girl at school

Push and Pull
How I Chose to Come to Landmark

by Lena O’Leary ’26

There are several factors that led me from my old school to Landmark. These reasons can be separated into three categories: how teachers teach, classroom environment, and the section I call miscellaneous. My family and I examined, compared, and contrasted all of these when we considered Landmark. The contrast between the two schools shows the push-and-pull factors: reasons I wanted to leave my old school—push—and reasons I wanted to attend Landmark—pull. 

 

How Teachers Teach

First, the teachers: How they taught and their understanding of students contrasted greatly between my former middle school and Landmark’s Elementary•Middle School. A push from my old school was inadequate reading instruction. A pull toward Landmark was that they not only specialize in reading instruction, but they also understand the brains of students with dyslexia. Teachers don’t just follow a textbook, but instead they know multiple ways to teach information in hopes that one of the many ways will work. Another push from my old school was how they handled online schooling. When looking at how Landmark reacted to the pandemic, there was a clear and obvious difference. 

Classroom Environment

Second, the classroom structure and the classroom environment were very different. At my old school, it was typical to have 20 to 25 students per class. Landmark has classes of six to eight. This makes a big difference in helping students understand the content. Due to the smaller class sizes at Landmark and the way the teachers teach, the program can be more personalized for each student. At my old school there were so many students, the teachers didn’t seem to know who was in their class. Students were left behind if they didn’t understand something. At Landmark, teachers make sure every student participates and fully understands a topic before moving on. 

Miscellaneous

Third, there are miscellaneous pushes and pulls that don’t fit any one category. One reason is that my parents started to understand it was not just about me performing well in school. My challenges would be with me for the rest of my life. Another large push from my old school was that they were supposed to be giving me extra reading instruction, but they did not. All through elementary school, I was given extra help with reading. But when I went to sixth grade and was diagnosed with dyslexia, that stopped. My school felt I did not need the extra help when actually I did. 

All these reasons put me on the fence about whether I wanted to leave my old school and go to Landmark. The thing that really made me okay with the idea of leaving was talking to a friend who had gone to Landmark for sixth grade and really enjoyed it. He told me how nice the students and teachers were and how much it helped him develop his reading skills and further his education. 

Pull Factors in Action

These are some of the push- and pull-factors that led me to Landmark. While here, I have seen how all the pull factors I considered are carried out and how they help the students learn. Although all these reasons prove that Landmark was the right decision, when I first came it was a major transition. Throughout last year and this year, I feel as though I have gained so much. From all the friends I have made to all I have learned, coming to Landmark was the best decision I could have made. And now as I prepare for high school, I am using all that I now know to consider a whole new set of push- and pull-factors. 

Article originally published in The Lantern Spring/Summer 2022.

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