Right to Fail by William

¶ … Right to Fail by William Zinsser: In The Right to Fail, William Zinsser makes the argument that the word "dropout" has exclusively negative connotations that may not be entirely deserved. According to the author, the assumption in contemporary society is that the only path to personal fulfilment or professional success is through the traditional route of formal education.

Zinsser challenges that assumption and reminds us that prior to the modern era, many of societies greatest successes were achieved by individuals who left formal education early enough to be considered "dropouts" by today's standards. Zinsser points out that there are many paths to professional and entrepreneurial success and to personal fulfilment besides the single academic-oriented definition of success that dominates modern American culture.

For one thing, many uncontroverted successes have been achieved through personal dedication and vocational entrepreneurship that were pursued completely outside of the traditional educational track that is generally assumed to be the only means of pursuing professional achievement. Furthermore, the author points out that the notion of "success" is much more general than the pursuit of wealth or traditional corporate achievement.

For example, Zinsser explains that students who devote themselves to meaningful goals outside of the traditional academic or career path often experience much greater personal satisfaction than many of those who blindly follow the traditional academic and professional path that has become the norm in modern American society. Zinsser suggests that the concept of "dropping out" of school implies that there is something much more important to drop out from but that many times, the alternate choices made by dropouts might actually constitute dropping in to something else worthwhile.

Analysis of In Praise of the F-Word by Mary Sherry: In Praise of the F-Word by Mary Sherry, details the extent to which the common practice of passing students who may deserve to be failed in academic classes is more harmful in the long-term than failing them. According to Sherry, an unacceptably high number of students who receive their high school diplomas enter the workplace without any of the basic skills that one assumes would be prerequisites for high school graduation.

Specifically, Sherry describes that many high school graduates realize only long after their graduation that their interests would have been much better served by being failed in certain classes, especially those in which they were supposed to have learned how to read and write at a grad-appropriate level. The author relates the experiences of one parent whose child was in danger of failing because of what is normally referred to as "senioritis" and lack of effort in his last year of high school.

As soon as that student's teacher made clear that the consequences of continued poor performance would be failure in the course, that student began making more of an effort and ultimately received an A in the class. The inference is that students often perform much more poorly than they are capable of performing simply because they are aware that being failed in a class is not a likely consequence.

The most important point advanced by Sherry is that so-called "social promotion" of students who do not deserve to pass courses or progress to the next grade is counterproductive to those students, to the educational system, and ultimately, to society in general. Synthesis: Both Zinsser and Sherry make valid points, although the thesis advanced by Zinsser may be somewhat less practical than that presented by Sherry. Certainly, many entrepreneurs (including some who founded the large and successful computer companies) never finished college.

Similarly, many tremendously successful individuals in other fields achieved their dreams through what are considered non-traditional paths by today's standards. However, to suggest that one should consider that route instead of formal education is somewhat irresponsible. In modern society, the vast majority of occupations that guarantee a comfortable middle-class life are more likely to be secured through the academic route than by dropping out of school prematurely. The fact that some.