An Introduction to My Own Educational Journey
I grew up in a competitive environment where we were taught how to work hard, recite, and repeat. I was lucky to have had a close school community where everyone knew everyone else’s business and shared information freely. I was generally supported and I was safe. I also was part of a really great group of students. Between ages 5 to 12, we followed the rules and were pretty well behaved. Everyone was high performing. They did sports. They did art. They did music. There seemed to be no limit for my graduating class.
As for me, I was not an “academic” student. Throughout my childhood, I never thought I was “dumb”, but I certainly didn’t think I was “smart.” Smart looked like my classmates… not me. I was a petite metal mouthed child who wore oversized baggy jeans and T-shirts from the boys clothing section. I was extremely self conscious, only wearing my wired glasses when needed. This often encouraged teachers to sit me at the front, in case I needed extra help or a closer look at board. Apart from my mousy appearance, my grades generally reflected mediocre performance. I was taken out of class multiple times to work with professionals who supported students with learning difficulties. I was one of the few, excluded from the California’s gifted programs in my grade. Even in P.E., I couldn’t seem to excel… in my own way, I felt that academically, I could not catch a break. And despite their best intentions, this was best highlighted when my parents asked if I wanted to be held back a year.
Years later, these feelings changed and were obviously dramatized for the sake of a good story, but these were the memories that stuck around.
But that changed when I was accepted into the School of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University, the birthplace of Ethnic Studies.
In 2016, during my first year as a grad student, I found myself in the middle of budget cuts. This included months of protests, speeches, and information sharing from students and faculty, leading to four undergrad students to embark on a 10 day hunger strike. Their commitment to the cause became a symbol that Ethnic Studies saved lives.
Having missed the fight for Asian American Studies in my undergrad, this was the first time I was introduced to radical education… it was the first time I saw students put their lives on the line for the education. They stood up and for hours, talked about how Ethnic Studies changed their lives, how it was the first time they saw themselves, how it encouraged them to find passion in their studies. They spoke to the testament of their instructors, of the community, and of the hope they saw. In a world where classrooms were synomyous with homework and not wanting to be there, this was a stark contrast.
Even as the school year continued, through my classes, I was assigned to go to court hearings, have deep reflections, work collaboratively with my cohort, and volunteer with the community. I became an active and passionate learner through these classes and it opened my eyes to the possibilities.
In this age of identity politics, LGBTQ+ studies, book bans, CRT, and more, I find myself becoming invested in making education and knowledge accessible, engaging, and relevant. By bringing lived experiences into the classrooms, students were seen and more motivated to their futures. When we limit the content that students can learn, we deny that visibility and the opportunity to learn vital histories — both inside and outside the classroom.
For REALSOUL, our curriculum shares histories of marginalized communities to classrooms, but really, the ultimate hope is that we have them reflect and act on their knowledge in their own communities. With a strong toolkit from educators, activists, artists, and community members, I believe that students will have a solid foundation for creating the change they’d like to see in the world.
That being said, I’m so excited about exploring this area in K-8 education and look forward to embarking on this journey with you all!
About Writer:
Katie Quan (she/her) is a third-generation Chinese American zine artist, community advocate, and educator from San Francisco. Her work, addressing identity, mental health, and family, has been exhibited at the Kearny Street Workshop, A PLACE OF HER OWN, and Asian American Women Artists Association. In 2023, she received the Youth Speaks and California Arts Council’s Individual Artist Fellowship and participated in the Asian Improv Arts Fellowship. She founded REALSOUL, a curriculum-based arts organization, striving to make intersectional local histories accessible and relevant to K-8.