Armando Gonzalez

High School Retrospective

4/23/15
8:20
Its been a long four years
Good morning, my name is Armando Gonzalez. Today I will be reflecting on the past
four years of high school. Its been a long ride with a lot of ups and downs but I am glad that this
chapter of my life is almost over and that I am moving on to college. VISA as you may all know
by now is a lot more rigorous than other high schools, but thanks to it I feel prepared going off to
Sacramento State University this fall. Looking back at the first day of school I remember being
nervous not knowing what to expect. I knew that I did well in middle school but I really had no
idea of what to expect out of high school. I felt so little compared to the seniors that at the time
looked twenty and thirty years old.
Sitting down in advisory and looking at my schedule for the first time I saw I had Honors
English with Ms. Burnett. My first reaction was, WHAT?! From what I had heard about her I
was terrified about the class. But in the end, that class did make me a better writer. The This I
believe essay was a 500-word essay on something that made us who we are or something that
changed us. I still remember getting really upset because how difficult it was to write it and how
hard Ms. Burnett was grading. I believe I am more college ready because not only did this class
make me write my first high school paper but I was not allowed to use any clichs in the whole
essay. I was constantly making Ms.Burnett revise my paper and that was when I realized that
first and second drafts are not always the best. After this assignment I made sure my peers
reviewed my work before I took it to a teacher.

VISA also requires us to take a foreign language as you all know. I had Chinese and there
were many projects that made me get out of comfort zone and research other cultures. In the
Chinese food project we had to investigate the world, more specifically China and what food
they ate. Authentic Chinese food is a lot different than the Americanized version. For example,
dumplings here are nothing like the ones from China and orange chicken is not really Chinese
food. I would have never known this if I never took the time to really search up what the Chinese
ate. By investigating the world here it allowed me to learn more about the culture of the new
language I was learning. By doing this I learned that learning about others culture helps connect
with one another. In college I will meet people from different places and I am going to have to
connect with them. One way is by learning about the culture.
Entering my sophomore year I knew I hadnt started high school the way my parents
wanted me to. I of course did not enjoy having to attend summer school and ESY for English.
Not only was it boring doing the same thing again but, I could have enjoyed that time a lot better
if I was at home or at least not at school. So first day of my sophomore year I already knew I had
to change my mindset and do better than last year. This year in my environmental science class
we saw a problem and we took action by trying to stop and prevent the problem from happening
again. We noticed that the streets of Pacoima were full of trash and it really took from the beauty
of this city that most of us are from. The class and I called ourselves Enemy. We considered trash
the enemy of our streets. We went multiple times around the neighborhood, which surrounds
VISA, and simply picked up trash. This was the first time I ever picked up trash that wasnt my
own. I can honestly say that it felt amazing not only cleaning the streets for the residents that live
there but doing it as a class, like a team.

Another first, was the famous thesis paper in Mr. Dewaeles class. It was not as
challenging as the previous classes made it seem because he helped us all the way through the
finish but it was not super easy either. The concept of the thesis paper was brand new to me. My
topic was post traumatic stress disorder on World War II. This was really interesting learning
about something that affects a lot of people in this country. I really think this makes me more
college ready because what I have heard from VISA alumni is that college is just paper after
paper. So I am glad I got an A on my first thesis paper I can take the skills that I learned when
writing this paper and apply them towards any future term papers. I also improved a lot
academically this year. I am happy to say this was the first year I made Honor roll something that
I was proud of but my parents were beyond proud that I was actually applying myself a lot more.
By my junior year, the way I looked at school and life changed. Before, I was constantly
thinking of the present and only the present. I did what it took to get average grades and nothing
more. I never tried over achieving and never did I think about my future as in college or how I
did here was how I was going to get into college. This year was my best year out of all my four.
This year I achieved my highest G.P.A. and I didnt have any Cs on my report card. I even got
an A in English because I finally reached my reading goal, whereas in previous years I had not. I
completing my goal it made me more college ready because I realized that I have to do all the
assignments to pass my classes with grades that I am proud of. I knew if I read than my chances
of passing the class with a high grade was very easy. Knowing what you have to do to pass the
class is very simple but very useful. I think the reason why I got an A was that I read even passed
my goal. Im very proud of that accomplishment! It motivated me and showed me that I could do
better than what Ive done in the past. One of the projects that really stood out was the Ukraine
project that I did in my U.S History class. As an American I didnt know where Ukraine was

even located. I learned that it is located south west of Russia. Around May of 2014 the country
was having problems with Russia and Europe. I had to investigate the world by researching
about all the protests that eventually turned into riots. After I finished my research, I had to put
together a podcast so that I could communicate my findings to an audience that consisted of my
peers. It was fun learning about the different riots and rules against the riots. I learned a lot about
the government of Ukraine and the president. I did not realize how much different a government
from the other side of the world could be so different fm our own. The reason for that is that we
only get exposed to the government of our country and the rules that apply to us. I was able to
recognize another perspective! Getting to know Ukraine allowed me to be less ignorant and
appreciate the freedom that we receive just by being in the United States. Doing a podcast was
probably the most challenging part. My partner David and I both had not completed a podcast
since the beginning of tenth grade. Being able to research a topic in a very short period of time
will help me in the future when I do research papers.
Entering my Senior year there were a lot of different emotions going on. I was excited
knowing this was my last year but also nervous and scared thinking about colleges and
graduation, both things that are not guaranteed. Once again I was going to have Ms. Burnett as
my English teacher. Only this time it was not honors English. After last year and how well I did
in English I knew I would do fine this year. The year started of just how senior year starts at
VISA has in the past. The famous mask project in English The only thing I did not expect how
fast it was. One day we are doing the mask, the next day we had to paint it and then we
presented. I communicated ideas by showing who I am and the reason why I am like that. All of
my classmates also took their turn in sharing who they thought they really were. This was a good
way to come together as a class and bond.

English class was so helpful not only for academic knowledge but career knowledge and
getting ready for the real world. The job shadow day was an amazing experience that I wish I
could do again and again. I am so much more knowledgeable about the career path I want to take
and what it takes to get there and be successful. I had the opportunity to skip class and basically
intern for a company that does physical therapy. The employees answered all of my questions
including what classes they took in college and what is the hardest part of the job. This showed
me how to be prepared for my future career by knowing what challenges that I am going to face.
Senior year has been tough but I can see the finish line and Im going to muscle through it.
My advice for the underclassmen is to work hard and to have in end in mind. What I
mean about that is you do not necessarily have to know what it is exactly what you want to do
after high school but just have an idea of what you want to do or what college you want to go to.
I wish I could go back and realize that I was going to college a lot sooner and I think that would
have motivated me to apply myself a lot more. Also I want to recommend that you join sports
and clubs. All four years I was in many sports; basketball, baseball, and wrestling. By joining a
sport or a club you get to collaborate with people who slowly become a part of your extended
family because you get to build so many unforgettable memories.
My advice for the faculty is to talk more about colleges and the different options of
colleges starting from freshman year. My freshman year I was never really told how many
options I had in high school. I think that if I was aware of the so many different colleges and that
each one has something different to offer I would have known that I did not have to be the
smartest student in the whole school but if I just made sure I got As and Bs in all my classes I
would have had the confidence to apply to other colleges out of state. Also by doing this, a
student could find a college that they really like and prepare their academic life sooner. Im

happy I got into Sacramento state. It is a nice school and has the major that I want to study. I
personally am happy to say that through the four years high school at VISA I have become a lot
more mature and focused about my future. Even though it took a couple of years to get it
together I finally did and I am proud to say that it all going to pay in the future. For that I thank
VISA for all their hard projectseven this digital portfolio. I want to thank all the teachers that
are like Ms. Burnett for pushing me to give quality work. Also my three different advisory
teachers, Mr. Astilla, Ms. Fried, and Ms. Castellanos, for guiding me all through high school.
Thank you for your time and attention.