Kyle Hall

Personal Autobiography

Secondary School

Secondary school was where the academic gap became impossible to ignore. At primary school the teachers had noticed I was falling behind but due to my brothers doing well, it was assumed I was just not putting it down on the paper, but still capable. Secondary school was different. Suddenly there were exams, coursework deadlines, and teachers who were tracking your progress against national benchmarks. I fell behind almost immediately and never recovered. From the start to the end of school I was in bottom sets.

I attended a local comprehensive in Llanelli. It was a reputable public school. Teachers were generally good and the facilities were fine. The problem was I had ADHD and I was not diagnosed until later and the school couldn't help. I would revise for hours before tests and still score near the bottom of the class.

My GCSE results weren't great but I managed to get by. I passed all my subjects by a hair, I hadn't passed any of my mocks, but managed to pass all of my GCSEs. I was ecstatic, but my academic victory did not last long.

College

With the GCSE results, I enrolled at college to study an IT-related course. Part of me hoped that a more practical, skills-based programme would suit me better than the theory-heavy approach of secondary school. For a while, it seemed like it might. I was more engaged in the first few weeks than I had been in years.

Old habits and old difficulties followed me. Assignments piled up, I struggled with the written components. I missed many submission deadlines because I had convinced myself the work was not good enough to hand in or I would keep procrastinating. By the end of the first year I had failed the course. Despite failing the first year I was still accepted into Year 2 as long as I resat some of the modules.

I told myself, I would not let myself down again, however that motivation was short lived. Despite that I still eventually fell into my old ways and began being late to deadlines again and again, this time it was more so due to McDonalds, and life getting into the way.

What was next

After I had failed the second year of college, I needed to find out what I could do next at that point I was working in McDonald's but I wanted to do more in life, so I had to figure out how I could start a career, I decided to see if I could join a course I wanted to do by joining one with spaces in. I also applied to some apprenticeships . I did not get much luck with my applications to university but I was successful in an apprenticeship application so I was going to be going to an interview. Despite not having what they were looking for in the interview, it was not all over, because the interviewer liked me, he suggested I apply for another role. Taking his advice, I did, and he put in a good word for me, I was successful in that interview getting the apprenticeship I was hoping for.

I then started a Level 3 course and gave it my absolute all. This time with a new learning strategy being the fact I was now a lot more hands on rather than sitting in a class room I managed to pass the course with flying colours, and my manager gave me a job and arranged for me to study at university with this new found confidence I have continuted to study at university and have so far had good grades in my modules, that I intend to continue.

University

Walking into university as someone who had failed college and scraped through secondary school felt surreal. Never in my life did I think I would be able to study what I am studying now. With my new found confidence, I eagerly paid attention. I decided to continue learning in work, and applying my skills to my course work.

The modules I am studying include:

My new method of learning suits the way I am, in a way that school and classrooms never did. Learning more hands on in work, helps me continue to pay attention with my ADHD and what I study in university is immediately applicable to my work. and since it is being used i find it easier to remember.