Being a new student amid the returning students in my school, I found it so tough to mingle with the system. My mates would always call me a dull student, which then extends to the teachers. I was so quiet and observant. However, I told my parents how I felt about my new school. I don't love those who criticize people so suddenly without knowing what someone is made of. I think everyone, including the teachers, is just too quick to judge without waiting an inch.
I had tried to mingle, but then all the students had rendered me useless and someone without any idea. Whenever my teacher asked questions, the very first person to raise her hand was Chika. She's someone everyone had seen as so smart. I can call her the smartest among them, but not me anyway. I assumed I was a new student and would still need some time to study the environment in full before accepting who I am as well as coming to conclusions about their characters.
One day, my chemistry teacher bounced into our class and started the class. He asked us questions in our previous class. I knew the answer but was somehow ashamed as well as scared of speaking out the answer. I waited for about a minute before Chika raised her hands. She answered the question correctly. We all clapped for her. Our teacher started the class while we all listened to what he was teaching. I was quiet, while some groups beside me were making a hell of a noise. When our teacher would turn, he saw me taking my pen that had dropped on the floor. He immediately punished me for disturbing his class. All of my mates were surprised as they all knew I was a quiet type and someone who could not make noise. I was shy of explaining to myself that I was not making noise. My mind was speaking different languages but then the shyness I'm me was not allowing me to speak up. I was punished for what I did not do.
Max Fischer
The whole class now considers me someone who is not smart. Some say I'm a dull student. I was always sitting quietly in class, even when others were going out to play.
One day, Denise, one of my classmates, came to me and asked, “Why are you always calm? Why can't you talk in class or even smile with your mates?” I was calm at some points but spoke out to him. I told him the reasons behind my quietness. After hearing what I had said, he said, I guess you are just pretending to be who you are not supposed to be, whereas you have so much wisdom in you.” He was so sure that I was pretending even after convincing him that I was not”.
The next week, our mathematics teacher entered the class, and we greeted him as usual. The first thing he did was throw in a question for everyone to answer. I raised my hands after hearing, listening to Denise the last time we met. The whole class was surprised to see my hand up. Since the entire teacher had concluded that I was nothing before the class, the mathematics teacher could not call me. I tried to raise my hands again, but this time he said, "How can I call a dullard like you?” His statement got me angry. I settled my head on my desk without saying a word. Throughout the class, no one was able to answer the question. He gave it to them as an assignment.
Denice rushed to me and consoled me. He asked if I knew the answer to the question. I looked at him keenly and answered him, “Yes.” Looking at his face, he was filled with surprise. He was convinced after that day that I was just pretending.
A week later, it was time for the test. We were given questions. The mathematics teacher came in first, later by chemistry followed by physics. Students were busy copying themselves. I only looked at them and shook my head. Even the smartest girl, Chika, was copying his note. I did mine, and surprisingly, that same question my teacher asked us in the class was part of the test he gave to us. Maybe he must have brought it out to test our knowledge. I solved all the questions he had. When we were done, the chemistry teacher entered after ten minutes of testing and settling down.
I wrote the chemistry so perfectly as well as the physics. The following day, my mathematics teacher came to the class; he called me out. Although I was too shy to bounce out, I had to. I thought he would start his words by abusing me again for not being so smart. He gave me his whiteboard marker to solve the test questions on the board. I was initially resisting, but then who am I to disregard my teacher's words? I took the marker and started solving it. Likewise, I was sweating profusely as it was my first time after a month and two weeks in that school solving problems on the board. Not only that, but I solved the first and moved to the next. The last one was the assignment my teacher was not expecting anyone to solve. I solved it correctly. He could not wait a bit before raising his voice to ask the class to clap for me. “So you were that sharp and smart? Why have you been quiet all this while?” I was unable to answer him just because of the evidence of shyness in me.
The physics and chemistry teachers made similar remarks and since that day, everyone rained respect on me as well as the teachers who had rejected my hands several times.
