an open letter to ninth graders

Angelica Galvan
Professor Frost
Composition I
September 10, 2014
Don’t read this without thinking
The expectations that students just out of high school have to meet in college are different than what they are used to. In “An Open Letter to Ninth Graders,” Patrick Sullivan establishes his opinion on the most important college-readiness skills­– reading, writing, thinking, listening, grit and attitude. Sullivan’s knowledge about the needs of college freshmen comes from his experience as an English professor at Manchester Community College in Connecticut. Sullivan’s advice over all six of the skills necessary for college is correct.
Reading comprehension is an important skill due to the great amount of reading a student is required to do for his classes. Sullivan states that a student has to have a desire for reading and has to take pleasure in it, not see it as something they are forced to do in order to survive through college. He also advises the students in high school to read significant literary pieces with historical or cultural context in order to have greater background knowledge.
Strong writing skills are as equally important as having great reading skills. Students should take their work seriously and not leave it until the end, but do it before to be able to have time to revise and edit. Sullivan also asserts that the students should go to class ready and disposed to learn and take advantage of all the opportunities they have to learn great amounts of material.
Students who attend college should take advantage of the opportunities they have to expand their ideas. Sullivan finds that most successful students challenge themselves and have positive outcomes due to all the effort they have put forth and have great curiosity of all the different information they can learn that can change their ideas and perspective.
In order to learn all the information that interests each student, they have to be able to listen. Not only does listening help one learn but helps the students to engage and form a respectful relationship with other people. Listening can help students have a good working relationship with professors or colleagues that will help them have an easier way through college. Sullivan recommends students practice listening due to the many good outcomes that can come out of having a good relationship.
Having a great self-discipline can help students to have positive outcomes on their college work due to the dedication they have invested in it. The students that apply self-discipline may suffer at some point due to the amount of work done, but in the long-term, the outcome is going to out-way it. Students are going to find themselves enjoying their time in college instead of suffering through it.
College is an opportunity of great value that many students do not appreciate. Sullivan advises the high schools to require hours of community service in order for the students to gain the maturity needed to understand that college is not only for socializing but to gain knowledge. Depending on what is the student’s perspective is how they are going to act through college.
In my experience, Sullivan’s advice over thinking, listening, grit, attitude, reading and writing is correctly made. These points are well explained, and he gives details so students reading it know realistic ways of using these skills. Sullivan effectively explains ways to improve each of these skills even before entering college, so when students enter college, they won’t have problems with their classes.
The impact of the article on a college student depends on how advanced the six skills explained are. When I read this article, I realized how I lacked the skills he deemed necessary for success in college. In the beginning I refused to accept this, but the way Sullivan explained it, made me realize the truth. Most of my life I lived in a small town in Mexico where the only way you could get information was by reading, which made reading easier for me now that I am in college. Still there is a great difference between reading in Spanish and English. Having to read a textbook in English with a different vocabulary than I am used to, made it harder for me, but with self-discipline I have upgraded my vocabulary by creating an appreciation of reading. Thanks to the amount of reading I have done to upgrade my vocabulary, my writing skills have been gradually improving. I have started to make better relationships with my professors and practicing my self-discipline with various work assignments. After reading the article, I realized I have been applying Sullivan’s skills without even knowing. He specifically addresses the content necessary for success in academics.
Throughout the article, Sullivan gives his advice on how students can prepare to survive college by giving six skills needed. Sullivan’s advice is well explained, having in result an effective outcome. This article will not only help students in high school preparing for college, but will also have a positive effect on college students.