Student Voices: Here's how these Jersey Shore teens would change the world
Editor's note: This spring's Student Voices question is "If you had the power to change one thing in the world, what would it be, and why?" Here are the winning videos and essays.
GRADES 7 and 8
First place: The deep river between us
There is a deep river between us. The river silently flows around a lofty mountain of hierarchy, separating our positions by religion, race, gender and traditions; labeling us either eminent or infamous in our American society.
The water between us is the same, but the further down the mountain, the filthier the pigmentation, dirtied from the debris we throw down beneath us, like we mislabel Black boys for back roads and Asian girls for the picturesque beaches in travel magazines.
Communities are tired of being pushed around like ragdolls, oppressed, abused, segregated, and tempted by fools gold. I wish not for freedom, but for equal representation. Rather us all: silk saris and freckled skin and little girls and rice and stargazing by moonlight be drowned in the same, clear water then to run in solitude, freely amongst narrow alleyways.
If I could change one thing in the world, it would be to burn this mountain and river alike, and stand together in spite of our differences.
When Europeans inhabited America, they built themselves a mighty mountain of gradings atop piles of broken bones and placed their people at the summit. They dug themselves a winding river, foraged the water from the parched, misplaced lands that refused to drink up dry tears, so they could establish the blockades between us. However, we should always remember that barriers are meant to be crossed, if not broken.
I am constantly asked petty questions, like the pricking of a pin. They ask me "Where are you from?"
I am never able to answer correctly, even though I was born and raised in this country.
We all reside on the same mountain, but the only ones that are labeled American are the only people that are truly free. Many fight wars from across these rivers, but are too blind to see across the filthy water, so blind that they label protests as threats, that they shoot our bullets at bloodshot graves, and tie the deceased to the tree of unripe fruits so that they may suffer in their resting.
We label pride as arrogance, and teach submissiveness to the system of hierarchy that stands like cracked stone.
The summit of the mountain is so high, yet the expanse of elation is so slim, so sparse. So many try to climb up to the highest heights, but are knocked down.
We will not let our voices drown out when our bodies drown beneath the surface. Oppressors bury other’s bodies deep beneath the soil, hoping that if they dig deep enough we will all forget the names of those abducted. We never forgot, and now we will bury silence further than the violence.
We have powerful voices, and we are strong enough to cross the deep, winding river between us.
Evalina Bee Zerres, Oak Hill Academy
Second place: The best path to victory
Humans have evolved greatly over different eras. Our bodies have changed, our minds have sharpened, and our skill sets have shifted. With each new advancement, one question still bothers me. Why have our hearts not grown?
If I were given the power to make a notable change in the world, I would change how people only act in their own self-interest. Many are so focused on their personal success that they are ignorant to one another. The world’s failure is caused by those immersed in their singular victory.
Love and compassion are things that are meant to be spread to others. Happiness is contagious, but not if we keep it to ourselves. From a young age, we are taught to lift each other up and work together. However, if the people around us are not doing that, why are we expected to?
Selfishness begins with a few — and just like happiness, expands. The counteractive version, selflessness, merely requires one person to set off a chain reaction. In wishing for this change, I hope to be that person. It is important that we leave a strong legacy. I want to leave a compassionate one that truly makes a difference in someone’s life.
I thought long and hard about what can make a significant change in our well-improved society. I pondered the roots of some of the most largest and deadly problems that have happened in our history. They all began with negativity and greediness — maybe a king demanding more money than his people have to offer, or a misunderstanding over a specific belief in a religion.
Every instigator has their own benefits in mind and what they will get out of each situation. No one takes time to stop and enjoy the privileges around them. They don’t care. When something is good, they want it to be better. When something is better, it has to be the best or it means nothing.
This pattern is one of the sources of the continuing issues, and needs to stop.
Every book I read teleports me to a world with different characters that struggle individually. When I return to reality, I see how fortunate we all are. However, I know that among us, these worlds are hidden in small places.
People don’t realize this because they are too involved in themselves. The path to bringing more empathy to our own world is to notice the strife others face and try to understand it.
As a developing society, compassion will lead us to victory.
Isotta Valentino Towner, Oak Hill Academy
Third place: Beauty standards
If I had the power to change one thing in the world, I would change society’s unrealistic standards for beauty and lifestyle. Many things have impacted this issue: social media, the internet, reality TV, etc. This can cause kids to develop mental illness or unnecessary insecurities from a young age.
The factor that has the most significant impact on beauty standards, though, is social media.
Social media is not real life. People can edit and photoshop photos. No one would ever purposely post a bad picture of themselves, so you only see the happy and pretty pictures. This leads people, especially young kids and teens, to think they’re not good or pretty enough.
When you spend too much time on social media, you’re not part of the real world. You start feeling like you’re expected to live up to what you see on social media when really none of it is real.
The internet and reality TV tie into this. What you see on television is usually an edited version of reality. More of a fantasy. Reality TV stars have to always look perfect for cameras. Even though it may say "reality" TV, that doesn’t mean it’s real. All of this is a filtered version of what life looks like.
It takes a toll on our minds, watching movies and shows of people who are meant to be presented as people who are “just like us.” Should I be doing that? Why don’t I look like them? You begin to doubt yourself and your identity. It’s not healthy and leads many people to depression, leaving them fixated on what others think of them.
You look in the mirror, and all you see are faults and insecurities. You take a picture and delete it after seeing your face. It hurts to feel this way. It takes away your happiness — always feeling like you have to have your guard up, never truly feeling confident or proud.
People take this issue lightly, but it really takes a toll on mental health. People of all ages can feel this way, even a little 6-year-old kid.
We’re all human. We all have insecurities. But we’re all beautiful. No one is perfect and no one should be expected to be.
You should look in the mirror and smile when you see your reflection looking back at you. Take pictures with your friends and not care if a hair was out of place or if you smiled "right" or not. Just enjoy living and learn to love yourself.
You define your own standard of beauty. Don’t let your mind or society tell you any different.
Amelie Petrillo, Millstone Middle School
Honorable Mentions
Taylor Salvo, Millstone Middle School
Molly Dowling, Memorial Middle School
Andie Sparano, Oak Hill Academy
GRADES 9 to 12
First place: See you in heaven
Why do people always say things get better over time? It’s like time is the default now in mending all pains.
But loss is forever and is a pain that leaves a hole in your heart. If I had the power to change one thing, I would make it so heaven had visiting hours.
Imagine if we could see whomever we wanted, even just for an hour once a week. If you could knock on a door, everyone you have loved and lost would be on the other side. Your childhood pet or your mom, dad, grandparents, aunts, uncles, whoever you wanted would be right there.
Love is forever, but unfortunately time keeps moving forward. It never ends, no matter what’s going on in your life and no matter how overwhelmed you are.
In the moments you are at your weakest, imagine just having a loved one right there.
Picture having life-changing news, getting a new job, or meeting the love of your life. You could bring them during visiting hours so they can see the people who shaped you.
It’s like they never left.
The moments when you think, “What would Grandma do?” You no longer do you have to wonder. Just ask.
Even if you just wanted to talk, you could. Or if you needed a hug or shoulder to cry on, mom or dad would be right there.
Goodbye would no longer be a thing. It would just be “see you soon,” with our loved ones being right there when we want them.
Sofia LaPointe, Southern Regional High School
Second place: Teach your children well
In school, I am just a number. A quantity. So are my friends, so is everyone else.
We are numbers on a screen, a physical manifestation of our GPAs. To many, our grades have become an irrevocable fragment of our identity. They have become how we come to value ourselves, and our grades are how our peers, teachers, schools and jobs value us, too.
It’s an unhealthy obsession and needs to be fixed at the root of the problem — our education system. Our current education system uses exams and tests as a model to quantify our understanding. To put it directly, it doesn’t work.
In many circumstances, grades can be an unreliable indicator of a student’s knowledge or comprehension. A single test or an assignment does not accurately reflect a student’s true abilities or potential, and is subject to a multitude of other factors.
Grading, for instance, can be influenced by outside factors such as bias or personal opinions of the grader. Others may simply not be good test takers.
Regardless, tests and exams do not provide an objective measurement of an individual’s understanding and cause more harm than good. Like any other quantitative value, grades are subject to comparison, fostering an environment of competition.
While in many instances competition is a vital motivating factor, it causes immense stress and anxiety in students. In more cases than not, it leads to students focusing more on getting good grades rather than learning and understanding the material, causing cheating and other expressions of academic dishonesty.
Also, grades can be limiting when it comes to an individual’s learning and growth. When a student is focused on achieving a certain grade, they do not take risks or explore areas outside of their comfort zone, which only proceeds to inhibit their intellectual abilities.
While grades are not inherently bad in nature, the way they are used and valued in education and the classroom is problematic. They are flawed and limited in scope, and should not be our only “objective” measure of an individual.
A number can’t quantify a person. It can’t measure understanding or performance.
As a society, we should re-evaluate our outdated and inadequate education system, and use it in a way that encourages growth and learning instead.
Naren Pedirappa, Academy of Allied Health and Science
Third place: When will it end?
I am extremely privileged. Above all, I’m safe.
As I think about my future, living somewhere safe is my priority. I don't want to fear for my life when practicing religion, walking down the street, or hanging out in my future college dorm.
I don’t want my children to fear for their life at school.
Unfortunately, these are things people around the world worry about daily. When I glance at the news, there are constant reports of shootings, showcasing the many people who are not as fortunate as me. People who live in bad conditions, who are shot for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Innocent people whose lives ended abruptly because a stranger decided to shoot them.
They could have grown up to make the world a better place, but we will never know.
Guns are the leading cause of death among children and teens in America.
Guns.
Things that need to be bought and loaded and triggered.
Things that people can 100% control.
Around the world, there are over 250,000 firearm related deaths per year.
As humans, we know that killing is wrong. We know that we wouldn’t want to die because we were going about our lives peacefully. Yet, it is allowed for people to walk around with unnecessary weapons and horrible intentions.
No one wants to get a call learning that their child was shot and killed at school, but yet it happens.
I don’t know much about politics, but it is time that drastic improvements are made to end the fear that people live in every day.
Thousands of people’s lives could be saved by eliminating one problem. There is absolutely no excuse for people to have access to machines that recklessly end people’s lives for no good reason.
When the Founding Fathers were writing amendments to the Constitution, I don’t think they meant “the right to bear arms” as “the right to go around shooting up helpless people.”
Globally, all governments in their right mind need to forcefully put an end to the epidemic of gun violence. If I could change one thing in this world, living on the planet would be the same as living somewhere safe for everyone, everywhere.
Mary Cook, Point Pleasant Borough High School
Honorable Mentions
Madelyn Henken, Southern Regional High School
Graysen Pagan, Point Pleasant Borough High School
Lexi Young, Point Pleasant Boro High School
VIDEO WINNERS
First place: Sadie Bober, Memorial Middle School
Second place: Tara Steppat, Goetz Middle School
Third place: Teofil Rapach, Ethan Harrison, Ethan Jacobson, and Tyler Hendrickson, Point Pleasant Boro High School
Honorable Mentions
Cal Kedves, Matt Oliphant, Wyatt Dewysockie, and Ryan Acquisto, Point Pleasant Boro High School
Ava Mallen, Carl W. Goetz Middle School
Gabriella Silvestre and Jacqueline Kirby, Goetz middle school
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Jersey Shore students share how they would change the world
