Failure Is Not An Option by tayonna

Failure Is Not An Option by tayonna - November 2017 Scholarship Essay

Failure is not an option for me, I came to that realization when I failed Algebra 2 first semester of my junior year. My grade in that class was a 32 which brought my GPA down from a 3.5 to a 3.2. This was my first and last time experience with a failing grade but also a eye opener.
I take full responsibility for the part I played in receiving the grade, but unfortunately there were some other underlying issues as well. My teacher was very knowledgeable about the curriculum and has been teaching this subject for a year or 2, but the teaching methods in my opinion compromised the subject matter and the nature of the students learning. This I think prevented the class from learning the subject, 85% of the class did not pass which speaks volumes. In the beginning of the first semester we didn't take any notes at all , we were instructed to just watching him solve problems and copy them, then attempt some on our own for independent practice. This method was not working because as the weeks went by there were 50% of the 11th grade failing Igberase Algebra 2 Class. That is when I knew it wasn't just me. I then asked him if there were any possible way that we can start taking notes and get work sheets so that we can have something to study from. He took my feedback and started giving us notes and worksheets . There was a very small amount of improvement but not much .
To make so changes, I took the situation to my mother which led us to having a parent- teacher conference which included my adviser and the principle. In the meeting I expressed that I just couldn't understand the work, the way he teaches is not understandable, and when a student asked for assistance in understanding a problem or lesson we were told to refer back to our notes. The only response he had to me not understanding Algebra 2 under his instruction was, one incident when I had my head down in class (I was not feeling well) and how that affected my learning. What he expressed didn't deal with the fact that I was failing Algebra 2. He wasn't offering any possible options for me to improve in the class. By the end of the meeting nothing was solved besides moving my seat to the front row. Moving my seat to the front row helped a little more but there were still distracting peers and his teaching method was still the same.

The final result of this was me failing first semester and having to do credit recovery . Credit recovery is a retake of any course you have failed which has online videos, lesson guides, and practice work which have to be complete. Once you're done with that it will then change your failing grade to an 70., Intern it will help bring my GPA up to where it needs to be because colleges look at your transcript and GPA. This will and can help determine the college you can go to, which is very important . In conclusion, second semester was very different. I worked extremely hard and my parents also hired an outside tutor so that I could learn the subject and pass Algebra 2. I passed the class because failure is not an option, and I’am willing to do what it takes to “X” failure.