Learning How to Think and Learn by Katherine Deschene ’08
Every day I come into work and am greeted by a desk covered with a collection of sticky notes in various shapes and colors. My checklists have checklists and my tasks are color-coded by priority. I often think back to what could have influenced my ability to organize because at one point, it was certainly not my forte. It is then that I remember a similar assortment of sticky notes found scattered throughout the well-read pages of many NGP-assigned books like Lord of the Flies and Animal Farm. The supportive staff and unique structure of the NGP cultivated a sense of creativity and experimentation with various academic areas that I had never experienced before arriving at LA. This academic freedom was further nourished by the one-of-a-kind grading system that took the focus away from the traditional book learning that I was accustomed to, and taught me how to think outside the box.
economics and politics, with a minor in sociology. I soon had a mid-freshman year crisis and realized I was not pursuing my passion. I made sociology a priority, went back to my love of the French language, and chose to enroll myself in a class outside of those two subjects. As the final semester of my freshman year approached, I enrolled in Education 101. I knew that I liked children, was patient, and thrived on creativity. I wanted to work with people and make a difference. While in Education 101, I signed up for observation hours in a third grade classroom at a public school in Lewiston. As one of our mid-semester projects, we had an assignment: Interview a teacher who made an impact on us.
“I met an incredible family of teachers, mentors, peers, and teammates that has affected me far beyond my four years there.”
Learning how to think and organize the “NGP way” was not all I learned at Lawrence Academy. I also met an incredible family of teachers, mentors, peers, and teammates that has affected me far beyond my four years there. When I continued on to Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, I found myself performing analyses and writing papers when other students were struggling. When peers started coming to me for advice, that was when I knew LA had set me up to succeed in my future academic endeavors.
Instantly, I knew I would interview a teacher I had at LA. What made the decision difficult was that there were many incredible members of the faculty that had contributed to my growth. After careful consideration, I chose to interview Doc Haman. He was one of the catalysts for my love of teaching. He showed me that both learning and teaching could be fun.
I graduated from Bates College in 2012 with degrees in French and Francophone studies, sociology, and teaching education with a certification in K-12 education. I am forever grateful for my experiences at LA and the lifelong love of learning that those years instilled in me.
When I enrolled at Bates, I stated that my intended undergraduate major would be a double major in
41 I FALL 2013
