Elise Paramore

Admittedly, I should be working on assignments but instead I'm writing this post. There has always been an emphasis on reflection throughout my education, and this is a result of that. 2019 has been a strange year for me. I have had some of the most amazing memories, with some of the best people but then had some of my lowest points which I have had to pick myself up from, and soldier on. This year has taught me that life isn't always the happy-go-lucky entity that it appears to be, and that everything that you want to achieve you have to give your all into. On reflection, I have begun to understand even more who I am and want to be as a person, and that life throws you challenges to learn from, and become even better. Anyone who knows me on a personal level will understand the event that caused this realisation. It sucked at the time however, I've come back stronger and more appreciative of the people around me, their support and encouragement that has boosted me to ke...

I am writing this follow on post around two years after I published my last. I find it strange to re-read my thoughts after going through a set of A-Level exams. Whilst my thoughts on the pressure put on young people to achieve 5 GCSEs is the same, I now understand that GCSE results do not make or break you. You can still achieve great things even if exams are not your thing.  A Levels opened my eyes to a new kind of pressure, made up of both the environment I was in as well as the newfound pressure of my own expectations. One of the biggest difference between GCSEs and A-Levels is that you are your own motivator. You are expected to want to do well and that you will put in the work needed to get the grades you require for your next stage of life. This new desire caused me to become increasingly stressed and disappointed when I wasn't making progress during A levels.  As much as I got the grades I needed to progress onto the University of Southampton (the dock pictured ...