Academic Success in America
James E. Martin
Averett University

Academic Success in America
Academic success in America would not be a critical issue if parents ensure, at an early age that their children understand personal responsibility when it comes to education. Starting from the time a child learns to walk; parents are providing their children with an understanding of how to be successful in life but with that being said, it doesn’t mean that your children will become rocket scientists just because you do the right thing. As a youth, I learned both good and bad examples of academic success from my parents. The first thing I learned was that mom was a high school graduate but my dad had to drop out of school in the ninth grade. Discovering the educational levels of my parents was important to me because I felt their success in life would be the same as mine, all I had to do was get through school, graduating or not and I’d have money, cars, a house and a family. During my earlier years of learning (elementary school), my parents did not review my school work for accuracy, nor were they members of the Parent Teacher Association (PTA). My parents had hectic schedules; my dad would leave for work early in the morning and return late in the evening, while my mom would leave for work in the afternoon and return late at night. I didn’t have anyone to check to see if my homework was finished or help me with school work; my parents relied on the school system in order to make that happen. As my educational requirements began to get harder (middle school), my grades started to falter, all I could think about was having fun with my friends. My parents would always tell me that I could only blame myself if my grades did not improve but I felt that otherwise. Upon entering high school, I only cared about sports, girls and showing off around my friends, my