The fear of failing in a class at school is on the way to extinction. There is no longer a desire to do the best for a student. A student who does the hard work necessary to learn and succeed in school is disappearing. Hard work, effort, priorities and responsibility are just some of the concepts lost among today's youth. There is no willingness to do your best when no one really expects you to. Unfortunately, the only ones to be deceived in this epidemic of the new world which “passes everyone” are the young people. The new American generation is left behind, year after year, without really acquiring the knowledge necessary to thrive in life. Fortunately, there are individuals who do not want to stand idly by and watch American students graduate with a degree that is borderline meaningless. Mary Sherry, author of “In Praise of the “F” Word,” discusses the long-forgotten concept of failed students. Sherry teaches a remedial course for adults and sees students each semester who, unfortunately, did not acquire the knowledge necessary in school to successfully continue their education beyond high school. Sherry also recounts her own son's experience in high school with a teacher who refused to let the minimum pass like so many other teachers would. Sherry's words are encouraging for the future because she accepted the rules of a teacher even though it could have harmed her own son, something many parents would not have done. Sherry realized that although she wanted to protect her family from negative experiences, the fear of failure would give her son a better future. The threat of failure must be real to inspire the student. Jacob Neusner's essay, "The Speech the Graduates Didn't Hear," is a prime example of false threats and has...... middle of paper ......knowledge that their peers and will pass on their lack of knowledge to their children's desire for education. The cycle will continue unless something is done to stop it. Education must become the first priority of students, teachers and parents. Teachers should not be afraid of failing or of students who have not shown significant growth within their class. Parents should not intervene when a teacher causes a child to fail due to embarrassment or pride. Finally, students must make education the most important part of their lives. Learning must come before fun, which unfortunately seems to be a foreign concept to most young people today. There is much more to be gained from a good education than just how to solve algebraic equations. When will we ever use this information in the real world? The answer to this question is simple, every day.