In Praise Of The F Word By Mary Sherry Summary

When it comes to failing, our egos can be our worst enemy. After reading Mary Sherry’s essay “In Praise of the F Word” she argues that students do not have the skills they need to succeed in school or in life. It is very important for parents and teachers to start using the “threat of flunking” as a positive teaching tool to make students understand the importance of education. Even though, flunking may cause a student temporary emotional distress, the lack of education is continuously placing our nation at risk. Failure should not continue to be an option in today’s educational society. Many of us, whether as a parent, teacher or student, do not see the good in failure. We have become oblivious to the effect it can have on us long-term. According to “In Praise of the F Word” by Mary Sherry, “Tens of thousands of eighteen year olds will graduate this year and be handed meaningless diplomas.” (559) Those meaningless diplomas have been handed to those students that have been given a free ride throughout High School. In today’s society, we continue to see students graduating and lacking the proper standard education. Studies from broadeducation.org show that one in four high school students graduates ready for college in all four core subjects (English, Reading, Math and Science). This is why one third of students entering …show more content…
We should not allow students to simply pass a class in despite of fear or pity. Educators and parents need to re-gain confidence and reinforce the “threat of flunking”. They need to start re-teaching students the essentials they need in order to succeed and survive. Parents and teachers need to be involved and continue to motivate children to do better even if it’s by instilling fear. Once we have full commitment, we can start making this society a better place and like Albert Einstein once said, “In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than fear of