Failure to Success in Two Weeks by Kelli

Failure to Success in Two Weeks by Kelli - August 2014 Scholarship Essay

It was the very beginning of my sophomore year. Now like all sophomores, I felt on top of the world because I was no longer a freshman. I felt like my freshman year of high school made me wise beyond my years; to sum it all up in one word, I was cocky. I expected that, academically, my sophomore year would be the same as my freshman year; I thought I would excel at every subject with ease, especially honors chemistry. I could not have been more wrong.
It was not as if I wasn't warned about how difficult the class would be. My freshman biology teacher warned me about the difficulty level of the course.

Also, he informed me that students whom excel in biology do not usually excel in chemistry, and if I did not want to take the course it was understandable. In addition, many former chemistry honors students attempted to advise all prospective chemistry honors students not to take the class: it was too difficult. Even my actual chemistry teacher advised that this class was not for the faint of heart. The first day of school my honors chemistry teacher, Mr. Tiu, attempted to scare us out of the course. He advised the class that this will be one of the most rigorous courses we would ever take during our high school career. He informed us that we would even be learning some college chemistry material, and in order to succeed in this class, studying was absolutely necessary. However, even after all these warnings, I still did not get the hint.

Three days after Mr. Tiu gave the class his "turn back now" speech, we had our first quiz. In retrospect the quiz was relatively easy compared to the ones that would come later on, however, everyone in the class failed, including me. I received a 58% on the quiz. This came as quite a shock to me because I usually excelled in science, as it was my favorite subject. Truthfully, I was secretly afraid that what my biology teacher told me was true. Rather than believe I did wrong by not studying, I believed I was just another victim to the workings of the brain. I convinced myself that since I was talented in biology I would not be talented in chemistry. I blamed the class and my brain rather than my work ethic.

Approximately a week after the first quiz, we had another quiz. Yet again, everyone failed. Technically, I did not fail as I received a 62%, but to me that is still failing. I was upset and frustrated, which, by my facial expression, was made clear to Mr. Tiu. He had heard about me from other teachers and he knew that I could do better. That day he had asked me to stay after class. Therefore after class I nervously walked up to his desk, and I was sure he was going to ask me to drop the class. Instead he asked me why I was not studying. I replied by stating that I was excellent in science and never really studied for quizzes, only tests. Then he replied, "Don't study because you're not good at something, study because you are. Great people aren't born, they're made." Then he dismissed me and I walked out of the classroom, stunned. Just like that my whole outlook and priorities changed quite a bit. Something about his statement inspired me to become the best in chemistry, and strived to achieve the highest grade possible. Because I failed, I thought it was the end of the line for me. However because I failed, I went on to achieve great things in chemistry.

This failure caused me to learn a secret about being great. I learned that it takes hard work and dedication, even if you're good at something to be the best. I certainly proved myself that semester as I had received 101.5% in the class. It took two weeks of failing the course to realize it was my work ethic, and not my brain, that was the problem. Once I altered my approach to the course material, I discovered that chemistry was not as difficult as it was made out to be. By failing I discovered more than what it takes to succeed in some classes, I discovered my passion.