Money, religion and politics: socially these topics have been deemed taboo, but in academic settings they are open to discussion.  Needless to say in IB, a large portion of the day is spent discussing and it’s not uncommon for these “taboo” issues to come up. 
Being one of the few conservatives in the program I struggled to find my voice in class and often felt that my party and my beliefs were often stereotyped and chastised. During the political discussions (they were initiated and led by students during down time in class) I stopped defending my party. Instead I began challenging myself by considering my classmates thoughts. This helped me to reconsider and strengthen my opinions.
I do have one regret: I wish I would have spoken up in class more often and shared my opinions. I gave up too early and assumed that my opinions would not be considered with the same unbiased approach that I had given to others’ thoughts. Whether this was true or not, I should have been more forward in sharing my thoughts.

I want to encourage other students who feel that they are in the same position as me to voice their opinions. I gave up on defending my views because they fell on deaf ears. Whether or not your classmates are ignoring you, it is important to voice your opinion if you want to be taken seriously. Most importantly, it is essential that you listen to the others around you and truly consider what they are saying if you want to make the most out of your classes. You have to listen with unbiased ears and be willing to be challenged and to challenge others.

IB provided that challenge for me and helped to reinforce my beliefs. It is important for you to find your voice and be willing to defend it while you listen to other people. My experiences in IB taught me new ways to approach class and they have inspired me to continue to explore politics in college and challenge my beliefs. If you want to make the most of your classes you need to learn to be more critical of yourself and accepting of others.

During my junior year I didn’t like discussing politics in class. The majority of my peers had already made their mind up on several issues and were not interested in re-considering things from my point of view. On a few occasions I heard narrow-minded statements about Republicans, such as the one that high school Republicans can’t think for themselves because they are just brainwashed by their parents.

I don’t disregard what my parents have to say about politics; they were the people who helped me to develop my foundation of knowledge in politics. Over the years I cultivated my own opinions on issues. I deviate from what my parents think on economic and international issues – these were opinions that I developed by educating myself on the issues and policies, not by being spoon-fed them by my family.

By the end of my junior year I had given up on defending my beliefs because I it was not worth wasting my breath; my classmates would never understand me.  When our class would get into extended discussions about the US in Iraq and the purpose of the war, I would zone out and think about the things I needed to work on after school.
Senior year I started going to Starbucks every Thursday night with a group of friends who were predominately enrolled in AP classes and were both conservative and liberal.  I used my time with them to share stories and bounce ideas off one another, like a mini-therapy session.  It was refreshing to be able to discuss things with them in a more relaxed environment and they gave me great advice.

Surprisingly, the best advice I ever received from any of our meetings came from the back of a cup. After I had finished my drink I began to mindlessly look over the cup, tracing over the mermaid logo, the boxes checked for nonfat and hazelnut and then following over to the back. That’s when a quote written on the other side caught my attention:

The Way I See It # 289:
“You can learn a lot more from listening than you can from talking. Find someone with whom you don’t agree in the slightest and ask them to explain themselves at length. Then take a seat, shut your mouth, and don’t argue back. It’s physically impossible to listen with your mouth open.” (- John Moe, radio host and author of Conservatize Me)

It wasn’t until I read this particular cup that I realized I was wasn’t doing myself any favors in class; I was only being as close minded as I considered the rest of my classmates to be.

This year I changed my approach and rather than shutting down during debates, I began to listen to what they had to say and I truly considered their opinions and their statements.  On a few occasions they persuaded me to see a different side of things (for instance I really began to understand the importance of global warming, an issue I was always aware of but never considered to be a key factor in choosing a candidate), but for the most part I took their statements and concluded that I still believed my original stance.  The difference was now my beliefs were stronger and more concrete. After all, how can you truly know what you believe until you understand both sides of an issue in its entirety?

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