GRADES ALONE CAN’T DEFINE SUCCESS
BY ADMIN PUBLISHED November 11, 2020, UPDATED January 13, 2023
The life of a student labelled as “below average” in school is grueling! They get picked on by many teachers, parents look down on them, and neighbors constantly judge their actions. They become subject to local gossips, and they are often overlooked in social settings, be it a family function or annual school meeting or any other gatherings.
Although these students don’t care much at a younger age, all these events unwittingly impact how they view their childhood. They rely on their circle of friends for acceptance and acknowledgement, and then slowly detach themselves from the expectation of their family and teachers.
Do you really think they fail in their lives because of their low grades?
No! We have hundreds and thousands of examples of people who have done pretty well in their lives without having good grades at school. From renowned businessman Richard Branson to acclaimed director Stephen Spielberg, we can toss around different names from across the world.
However, let us dig a little deeper to understand the psychology behind why these students are treated unfairly compared to others who score well.
Let us accept one or two facts here. A person is often judged based on either his/her status or income.” Better the pay, better the value in society”. And the same goes for students:” Better the grades, better the treatment from people around”. That is to say that “marks” have become a yardstick to judge the future success, employability and income of a person. Grades have become synonymous with future income!
This play with superiority and inferiority complexes has been around for quite a long time. Parents who don’t want their children to end up like them, put pressure on children to pursue what society value the most.
And if they cannot adhere to what their parents say, the result is devaluation and ignorance.
For instance, a student interested in cinematography can end up taking science for higher education only to please his/her parents.
While their parents aim to ensure a secure future for their children, what they trade-off is their children’s dreams, passion and interests. This ultimately results in the student losing interest in what s/he is studying and stops rising to the expectation of the parents.
Not only does it frustrate the parents who have invested plenty of money in their children’s education, but they also fear that the society will start treating their children as it treated them throughout their lives.
And the cycle goes on and on.
Changing the way, we define education
Education has more to do with personal growth, with growth in the innate abilities and persona of the individual and most often we fail to recognize that.
Children are sent to school to become the best version of what the parents want them to be rather than gain insights into life and have perspectives on the world that they live in. Instead of becoming the guiding lights in their lives, parents become the decision makers, pretending that they have answer to every life’s problem.
Since parents have been deciding for their children throughout their lives, children struggle to make even the smallest of decisions; from selecting the partner to choosing their careers, scores of youngsters still depend on parents for decision making.
In a way, this indicates that education has not shaped them up as independent individuals. Most of the time, the victims are students scoring good grades who in their zeal to please their parents and teachers, have just become mere shadows or reflections of these people rather than growing into thoughtful, discerning and independent individuals.
Final words
The grades that children score in schools are not just enough to determine their ability to solve problems and achieve success. And this
doesn’t mean that grades are irrelevant for students’ secure future. Though grades can be passport to high paying jobs and stability, however, it is always the self-reliant attitude that give children the courage to dream big and pursue their passion. The sooner teachers and parents realize this, the brighter the children’s future will be.
Nandini Sukhija
Grade XI Humanities
