a happy rant slash a thank you

I have done more than my fair share of complaining about all things in and around education. I still stand by every one of these claims I have made or regurgitated but after today I need to make it blindingly obvious that everything I adore about school outweighs the flaws a billion to one.

In sociology, at GCSE specifically, we do a lot of evaluation on how big of a part school plays in comparison to that of your own family, the media etc. What I am getting at after a really rather overwhelming day is that school itself, and it's structure, is shit. (Swearing is ok, I have decided, as long as you back it up with the argument that each swear word is utterly socially constructed and instead of dwelling on my use of it you should probably dwell on why we have given meaning to a random string of four letters.) Yes, school limits people from certain backgrounds and doesn't teach the things it should and has such a huge potential blah blah blah everything I have ever gone on about recently. At the start of this academic year I led a few parent tours for prospective parents around my school, trying to persuade them to send their children to us. In a wave of brutal honesty I engaged in conversation with a woman who vocalised exactly what was on my lips: every school has to be run at a certain standard (arguably). But let's talk theoretical and essentially - with a pinch of wishful thinking - every school has guidelines and standards which mean that at whichever state comprehensive/academy/whatever you are going to get much of a muchness. While I know this is not even a valid point if it was this is the thing: as I told this parent in September, it is the way we as the students choose to interact with what is available to us.

In comparing school to friends and family in terms of a network of solid support I can't make too much of a clear difference. The support provided is obviously completely different and incomparable but the effect and value I place on them is equal. Today was the last real day of my form tutor/English teacher being at my school. I have actually forgotten why I started writing this - today has been as horrendous as is has been bizarre. Individual people have incredible capabilities to change who you are as a person in such short and temporary periods of time. You absorb them and learn from them and change and this change can't ever be measured until you are forced to acknowledge it. I can't say if this is specific to the schools I have been in and I really hope it is not, but there are some incredible, fantastic, wonderful people alive and if they happen to be teaching at your school then please realise it. I want to change people's lives and the way they think and I want to know that despite all these horrid things which are wrong with our society, there are people who care and believe and try to make a difference against all odds. There definitely are. Having someone believe in you who isn't obliged to through genetic means is worth the world. 

Sought out these people. I feel incredibly lucky to have had the support of people like this. Be inspired.

This has been really bloody cringey and I am mentally exhausted but also so very grateful. That is literally all - I now need to find a way to tell my mum that my phone charger is in school without getting killed and I don't think I can get out of it using the phrase social construct.