I just want to be Average

1. Rose was being taught in a sub par educational system. He judged his societal significance based on his level in the educational system. Therefor he thought of himself as a lackluster member of society, not looking for greatness, not enthused about the thought of a future or lack thereof. It’s apparent when Mr.MacFarland takes an interest in Rose’s intellectual capabilities, Rose internalizes the praise. You can almost feel his rapidly expanding enthusiasm and excitement for literature, run parallel to his respect for himself.
2. I can’t find the word “cues” anywhere in the text. But I’m assuming he’s talking about social cues or maybe an academic version of that....academic cues? Cues are signals that are given during a social, or academic interaction in this case which can communicate an expected action. This affected Rose because the cues that were given to him led him to believe that he was expected to achieve a minimum amount. He internalized these cues which negatively impacted his motivation. He saw himslef as less because he was expected to be less, thus causing him to achieve less than his potential.