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Loading...Education is one of the most important things in my life. Knowledge truly is power, especially in the world today.
Yet, as some teenagers feel, school can be a bit boring at times. That is why I absolutely love it when teachers spice things up a little.
I am currently taking AP Psychology. While my teacher could drone on and on and just make us write papers, he doesn’t. He truly cares about our learning and knows if he lectures us, it isn’t going to help us learn.
In class we are talking about drug addictions, hypnosis and sleep, all of which are different types of consciousness. He could have just given us another lesson on drugs, which we have already heard and most likely memorized. But instead he had us do a fun experiment.
Instead of making a poster or writing a five-page essay on the affects of drugs, he had us take a little tour into the lives of drug addicts.
Let me explain before you freak out and wonder if my psychology teacher handed out drugs. We started an experiment on Monday that ended Wednesday. We were drug addicts who are addicted to — ice.
In any liquid we drank from Monday morning on, we had to put ice in it. But there was a catch: We couldn’t let anyone know.
We also had to wear a bright pink bracelet that was considered “taboo” to society, so we had to hide it. The only people who were allowed to know were the AP students, the teacher and the regular psychology classes.
To really make our experience more realistic, the regular classes and some teachers were “cops.” If they caught us with ice, heard ice in our drinks, or saw our bracelet, we had to sign a paper. When that occurred, they would get five extra credit points and we would lose five points.
All of those little things really added to my three-day experience as being a “drug addict.” I had to think outside of the box all the time and be sneaky — just like a regular drug addict. I found myself sneaking downstairs in the middle of the night to get ice, hiding it in my room or even going as far as drinking my drinks in the bathroom to hide my “addiction.” I also started to change what I wore. I put on long-sleeved shirts that were tight around the wrist so my bracelet couldn’t fall down and jackets with pockets for my ice.
I learned a lot from the experience, and now have a greater understanding of behaviors that addicts — and not only drug addicts — use to hide their choices.
Education is truly one of the most important things in my life. And sometimes that education comes in unexpected, yet impactful ways that I know will stick with me forever.
Peatross is a junior at Tooele High School.
