Lanier High School - Viking Yearbook (Austin, TX)

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Learning . . . The Freshman Realit can't believe it. Just yesterday I was frolicking in the murky waters of Bull Creek. And three weeks ago was my fourteenth birthday. Now, for entertainment, I write I love Tutall Jones all over my algebra book. The month before school started, I had nightmares every night. Harassed by teachers, stampeded by the entire student body, lost in a maze of classrooms and hallways, and then - thrown down stairs, hit on the head with senior rings, stuffed in garbage cans, and tarred and feathered by upperclassmen who insisted it was all just a part of freshman initiation. School that first day was like stepping into another dream, only this one was a lot better than the ones before. I wasn't stampeded, just occasionally attacked by an Organizer or Bic- Clic pen. To avoid initiation, I worked up a strategy which first called for me to find as many ot my friends as I could. Clt's common knowledge that a lone predator never strikes when it's outnumberedj Also, I should never look lost or bewildered. This is one telltale sign of a freshman and it can really get you into trouble. So right away I started memorizing my schedule and the colors on the doors. For its enormous size, this school has a really relaxed, easy-going atmosphere. People talk to anybody. In junior high everybody wor- ried more about who they were seen with, lf you wanted something and you were some type of jock or cheerleader, you had it made. But if you were just ordinary, you didn't have too much of a chance. l-lere, that's not true. You can do just about anything you want to. What you get out of high school depends mainly on how willing you are to get along with all dillerent kinds ol people. The teachers are more relaxed, too. They don't spend all of their time sniffing around for bubble gum. In tact, most of my teachers encourage chewing gum. They say it relieves the tension. They are more like friends in a way. I guess that's why I like school so much more. They really seem to be concerned about how well we are doing, and they respect us, too. The main problem with my teachers is that my brother and sister had most of them. They expect me to be just like them. But I wasn't. I was completely different from them. But I guess it won't be so tough to get through. l've done it before, I never believed people when they talked about how fun high school was. I can see now that it was the truth. This isn't just your typical humdrum institute. It's last-paced and spirited here. I feel like a part ot things here and I really enjoy myself. Being a freshman isn't even slightly as bad as those nightmares. fo' , 1 'U ... freshman intro 87

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To Think for Qurselves ife at high school was geared for learning. Underneath the slamming lockers, the bustle of people scurrying to class, the rustle of papers being dropped and picked up and thrown, the pandemonium at the sound of the bell, the splash of water from the fountain, the laughter and screams and curses, ideas were flowing and learning was taking place. The kicker with his hat bent over a test, his restless tobacco chewing momentarily stilled, a gold-uniformed Vikette listening intently as the football player in his tie explained the complexities of an algebra problem. Shouts from the courtyard heard over the drone ot a teacher's lecture, reminded those incarcerated in their classroom of the outside world. The echoing explosion of a forbidden firecracker destroyed a carefully nurtured train of thought, frustrating teachers and students alike. Despite the chaos, the tests were completed and credits painstakingly acquired. We were taught the basic concepts and skills we would need in our lives. Teachers pounded in this framework, then gilded it with more involved, more technical details. The a2+b2:c2, became the Pythagorean Identity in Trig, cos20+ sin2O: 1. Simple subjects and verbs from freshman English grew in branching sentence diagrams in Advanced Usage. But more than memorizing E:mc2 or the letters on a type- writer keyboard or the date ot the founding ot the American nation, we learned to think. We could apply the knowledge we gained in the classroom to work and play outside of school. We might not figure our distance from a telephone pole by using its shadow, but we could make change and figure out a problem through logical reasoning. Thinking became a normal thing for us to do rather than a foreign process, We learned to use our knowledge effectively. Teachers encouraged creativity, and some were courageous enough to accept questions from the eager students. These teach- ers usually granted students a democracy in which to live, rather than a dictatorship in which to exist. Even tyrannical Taylor's classes emitted the noise of living students - laughter, shrieks, moans - when compared to the silent classes where no questions, stupid or otherwise, were ever answered. When the teachers accepted our questioning minds as challenges rather than threats, we were able to grow. We developed a sense of self, a feeling that we were worth something and had something to offer. Even fun courses had assignments to be completed. To get a task in on time necessitated organization of thoughts as well as budget- ing of time. We had to discipline ourselves. An assignment on Tues- day that was due on the Friday after a Thursday night football game, meant Thursday night should be busy with homework. So we set priorities, and for some reason, the game usually won. We became experts in conning teachers, if you looked innocent enough and behaved well enough, Dunkin' Donuts was never far out of reach, despite Mr. Wiley's stern edict. We best related to those in authority by avoiding them. When we had to face them, we usually knuckled under to their face, resisting strongly all the while behind their backs. We learned to accept their criticisms and those of our teachers, which made us more receptive to complaints and groans from par- ents and peers. We did not want to fail ourselves, and we did not want our friends to fail. If we understood an assignment and our next-desk neighbor did not, it was normal to bail him out. Later, you might need the same favor. The most treasured remembrance of our high school years is our friends and the people we met. We think back on the fun times, but the learning stays with us. We learned a special talent or skill from every aspect of high school, sometimes without even real- izing it. Learning succeeded within us more than we will ever know.