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As an elementary school student in the early 90's, I had very few examples to look to for what high school life would be like; I had no older siblings and the Internet was not around yet to culture my small town mindset. Fortunately, I did have one beacon of light in my preparation for high school: a little show called Saved By The Bell.

Many were the lessons I learned from this program. Among these include the latest fashion of the time and the true size of an early 90's cell phone.

More important, though, were the lessons I learned from Saved By The Bell about the harmonious order of the social hierarchy of high school. You see, at Bayside High, there was no gray area, you were either a jock, a prep, a nerd, a cheerleader, etc. You did not move up, down, or around to other social classes within the high school universe.

There was still hope, though. Saved By The Bell taught us that all of the various high school stereotypes could all coexist and even befriend each other in unique cliques that resembled an appetizer sampler of the teenage social scale. Unified by common ground like the after school hangout (The Max) and other symbiotic relationships (Screech does Slater's homework, Slater protects Screech from would-be bullies), it was smooth sailing through high school for "The Gang", except for the convenient 25 minute hangups they would encounter and overcome once a week.

All of these lessons I eagerly learned under the weekly tutelage of Saved By The Bell, only to enter high school a few years later and find out that none of them applied in real life.

Learn more about this author, Chance Clift.
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