My Self Concept Analysis

One thing that has affected my self concept occurred in one of my classes in middle school. While the teacher brought up something she had seen on the news about troubles with the economy, the conversation became more self involved. Students began to chime in with their own personal experiences that they have had happen in their lives. As I listened to the other students, I realized that not everyone’s situation is the same as mine.
Since the discussion wasn't directed at me in particular, and it was more of a class discussion, when I left I didn't feel particularly good or bad about the conversation. I felt more educated about other people's positions and backgrounds. I learned about how some people's family lives differed from mine. In

this class discussion, I also heard some of their goals and how some people have very low goals and how some had very high ones. I was raised that college was in my future, as many of my classmates didn’t have those goals and just wanted to make it out of high school and get a job. Their standards seemed very low to me, but after hearing their stories, it became clearer to me as to why they had set their expectations so low. With some telling stories about their parents, living day by day, and how hard it was, I feel that my peers will face more struggles in their lives. They will be conflicted between what decisions in life to make because they didn’t set high enough standards for themselves and their parents did not show them that there was another option then how they grew up. Then they will pass on the same ideals that they learned as a child to their children and create a chain reaction of failure.
This conversation influenced me by helping me realize that all family life isn't the same. I began to feel compassion for my friends and classmates. I had never realized until then the variety of socio-economic groups that lived here in our community. I feel that after that discussion, I became more open minded and understanding of people's situations. I became more self aware to how easy I have had things growing up and how I was taught to handle situations that other people were not. Since that experience, I have become friends with several people that fit into that category that don't have the best home life and don't have high standards for themselves. I was able to see the reality of it and that opened my eyes even further. I have tried to pass on the values that I have been taught throughout my life to my friends.
Hearing my peers stories has affected the way that I see the world, that there are people from all walks of life that I will meet throughout my lifetime. That discussion from middle school has made me more prepared to share my views and opinions to the world. I communicate differently because I now have more understanding and am more open minded about how other people were raised.