And Still We Rise: The Trials and Triumphs of Twelve Gifted Inner-City High School Students

On a hot day, Little decides to give her class a sample AP essay. When no one knows what the word “juxtaposition” means in the question, she chides them for not having learned what they were supposed to in 11th grade. She becomes angry at Venola, who arrives late, until Venola passes her a note explaining that a bus passed her by. Olivia also arrives late, as there are always problems that delay her in her foster home.

As students work on the sample essay, Little grades their papers on The Crucible. Some students in the class are from outside the gifted program, and some, though not all, lack basic writing skills. Some students, however, such as Miesha and Venola do so well that her spirits are buoyed, and she asks them to read their essays out loud to the class.

Little notices that the students are drawn to religion and chooses Inherit the Wind—a study of religious fundamentalism—for the next work the class will read. She speaks about how literature can guide people to what is right: “‘I regard it as holy’” (104). The class is very interested in the discussion, in which Little speaks about a wrongly-imprisoned boy who the students know.