One Bad Apple Spoils The Whole Bunch by Edward

One Bad Apple Spoils The Whole Bunch by Edward - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

Teachers will always give you lessons, whether they be class lessons or life lessons. I have always loved my teachers, because they loved to see me do my work and get A’s in their classes. It encouraged me to do better each time. It was rare for me to find a teacher that I did not like, but Mrs. P. was one. Mrs. P. was awkward, and there was something “off” about her that I didn’t get with my other teachers. I did not want her class in the first place, because English was not my best subject and an AP class, so I knew it was going to be difficult.

The first day, I was overwhelmed with all the homework, including a summer assignment. I struggled to understand the material. I would ask around for help, but even the other students didn’t know what to do. I went to Mrs. P. and asked for help. She looked at me and said, “Well, try.” But the problem was I didn’t even know where to start; the assignment looked so foreign to me. When I explained this, her response was, “Well, try again.” I lost all will to try to finish, so I started scribbling in my journals and did no work in that class. I felt like there was no way out and, if I stayed, my GPA would drop—or worse, I might fail the class.

I told Mrs. P. I was going to leave her class, but she said that she would help me understand and pass the class. I decided to give it another try. The next day, I remembered what Mrs. P. had said, but when I asked for help, she told me, “Use the book.” I replied “But I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.” “Oh well,” she said.

I didn’t know what else to do. I figured there was no way for me or my GPA to survive this class. I assumed that since I was in an AP class, I wouldn’t get as much help, because we were supposed to handle more challenging curriculum. I honestly couldn’t do the work without help. I went to my counselor and asked to get out of the class. When I told Mrs. P., she said she was disappointed and I was ruining my future. I didn’t tell her I had left because I felt like no one helped me. After that, I joined a regular English class and felt confident in getting high grades again. The class had the right pacing and with that it kept my grades high

The next year I got into another AP class I did not want: AP Government. My teacher faintly reminded me of Mrs. P., because he acted awkward as well. I treated the class like Mrs. P’s, just pretending to work while doodling in my journal. A week after the class started, I went to the teacher and told him I wanted to leave. He asked, “Why?” and I replied, “Because I don’t think I can do it. I can’t waste time stressing over assignments that I can’t even do.” He replied, “I will help you.” I immediately remembered that Mrs. P. had said the same thing, and she hadn’t lifted a finger for me. I then told him, “I can’t do it. I was told the same thing by my English teacher, but she didn’t help. I can do an AP Math class with ease, because I know the material and how it works. But anything other than that would just stress me out.”

At this point, I started to break down because it reminded me of Mrs. P. saying I would be a failure for leaving her class. Then my government teacher replied, “If you can do AP Math, then you can surely do this. You may have had a bad experience with your last AP teacher, but you shouldn’t let that discourage you from being in an AP class.” His words and tone made me feel more relaxed, and he seemed sincere. The last thing he said was, “Give it a try for a week, and if it’s too much for you, then I will get you out of this class.” I agreed to his terms and thanked him for his encouragement.

The next time I needed help was the moment of truth: would he turn out to be like Mrs. P., or would he stay true to his word? I asked for help, and he explained the material. I felt so relieved and more confident, because my teacher honestly cared about me. I learned that I had misjudged my government teacher. I had assumed all AP teachers would be like Mrs. P. It made me realize that you shouldn’t judge based on a single bad experience. I now understand what people mean by “one bad apple spoils the bunch,” so whenever this happens in the future with my friends, in college, or in the workforce, I won’t be so quick to judge based on one person, class, or job. In the end, that bad experience with Mrs. P. was one of the most important lessons I’ve had.