Every lecture we had contained an underlying theme that if you thought long enough about it, could be applied to every aspect in biology. This made my job as a student much easier and I couldn't see how people didn't do as well as I did. I realized that they lacked the want to do better. They went into the class hearing that it was just something to fill up credits to graduate and still look good on your transcript. They did not realize that success, in any type of class, is only obtainable by going up and beyond anyone's expectations.
Richard Rodriguez was an example of paramount determination to do better with his life. He overcame the obstacle of home versus school life and became a scholar. He understood the importance of "one chooses to become a student." Rodriguez never delved into this farther, but I see his motivation being helped by his teachers" praises. All of the awards he got, the positive reinforcement gave him a taste of what it is like to triumph. If ambition is all you need to succeed, then why doesn't everybody try harder? What is it that sets people up to have ambition? Ambition can either be internal or external. You could desire something and that could drive you to obtain it, or you could be motivated by other sources such as your family, teachers, friends, or coaches. I believe that a major part of success is realizing what is important enough for you to make sacrifices for. Ambition comes from having goals. .
"When his class drifted away from him his voice would rise in paranoid accusations, and occasionally he would lose control and shake or smack us." Rose had to go endure this torture while learning and he succeeded, but many of his classmates did not. When you are forced to be in this kind of situation, you would see learning as a negative experience. That could reasonably drive anyone to not want to make the best out of their education. Extremes like that could convincingly produce students that were nonchalant about their lives.