Drawing from research and real-life stories of educators and students across a variety of institutions, Geddes illuminates a critical truth: it's the successes students had in high school that work against them in college, not their failures. This book explores the hidden structural, functional, and cognitive traps that undermine students' academic work, strain teacher-student relationships, and impose artificial limits on their potential. Armed with formulas for academic success, it provides tools for guiding students towards levels of high performance and supplies teaching methods for how to create an educational environment conducive to success.

Packed with practical advice, actionable steps, and inspiring success stories, this landmark book serves as an invaluable roadmap for college educators seeking to empower their students and revolutionize their institutions.