Schooled

Schooled is a 2008 young adult novel by American author Paul Langan. The story follows Lionel Shephard, a Black teenager who struggles in school and dreams of becoming an NBA player. The book is part of The Bluford Series, a series of interconnected novels set in fictional Bluford High School in Southern California.

Paul Langan has been acclaimed for his contributions to American young adult literature. His most acclaimed work is The Bully (2002), which also centers on a Black teen.

This guide is based on the 2009 print edition by Townsend Press.

Content Warning: This source material and guide feature depictions of substance use, addiction, physical abuse, and violence.

Plot Summary

Schooled’s protagonist is Lionel, a Black teen boy living in a predominantly Black urban neighborhood in Southern California. Lionel, who attends Bluford High School, has learning difficulties in reading and writing. 

In English class, Lionel is embarrassed when his teacher asks him to read a poem by Langston Hughes. Lionel dismisses the significance of education and dreams of becoming an NBA player, though his parents have urged him to focus on school. Lionel’s English teacher gives him a letter about his poor performance and asks for his parents’ signature. Ashamed, Lionel hides his learning issues from his parents.

After school, a varsity basketball player challenges Lionel to a game. The older player is aggressive and intentionally hits Lionel. However, Lionel exhibits his athletic skills and wins.

Lionel’s home life is complex. His mother is deployed overseas and his father, Leroy, is frequently away, working as a truck driver. Lionel’s aunt helps in the household. The absence of his parents devastates Lionel and intensifies his distress. Lionel is also impacted by the gang violence that plagues the neighborhood. He is haunted by the memory of a neighbor getting shot. Lionel finds solace in basketball, channeling his rage and frustration onto the court.

Lionel and his friend Jamar work at the local car wash on weekends. Jamar has quit school and lives with his cousins in an apartment. He encourages Lionel to follow his path and live an independent life. Intrigued by the idea, Lionel visits his house. There, Lionel is disappointed to encounter alcohol and drug use. 

Lionel forges his father’s signature on his teacher’s letter, afraid to reveal the truth about his school performance. At the same time, he memorizes Langston Hughes’s poem so he can pretend to read it in class. While reciting it, Lionel begins to connect with the words about dreams. His teacher praises his effort and Lionel feels belonging in school for the first time. However, when the teacher assigns an essay about the American dream, Lionel despairs, knowing he cannot write.

Lionel longs to join the Bluford basketball team. One day, he sneaks into the school gym and a coach sees him shooting the ball. He invites Lionel to the tryouts, and Lionel is determined to go.

Lionel speaks to his mother on the phone saying he misses her. He is tormented by his new writing assignment and escapes into his NBA dreams. At night, Lionel has a nightmare: He sees himself in a mirror above the basketball hoop as he shatters into pieces.

In English class, Lionel’s shame and rage about his inability to write grow. His teacher asks to talk after class, but Lionel protests that he must attend basketball tryouts. The teacher stresses he must focus on his education. Lionel defies her and goes to the gym.

Lionel excels in the tryouts, demonstrating his athletic skills. Playing helps him forget his turmoil and regain energy. He is confident about making the team until his teachers inform the coach about Lionel’s grades, which are too low for him to join the team, according to school regulations. Lionel storms away, feeling that his dream has died.

Lionel returns home and announces to his aunt that he has quit school and is moving out of the house. She and his sister plead with him to stay, but Lionel decides to go to Jamar’s. On the way out, Lionel encounters their neighbor, Ms. Walker, the woman whose grandson was killed. She tells him he is throwing away his future and going against everything his parents work for. Lionel is shaken by her words but leaves anyway.

Lionel goes to Jamar’s house and settles in his bedroom. Jamar offers him alcohol to help him stop thinking. Lionel drinks and feels that his pain has faded. Soon, he is dizzy and vomits in the bathroom. He sees his reflection in the mirror and recalls Langston Hughes’s poem. Lionel realizes that he is abandoning his dreams and his family and decides to return home.

While walking at night in the neighborhood, Lionel gets lost and is attacked by a gang. Moments later, Leroy finds him. Lionel wakes up in the hospital. Feeling that he has disappointed his father, Lionel finally reveals all his problems. Leroy, in turn, shares his own struggles: He too had learning difficulties and decided to leave school—a choice that now means that Leroy can’t get a better job and that Lionel’s mother must be away for work. Leroy reveals that he is studying for his GED and encourages Lionel to attend the programs his teacher suggested to improve his reading and writing skills. Lionel is smart; when his grades rise, he can join the basketball team. Lionel regains hope, feeling he has a second chance. 

The novel ends with Lionel and his father re-establishing their bond as they play basketball together in the neighborhood.