Each morning, before most students arrive, Ava Badger is already in the classroom. She slips into her seat, sets her backpack beside her desk, and opens the notebook she carries from class to class. In the quiet room, she flips back through the notes to find what she wrote the day before. The only sounds are the turning of pages and the scribbles of her pencil across the paper. For about twenty minutes, before the rest of the students begin to fill the room, Ava studies. Studying can look different from day to day, but usually consists of: finishing assignments, highlighting key terms, reading ahead before the day’s lesson begins, making flashcards, or looking through flashcards. Those quiet minutes have become an important part of her routine.
When the bell rings, the calm quickly gets overthrown by the overwhelming energy of a busy classroom filled with close to 35 students ready to learn. Ava’s notebook quickly fills with diagrams and definitions as the class works through lessons about the human body. The class is focused on the different systems in the human body. One day, the focus might be the skeletal system, and the next it could be the muscular system. Days are seldom the same and have a different pace.
Occasionally, a quiz might land on students’ desks, or the class might gather around lab tables to put their lessons into practice. These are Ava’s favorite days, as they allow her to get a hands-on approach and take a break from sitting still, listening, and jotting notes. During labs, students move between tables as they compare results and ask questions. Ava leans over her work, analyzing each step and double-checking the instructions before making the first step. The hands-on work offers the opportunity to see the concepts they’ve studied take shape in real time. “These are always fun because you can see the relationship between what you’re learning and how it works in real life.”
By the end of the school day, her notebook is often packed with pages of notes. Even after the final bell rings, the work doesn’t stop. Later that afternoon, she’ll open the same notebook again to review material or prepare for the next quiz or test. Not all of her learning is done in the classroom.
Through job shadow experiences, Ava has the opportunity to observe healthcare professionals and see how the material she studies in class is applied in real situations. Watching nurses and other medical staff work with patients offers a glimpse of the real world and the career she hopes to pursue. The program also allows students to get a head start on the future by earning college credits and certifications in certain medical specialties while they’re still in high school.
During the fall, Ava participated in the annual Medical Professions College Trip. She learned what college life would look like for her career path. College tours through 4 different schools, expertise from tour guides who were once in her shoes, and experiencing what a student in college goes through day to day, helped her find what she wants to pursue in college. After graduating, Ava plans to chase a nursing degree and hopes to attend a college close to home. “I hope to live off campus at college and live at home,” she said.
From the quiet mornings spent reviewing notes to the studying that continues after school, Ava’s days are filled with steady steps toward the same goal, which is building a future in healthcare where she can help care for others.
