Mike Rose I Just Wanna Be Average Essay

In his essay, “I Just Wanna Be Average,” author Mike Rose says, “students will float to the mark you set” (164). From my past experiences, I completely agree that students will work harder if their teachers set the standards high. Generally, teenagers do not have high goals or standards for themselves, so it is up to the teachers to encourage and push the students towards success. Throughout his excerpt, Rose shows through numerous examples that teachers are a vital part to a student’s success in life.
“Why work hard in a class that didn’t grab my fancy?” (Rose 167). I agree with this quote because I have had many classes that have not grabbed my interest; therefore, I did not study properly and work hard to earn a good grade. In my freshman year of high school, I had a science teacher named Mr. Stara who clearly did not want to be teaching, and that was reflected in the lack of material we covered in class. Mr. Stara never offered to help us if we were having trouble understanding the material, and it seemed as if he didn’t care if we passed or failed the class. Ever since then, I have had no interest in any type of science and I believe that Mr. Stara is the reason why.
After being placed in the Vocational Education class, his interest in his studies faded, and he did the minimum amount of work to pass. To make matters worse, the teachers did not care whether or not the students became more educated. Rose believes that if teachers do not have high expectations for their students, the students will have a decrease in work ethic because there is no one pushing them to succeed. Throughout my years of schooling, I have been lucky enough to have teachers who taught every student on the same level. It is the only fair way for everyone to have an equal chance for