because it didn’t require reading skills much. However, the rest of the five subjects out of six were problems.
My first reading assignment in English class was The Tale of Two Cities; which was even hard for classmates to understand. I read and read and read the book. To understand one page, sometimes I spent hour. After school, the rest of my day was devoted to homework. I had a hard time and sometimes I wanted to go back to Korea. However, everyone in my school was kind and understanding, so most of the time they were patient with me until I finished my sentences and they answered my questions until I totally understood. When I had questions on homework, I visited subject teachers more than three times a day, but they were never annoyed by me. Even if I only studied in private school the first semester of sophomore year, until I transferred to public school, I could learn how to deal with people and overcome school obstacles, and was encouraged to conquer my second thoughts.
In the second semester of sophomore year, I transferred to public school, Sahuaro High School. My parents mentioned that I could learn more socially
Circumstances that have affected my academic performance in high school are the English language and cultural differences. Although I acquired U.S. citizenship, I didn’t know how to speak English; I could only say “How are you?” Also American culture shook up my values.
In august 2009, I had my first international trip from South Korea to America; Tucson, Arizona. It was actually immigration. At that time, I only knew basic English and used it for survival; I knew only the minimum. I entered a private school, called Desert Christian High School, in my sophomore year. The school’s counselor put me in regular classes and as expected, I fell behind. Math class was fine because it didn’t require reading skills much. However, the rest of the five subjects out of six were problems.
My first reading assignment in English class was The Tale of Two Cities; which was even hard for classmates to understand. I read and read and read the book. To understand one page, sometimes I spent hour. After school, the rest of my day was devoted to homework. I had a hard time and sometimes I wanted to go back to Korea. However, everyone in my school was kind and understanding, so most of the time they were patient with me until I finished my sentences and they answered my questions until I totally understood. When I had questions on homework, I visited subject teachers more than three times a day, but they were never annoyed by me. Even if I only studied in private school the first semester of sophomore year, until I transferred to public school, I could learn how to deal with people and overcome school obstacles, and was encouraged to conquer my second thoughts.
In the second semester of sophomore year, I transferred to public school, Sahuaro High School. My parents mentioned that I could learn more socially