Molly O’Farrell
September 11, 2013
English 101; Section 1050
Word count:1,025

Who Knew the “Evil Parents” Weren’t Exactly Evil?
“THAT’S WHAT I SAID!” I screeched and giggled as my dad teased me for hours. “No Molly, it’s red robin” he would say, emphasizing the “r”. I carefully mimicked: “wed wobin,” and waited for the cycle to continue. This was one of my earliest memories of my dad, at age six just entering first grade. I was still pronouncing “refrigerator” as “refrige-agator” and “cinnamon” as “cimamin.” My parents corrected me every time I would say the wrong word, or pronounce my “r’s” as “w’s.” They even sent me to the speech therapist at my elementary school, just to find out that it was un-needed and I would simply grow out of my bad habits. My parents have always helped me with everything involving school and academics, which has ultimately made me realize how important education is, making my grades my number one priority. Every aspect of one’s background has an effect on their development; culture, social class, family, teachers, genetics, friends, and experiences are just a small portion of the characteristics that play a role in how well a person succeeds in school. However, family and background play the largest role in influencing what type of student an individual will become.
In public schools, each child is assumed to get the same treatment, technically making it so that every student has an equal opportunity for success. But regardless of this factor, some students are bound to be more successful than others. This means that there has to be other factors influencing their performance in school. Children grow up with their family every single day, looking to them immediately for help and guidance. This is why family plays such an important role in shaping students’ behavior and values. The students who have parents that tell them “do