By Mr. Westbrooks
Background: I drafted this open letter and included it as a part of my students’ final exam. The purpose of the letter was for them to analyze an example of literature being as social commentary and to give them some parting words to reflect on over the summer. The students were also required to respond by writing an open letter back to me. Some of their responses will be included. Note: The letter was a last-minute decision, and I wrote it about an hour before the exam lol, so there was definitely more I wanted to say but didn’t have time to write.
To the current English 2B students and the larger Class of 2018:
As most of you know, I like to keep things interesting, so rather than finding a social commentary text that someone else wrote, I decided to write to you directly. With the exception of the new students that arrived this school year, we’ve been together off and on for two years now. A lot of your classmates from freshman year are no longer here for various reasons. For those of you who are still here, I’ve witnessed some of you grow behaviorally and in terms of maturity, and I’ve witnessed some of you grow academically. While we’ve made some progress, I have a few areas of concern that I would like to bring to your attention briefly. All of my comments connect to theme of taking your education seriously.
Your Education is Bigger than Grades
Passing your classes — or even earning A’s and B’s in your classes – is not an accurate indication of whether you’re prepared for the next grade or even life after high school, regardless of what you decide to do after you graduate. This is especially true considering that the work and expectations at this school aren’t challenging enough. We both know this, because I’ve heard some of you on a few occasions talk about how “easy” this school is. However, we also both know that I’ve never tried to allow my English class to be too easy for you. Just look at the social commentary posters that many of you struggled with, but eventually completed. You shouldn’t be content with school being easy, especially when many of us are far behind teenagers in other schools, states, and countries.
When you’re only concerned about earning average or good grades, you become more focused on finishing your work rather than actually learning or gaining a deeper understanding of the material. Knowing how much growth we need to make, I find it shameful that we only complete learning tasks when it’s a part of the grade. What’s even crazier, is that some of you even turn down extra credit opportunities! Even if you don’t think you need everything we’re teaching you in school, the process of learning is a habit, and it trains your brain to solve other problems that may be more relevant to you.
Yes, You Do Need an Education
Many people probably have a narrow understanding of “education.” When the word education comes up, many of us automatically think of school. But in fact, education comes in many different forms. Here are my thoughts on college: College isn’t for everyone, and everyone shouldn’t attend a college/university after high school; HOWEVER, I believe every student should have the OPTION of attending college. There shouldn’t be any student leaving high school without the skills to be successful at an institution of higher learning. Also know that earning a college degree isn’t a guarantee of financial success, but it could be if you use the higher education system to work for you.
I want you to think about education more broadly, and take it seriously. Education is any type of training or learning. You have other options besides going to college, enlisting in the army, or just getting a job. You can be an electrician, mechanic, plumber, barber/hair stylist, beautician, etc. You can own your own business, which is very important. We’re all familiar with street entrepreneurs aka trappers who employ themselves by selling illegal and destructive products in the ‘hood, so why can’t we take that entrepreneurial mentality, and start businesses that are both legal and productive?
My last point on the necessity of education: Along with attending school or learning a skill/trade, you also need a proper education of yourself. Even if you’re a platinum rapper or earning millions in the NFL, NBA, or MLB, you still need this knowledge. One of my favorite teachers (I think it was Tony Browder) once said, “Money without consciousness (awareness, knowledge, wisdom, and understanding) leads to destruction.” Money alone can compromise your morals or cause you to make stupid decisions that will lead you to losing your money.
Many of us don’t know the history of who we are and where we come from. It’s important for us to know this “old stuff” in order to give us guidance for the present and future. I hope you picked up on this lesson from our social commentary project that history repeats itself, and if we’re not aware of it and take proper action, we’re doomed to make the same mistakes that our ancestors made. On a positive note, studying the achievements of those who came before you is inspirational, and it takes away all excuses for you not being excellent. Educate yourself on who you are. Read more books (I’m not only saying that because I’m an English teacher). Watch videos and documentaries, and visit museums. There are even Instagram pages that you can follow that can provide a starting point towards knowledge of self.
Don’t Wait Until After High School
I hear some of you say “Oh, we’re still in high school, and we’ll worry about that stuff after we graduate.” No, start now. In reality, other kids your age started taking their education seriously and working towards their after high school goals in elementary school. It’s never too early to get started. The earlier you start, the better chance you have at being successful. Because of the education we’ve been given so far due to our background and where we live, we have a lot of catching up to do, and we also understand that we have to work twice as hard to get where we need to be.
Final Thoughts
I hope you read this entire letter, and you take heed to my words, and think seriously about them over the summer. I wouldn’t write this long letter if I didn’t care about you or want to see you do well. You are the present and the future, and all of us adults are depending on you to make our future better than what it is now.
Peace,
Mr. Westbrooks
Read the student responses here.
The Manuscript 
An End-of-the-Year Open Letter to the Students of My English Classes
July 9, 2016 3 Comments
By Mr. Westbrooks
Background: I drafted this open letter and included it as a part of my students’ final exam. The purpose of the letter was for them to analyze an example of literature being as social commentary and to give them some parting words to reflect on over the summer. The students were also required to respond by writing an open letter back to me. Some of their responses will be included. Note: The letter was a last-minute decision, and I wrote it about an hour before the exam lol, so there was definitely more I wanted to say but didn’t have time to write.
To the current English 2B students and the larger Class of 2018:
As most of you know, I like to keep things interesting, so rather than finding a social commentary text that someone else wrote, I decided to write to you directly. With the exception of the new students that arrived this school year, we’ve been together off and on for two years now. A lot of your classmates from freshman year are no longer here for various reasons. For those of you who are still here, I’ve witnessed some of you grow behaviorally and in terms of maturity, and I’ve witnessed some of you grow academically. While we’ve made some progress, I have a few areas of concern that I would like to bring to your attention briefly. All of my comments connect to theme of taking your education seriously.
Your Education is Bigger than Grades
Passing your classes — or even earning A’s and B’s in your classes – is not an accurate indication of whether you’re prepared for the next grade or even life after high school, regardless of what you decide to do after you graduate. This is especially true considering that the work and expectations at this school aren’t challenging enough. We both know this, because I’ve heard some of you on a few occasions talk about how “easy” this school is. However, we also both know that I’ve never tried to allow my English class to be too easy for you. Just look at the social commentary posters that many of you struggled with, but eventually completed. You shouldn’t be content with school being easy, especially when many of us are far behind teenagers in other schools, states, and countries.
When you’re only concerned about earning average or good grades, you become more focused on finishing your work rather than actually learning or gaining a deeper understanding of the material. Knowing how much growth we need to make, I find it shameful that we only complete learning tasks when it’s a part of the grade. What’s even crazier, is that some of you even turn down extra credit opportunities! Even if you don’t think you need everything we’re teaching you in school, the process of learning is a habit, and it trains your brain to solve other problems that may be more relevant to you.
Yes, You Do Need an Education
Many people probably have a narrow understanding of “education.” When the word education comes up, many of us automatically think of school. But in fact, education comes in many different forms. Here are my thoughts on college: College isn’t for everyone, and everyone shouldn’t attend a college/university after high school; HOWEVER, I believe every student should have the OPTION of attending college. There shouldn’t be any student leaving high school without the skills to be successful at an institution of higher learning. Also know that earning a college degree isn’t a guarantee of financial success, but it could be if you use the higher education system to work for you.
I want you to think about education more broadly, and take it seriously. Education is any type of training or learning. You have other options besides going to college, enlisting in the army, or just getting a job. You can be an electrician, mechanic, plumber, barber/hair stylist, beautician, etc. You can own your own business, which is very important. We’re all familiar with street entrepreneurs aka trappers who employ themselves by selling illegal and destructive products in the ‘hood, so why can’t we take that entrepreneurial mentality, and start businesses that are both legal and productive?
My last point on the necessity of education: Along with attending school or learning a skill/trade, you also need a proper education of yourself. Even if you’re a platinum rapper or earning millions in the NFL, NBA, or MLB, you still need this knowledge. One of my favorite teachers (I think it was Tony Browder) once said, “Money without consciousness (awareness, knowledge, wisdom, and understanding) leads to destruction.” Money alone can compromise your morals or cause you to make stupid decisions that will lead you to losing your money.
Many of us don’t know the history of who we are and where we come from. It’s important for us to know this “old stuff” in order to give us guidance for the present and future. I hope you picked up on this lesson from our social commentary project that history repeats itself, and if we’re not aware of it and take proper action, we’re doomed to make the same mistakes that our ancestors made. On a positive note, studying the achievements of those who came before you is inspirational, and it takes away all excuses for you not being excellent. Educate yourself on who you are. Read more books (I’m not only saying that because I’m an English teacher). Watch videos and documentaries, and visit museums. There are even Instagram pages that you can follow that can provide a starting point towards knowledge of self.
Don’t Wait Until After High School
I hear some of you say “Oh, we’re still in high school, and we’ll worry about that stuff after we graduate.” No, start now. In reality, other kids your age started taking their education seriously and working towards their after high school goals in elementary school. It’s never too early to get started. The earlier you start, the better chance you have at being successful. Because of the education we’ve been given so far due to our background and where we live, we have a lot of catching up to do, and we also understand that we have to work twice as hard to get where we need to be.
Final Thoughts
I hope you read this entire letter, and you take heed to my words, and think seriously about them over the summer. I wouldn’t write this long letter if I didn’t care about you or want to see you do well. You are the present and the future, and all of us adults are depending on you to make our future better than what it is now.
Peace,
Mr. Westbrooks
Read the student responses here.
Filed under Commentary Tagged with careers, college, education, money, mr. westbrooks, open letter, school, students, training, university, urban education, youth