Cedric’s start wasn’t the best, he grew up on the ‘wrong side’ of town and had developed bad habits because of this. Although there were many other factors to Cedric’s subtle viel he unintentionally kept over his eyes, the scene begins at Ballou high school in Washington D.C. At first it is shown that the school's top honor roll has to go through a hazing session. Cedric is what is known as a big fish in a small pond. Cedric has so much potential but it's blinded by the situation that he's in socially. He's bigger than what his classmates are and bigger than what his school makes him out to be at least that's what he thinks. “”WALL OF HONOR” The wall is a paltry play by administrators to boost the top Student’s self-esteem -a tired mantra…show more content… “( chapter 1, page 3) this quote from the very beginning of the book conveys how honor students were targeted for being above-’average' or excelling in their academics. As a result Cedric was not motivated to excel because he was already at the top. Ballou high school was a major setback for Cedric Jennings because it did not challenge him to go above and beyond. Cedric had set the bar and no one was trying to surpass him. As a result Cedric became lazy and uninterested in school. Furthermore the text States but after a few such Gatherings the, jeering started. It was Thunders. Nerd geek Egghead and the harshest,…show more content… Everyone else seems to be so prepared for the collegiate atmosphere but Cedric himself. For the first time in a long time Cedric find himself at an academic standstill, and not in a good way. Cedric becomes overwhelmed with the college like classes and curriculum. He slowly finds himself falling behind and investigates on his own to see if it really is just him. He finds his own level on the academic spectrum of the MIT program and realizes he falls short of what is required.”’ Like, you know, a 1380.’ Cedric tries to control his reactions but can’t, and he finds his mouth hanging open. ‘I don’t want to get into it,’ he mutters, shaking his head, ‘but that’s a lot better than me.’ In the last few months of his junior year, Cedric did something he hasn’t thought much about lately-he took the SAT. His score was a 910…” (Chapter four, page 82 )Cedric takes a moment to analyze his shortcomings on the academic spectrum compared to the other students in the very same program. Since Cedric’s school had never really challenged him, he was at a loss of what to do when a challenge arrived. Cedric was no longer the big fish in his small pond, he was just an average fish who had to make his mark in an enormous pond. He had to make himself stand out and since he is antisocial he had to stand out academically. “ Cedric, hunched forward, begins jotting madly.
