Expectations vs Reality: Freshmen

Many students are familiar with this feeling.

(stresshack)

Many students are familiar with this feeling.

Haven Pink, Writer

By: Haven Pink

Freshman year can be a nerve-wracking experience for many. No matter what people say or how tough they act, there is always the scary anticipation of the unknown that is high school. Coming into high school there are many expectations. Ranging from getting lost and the anticipation of exclusive cliques to the upper classmen shoving you in lockers. Sometimes though, reality surprises us. Expectations compared to the reality can be vastly different and something funny to look back on. Brylee Music, a senior at Capital High School, explained after recalling, “I expected a lot of cliques and all the upperclassmen to be extremely mean.” After being questioned whether her expectations were met and if it was better or worse, Music’s response was, “It wasn’t really like anything I expected, in a good way. Yeah, there were some set groups but really everyone intermingled. I didn’t feel there were any restrictions on who could talk to who or who could do what. It was better, much better. I branched out and made a lot of friends. Classes weren’t as hard as I thought they were going to be.”

Trying to get a variety of responses from different grade levels, Casey Kinnersley, sophomore, answered a similar set of questions. “I didn’t come into high school with any expectations. I didn’t think it would be any different than middle school.” Casey was asked if her assumptions were accurate and if not was it any better or worse than what she assumed, “I was pretty spot on. At times it’s better and at times it’s worse so it’s a little of both. ” A few responses from a group of freshmen showed that some had limited or no expectations, but a few, like Jesiah and Colton, did. “I was really nervous,” Jesiah said. “I was coming into a very large school with no friends. I moved from away before school started. It’s stressful, but the people are a lot friendlier that what I though. It’s generally better, the teachers are nice and so are the students.” “My main fear and expectation was getting lost, this school is crazy big and the lay out isn’t exactly easy,” Colton responded. “It was actually easier than I thought though. Once I got my hands on a map I had it down.” Jason Shipes, freshman, said, “I figured there would be a lot of cliques. I was really nervous because I didn’t know anyone and was just generally scared. It was actually a really cool school. The students are nice and the upperclassmen are way nicer than I thought.” The expectations of freshman year ranged from the nonexistant to the specific, but regardless, most were pleasantly surprised by their experiences thus far. It goes to show that often perceptions don’t align with reality. Keep this in mind and approach the rest of your year with positivity.