An account of a public school experience

When I read that the Emir enacted Law No. 9 of 2017, which will revamp the country’s independent school system to give it a more centralized approach to education, I instantly went down memory lane, pulling up my own experiences from my memory vault of what its like to go to public schools. 

Although I already went into detail of what it was like growing up in gender segregated public schools a few years ago in an article for JustHere, I want to emphasize the wide-ranging and long term effects one's schooling years has on a person well into adulthood.  

When I was young—specifically from my late childhood to late teenage years—alI I ever wanted to be was a lawyer. I was truly obsessed with the idea, thinking I wanted to seek retribution, retribution for the injustice I felt I experienced in school.  

I was angry; angry that I was in such derelict classes; angry that my learning only consisted of memorizing textbooks; angry that corporal punishment was practiced.  For all intents and purposes, growing up in public schools was a truly horrible experience, one no amount of words can fully convey.  

At one point during my teens, I managed to convince my family of the damage being done to me in the public school system, and thus was able to finally attend a private school with an English curriculum. That school was English Modern School.

At that time, the school was located near my house in Nuaija, and going there was like entering another world, a world where boys and girls could study and play alongside each other, a world where we actually had Physical Ed and exercised, a world where we had plays and theatre, a world where we had libraries and read books, a world where I wasn't being caned if I misbehaved, a world where I felt safe and human. 

Alas, after all those years in public schools, the damage had already been done at that point, and I couldn't for the life of me keep up with everyone else. I didn't know how to apply critical thinking skills, or research, or take notes, or do any homework that didn't strictly consist of memorizing. I felt inadequate, and it showed in my grades. I was a mess. 

After lasting a year in EMS, I went back to the public school system, and channeled my rage and frustration in to the one unshakeable goal of becoming a lawyer. I would graduate high school, go abroad, study law, and come back to change things up with my degree. Boy was I in for a rude awakening! 

Upon completing highschool, I applied and got conditional acceptance to attend one of the most prestigious universities in the world for Law—Sydney University—and subsequently got accepted for a scholarship through Qatar Petroleum. I was ecstatic, literally because I would be getting away as far away as possible from Qatar, and finally receiving an ivy league education. 

However, a few months in to my first semester, I stopped attending classes altogether after failing to keep up with my course requirements, became severely depressed, malnourished and ceased leaving my flat all together. Although I was not aware of it at the time, I was extremely culture shocked, as I was absolutely not equipped to handle the responsibilities of being a student alone in a respected Western university in a foreign country.

 It’s hard to believe it was a decade ago when this all happened, and I still feel shame and regret every time I remember, because I still feel I lack these basic mundane skills.  

You see, students nowadays require much more than just exam results to embark on adult life, because school isn't just about learning anymore. To be successful in today's world, students need diverse skill sets—determination, interpersonal skills, creativity, adaptability, compassion, among other things—to raise a generation of assured, well-rounded, emotionally intelligent young adults.

Although the public school system has been completely overhauled since my hey day, Qatar’s students still remain well below the global average when it comes to math, reading and science. 

After all, there's no reason why Qatar, one of the world's richest countries, can't be at the forefront when it comes to quality education, so that no one has to share the same fate I did, and my hope is that with this new law, things are finally going to take a turn for the better. 

Author Bio: 

An unorthodox Qatari millennial with an entrepreneurial spirit and incurable case of wanderlust. 

Photo Credit: Julian Germain - Classroom Portraits