Blair Gibson April 29, 2013 English 1103 Exploratory Essay School is designed to prepare students for their

futures. Some take the avenues of college, other go to big universities, some go to vocational schools, and many simply go right into the work force. Whatever the path they choose, school ensures they have the right skills and tools to be successful in their journey of adulthood. The excerpts from In the Basement of the Ivory Tower by Professor X, Women Without Class by Julie Beattie, and On the Uses of Liberal Education by Earl Shorris, each have a different plot and message, but they share a common underlying thread. Every school, no matter if it is an elite school or a lower-class school, gives its students the tools and the opportunity to succeed. It is up to the student whether or not they take it. All three of the articles deal with different degrees of success and failure. In the Basement of the Ivory Tower by Professor X is the story of a college English professor that has a failing student. He offers her options such as an appointment with a librarian, and she refuses his help. Consequently, she failed the paper. Julie Bettie in Women Without Class interviews several young women at a prep high school. These girls were essentially spoon-fed the opportunities they needed to go to college with tours to vocational schools and colleges. The researcher points out that there are students in this school making 3.5 GPAs, who are well on their way to at least a community college. That was not the case with these girls. The opportunity was there but most did not take it because there was simply no desire to further their education. According to On the Uses of Liberal Education, there are forces like hunger, poverty, and

crime that dictate a persons success. The main character in this reading offers a way out for the people suffering from these disparities by teaching them the humanities. In contrast to the other readings, many of these people are inspired and pass the course. However, the class started out with thirty-three students and only sixteen passed. Earl Shorris says to the students in On the Uses of Liberal Education, Whether or not this class succeeds or fails is up to the teacher and you. This quote from Shorris is straightforward. He believed that teachers are paid to teach students and help them succeed. He is giving them the opportunity to take a class that he claims will increase their political intelligence, meaning their ability to communicate with people at all levels. The class is even paid for and provides services such as child care and transportation for those who need it. Almost half of the students did not succeed in the course because of these forces mentioned earlier bringing them down. According to Shorris, these forces are excuses for failure. How did the professor handle the students who couldnt finish the course? What does a professor say to his students when he knows that they are capable of success? When does the time come that a professor just stops trying? Once the opportunities are given, it is up to the student to take advantage of what they have been given. In her Women Without Class, Julie Beattie fiercely quotes, But given that school culture equates success with college attendance and that failure to do well enough to go to college is readily understood as individual failure, the girls were left with no one to blame but themselves. The vicious cycle begins again; the girls are offered an opportunity to better themselves and they refuse it. Theyre already bored with school and change the subject when asked about their plans after high school. It is mentioned that the teachers and administration show the female students favoritism over the males. Why do they refuse the opportunities given

to them? Why doesnt Beattie, as an outsider looking in, encourage the girls to better themselves and make the most of their education? What is causing this unfortunate lack of desire? The women seem subconsciously afraid of failing so they do not even attempt the challenge. Professor X paves a fairly easy path for Ms. L, his adult student who is failing. Professor X writes, She wasnt absorbing anything. The wall had gone up, the wall known to every teacher at every level: the wall of defeat and hopelessness and humiliation, the wall that is an impenetrable barrier to learning. She wasnt hearing a word I said. Professor X had set up appointments with the librarian and given Ms. L one-on-one conferencing. Why was Ms. Ls fear, which could easily be overcome, bigger than her desire to succeed? Colleges are designed to be an opportunity. If a student decides to not focus on their studies and make wrong decisions, then the opportunity will quickly disappear. However, there is always a second chance. If Ms. L were to fail the course completely, she could always learn from her mistakes and try it again the following semester. Putting up walls and giving up because of constructive criticism and one bad grade is not taking advantage of the opportunity. The three articles discussed previously are framed with failure, but for every failure there is a subsequent success. What is success? In our society, success means earning lots of money each year, having a steady job and a nice car, and leaving a positive mark on society. This is achieved by working hard to get an education and a well-paying job. However, success is an ambiguous word. Whether it means making satisfactory grades and having the ability to write a college-level paper, being happy and independent with a lower-class job, or being political in life, ultimately success is whatever satisfactory circumstances make a persons life enjoyable to live. Maybe in the eyes of the students, they are not failing. As stated before, success is ambiguous. Who are we to define success for them?

Works Cited

Bettie, Julie. Women without Class: Girls, Race and Identity. Chapter 3. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2003. 57--94. Print. Shorris, Earl. On the Uses of a Liberal Education: II. As a Weapon in the Hands of the Poor. Considering Literacy: Reading and Writing The Educational Experience. Linda AdlerKasser. New York: Pearson Longman,2006. 187--200. Print.

X, Professor. In the Basement of the Ivory Tower. The Atlantic Magazine. Boston: The Atlantic Media Company, 2008. Web.