James Farner

Ms. Cooley
2/18/15
ELA 8
I think that students who fail their classes should be retained and have to repeat that class.
This is because if students get a C or below in high school, the chances of them earning even one
college credit are below 50-50. This is very important information because with the rise of openadmissions colleges, students are getting the wrong idea that their high school grades dont
matter. This obviously isnt true, as shown by an overwhelming amount of data. For example,
36% of students who got an average grade of B+, B, or B- didnt achieve a degree in college. For
students who got a C+, C, or C-, that value jumped to 62%. About 86% of students who got a
high school grade below a C- did not get a degree in college.
Some people might think that students who fail their classes failed because of too much
homework or because the student didnt do the unnecessary homework, and therefore, should
not have to repeat the class. It turns out that the homework assigned is essential for academic
success in the class and in college later on. Studies have shown that students who did not do any
homework in high school end up with 1.2 years less education than normal, as well as 19% less
earnings in their future jobs. On the other hand, students who did 15 hours or more homework
every week ended up with the equivalent of 1.5 more years of education than the average
student, including 16% higher earnings in their future jobs.
Some people may also say that college success is not linked to high school preparation.
Getting a college degree is difficult for students who have worked hard and done well in high
school, but for students who havent, it is nearly impossible. If the students do not work hard in
high school, several things will happen. First, they will get bad grades in high school. Second,
they will enter college. Third, they will try to step up their academic effort for probably the first
time in a few years, if not, in their whole life. Fourth, they will probably fail. Fifth, they will not

James Farner
Ms. Cooley
2/18/15
ELA 8
get passing grades in college, or the diploma that comes with them. This is a huge problem that
stems from not getting good grades in high school.
To combat this problem, I think that students who get below a C- in their high school classes
should have to repeat that class. If this happened, the students who got that grade would have
better chances of getting a college degree, should they decide to go to college. That would
eliminate the students from the bottom of the chart that only have a 13% chance of getting a
degree. Overall, I think that you will now agree with me that students who fail their classes in
high school should be retained and have to repeat the class they failed.