Failure is not an option.

That phrase....those precious words....do not exist in my students vocabulary. Why? Because no one has ever told them that. They have been allowed, and expected, to fail their entire lives.

I gave a test today. 30 questions straight from the homework and the notes and the study guide we went over in class.

3 people passed.

out of 100.

only.3.

I asked them to raise their hands if they studied. Only 3.

Do they care? Are they now worried about their grades? Nope.

What happened here? Why do my students not care? Why are their parents allowing them to fail? Why do they not do their homework? Why is one of kids average a 17?

Parent-teacher conferences were last night, only 9 parents came. Do I think that this is a direct reflection onto my students? Absolutely.

If the parents dont care then why should the kids?

How do I make them care?

How do I get them to be successful in my class?

How do I get them to pass?

I don't feel bad for them anymore. I am beyond that. I am to a point of extreme frustration, disbelief, and annoyance.

Tomorrow they will learn that failure is not an option.
They will learn that I care if they fail.
They will learn that they will pass this class.
They will learn to study.
They will learn to do their homework.

And they will learn that making the teacher mad does not work well in their favor.