A. I gave Ms. L. the F and slept poorly that night. Some of the failing grades I issue gnaw at me more than others. In my ears rang her plaintive words, so emblematic of the tough spot in which we both now found ourselves. Ms. L. had done everything that American culture asked of her. She had gone back to school to better herself, and she expected to be rewarded for it, not slapped down. She had failed not, as some students do, by being absent too often or by blowing off assignments. She simply was not qualified for college. What exactly, I wondered, was I grading? I thought briefly of passing Ms. L., of slipping her the old gentlewoman’s C-minus. But I couldn’t do it. It wouldn’t be fair to the other students. By passing Ms. L., I would be eroding the standards of the school for which I worked. Besides, I nurse a healthy ration of paranoia. What if she were a plant from The New York Times doing a story on the declining standards of the nation’s colleges? In my mind’s eye, the front page of a newspaper spun madly, as in old movies, coming to rest to reveal a damning headline:
THIS IS A C?
Illiterate Mess Garners ‘Average’ Grade
Adjunct Says Student ‘Needed’ to Pass, ‘Tried Hard’
No, I would adhere to academic standards, and keep myself off the front page.
B. This paragraph sort of left me curious more than confused. The story of Ms. L really kept me attached to this article because I could see and understand how Ms. L was struggling and how Professor X was trying to help her, so I was curious to see if Professor X’s help would work. Yet I can introduce a new idea on sort of a confusing part when I first read this paragraph. Professor X says how he slept poorly that night when he gave Ms. L the F, but when I first read this paragraph I was wondering why he cared that she earned an F. He wasn’t being a mean teacher Ms. L just didn’t deserve the grade and that’s how all teacher should treat their students. Then I finished the article and understood Professor X’s more in depth analogy of how society believes if you go to college you will be successful. Ms. L “had done everything that American culture asked of her. She had gone back to school to better herself, and she expected to be rewarded for it, not slapped down.” This sentence makes a lot more sense now that Ms. L was just obeying what society requires yet her age held her back from meeting the requirements to pass an English 101 class.
C. This passage definitely connects to earlier paragraphs in this article, basically because it explains how society demanded that Ms. L go back to college although she wasn’t properly suited for it. Before Professor X just explains how poorly she understood the technology involved in the class but then expands why he thinks she is going to college unprepared with the paragraph I chose. This was an explanation of Professor X’s earlier claim at how bad he felt for Ms. L for not understanding the material. At first he gives evidence why and how she did not understand the technology and then explains his theory on why Ms. L even went back to college so unprepared. Although he feels very bad for Ms. L he does not give in to rewarding her with a C because he respects his college, so he goes on to defend why he is not giving in to the pressures society put on students and teachers.
D. Personally: My gut reaction to this paragraph is I probably would have given Ms. L a passing grade. Although I didn’t read her essays my mom went to back to Western to finish her four year degree and I see how hard she worked through soccer practices, making lunch, getting my siblings to school, making dinner, making breakfast, doing laundry, cleaning the house, and then do her school work. Not saying my mom did as bad as Ms. L because she graduated but I just feel bad for Ms. L because it’s not her fault she was technologically behind and she probably had some sort of pressure to go back to school like my mom did. My mom’s work sort of forced her to go back to work because she is the Vice President of WECU yet she only had her AA, and more prestigious workers were obviously a sort of lower ranking than her in the workplace. But as I think about it more I value Professor X for remembering that it is his job to give a fair grade and that shows he respects his school and values.
Intellectually: This passage really brings up the fact that society is forcing people to go to college when they are not intellectually ready. Ms. L was obviously not capable of taking Professor X’s English class yet she was most likely forced into taking his class for her job, strive to have a better education, or need of a higher standing. A lot of people hold their education as a very personal aspect of their life. In society today education defines you, if two people are being interviewed for the same job and one has a master’s degree and the other has their AA degree hands down the person with the master’s degree is most likely going to be hired. Also people with a higher education seem to be respected more, if you’re a parent meeting your daughter’s boyfriend and he could either just graduated college with a master’s degree or dropped out of high school, the parents would obviously choose the boyfriend with the master’s because in society today that kid is going further in life. It is just plainly how our society is structured and is why teachers like Professor X have trouble sleeping because they have to fail unprepared students like Ms. L.
Rhetorically and Stylistically: This passage was definitely written with a lot of emotions. Professor X is pouring his heart out and admitting he had trouble sleeping that night because of a random woman in his class. Just reading this passage you can tell that this professor is not lying about his trouble sleep because one woman made him realize how society is strictly structured and forces people to need an education which ultimately causes him stress. Professor X also uses very descriptive words to explain his emotions like, “some of the failing grades I issue gnaw at me” and “she expected to be rewarded for it, not slapped down.” Professor X basically writes that society expects people like Ms. L to get an education and it is his responsibility as a teacher to make sure she prospers but when a student doesn’t understand the material he feels like he ultimately fails his job.
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