School’s Deviation from Education
A s my junior year of high school comes to a close, I have continued to accumulate strong opinions on the educational system that I have been exposed to. As I have advanced through the modern system, I have devised my own philosophy of education and it continues to develop as I grow as a student. The purpose of education is to prioritize learning and individual improvement while providing qualitative rather than quantitative feedback. However, this simple ideal has been altered into “The Vision of the Graduate,” implemented throughout Farmington Public Schools. Students of Farmington are expected to develop skills towards problem-solving, critical thinking, communicating and self-direction. In reality, Farmington High School and other schools across the country have changed their attention from valuing personal growth to putting pressure on perfection. Thus, schools have become misguided by the overemphasis on grades, deteriorating the potential for a valuable education.
In school, almost every assignment is labeled with a grade and stapled to a rubric. From minor assignments to large assessments, grades determine one’s success by providing a number or standard. Grading creates undue pressure on students to excel rather than providing encouragement to learn or guidance towards gaining knowledge and experience. Grades become the primary focus on a path where the end destination is a letter or number. In focusing only on the resulting grade, the importance of the process or journey is neglected. Perhaps if getting the perfect 100 was not the “be all, end all,” students would likely be more excited to learn and ultimately retain more knowledge. Subsequently, students may actually be more successful, displaying more growth with greater preparation for adulthood. Thus, grades should not be the primary focus of school; instead, schools should emphasize learning and guide students towards improvement through positive encouragement and a process of reflection.
When students are not presented with extreme pressure of grades, they are more likely to view education as an opportunity to learn without being assessed, becoming more interested in the assignment. The Autobiography of Malcolm X demonstrates how an individual can develop an appreciation for education when grades are not threatening a potential for failure. After being sent to prison, Malcolm X spent most of his jail time in the prison library reading. He states, “I knew right there in prison that reading had changed forever the course of my life. As I see it today, the ability to read awoke inside me some long dormant craving to be mentally alive. I certainly wasn’t seeking any degree, the way a college confers a status symbol upon its students.” (206). Malcolm X’s “homemade education” did not consist of grades or assessments. Instead, he compensated independently for his lack of formal education, not seeking a degree or “status symbol.” In doing so, he was bewildered by what he learned and became more engaged as he read more. Thus, Malcolm X was not ‘motivated’ by a grade, he read for the sake of learning and became inspired to learn. This can be applied to modern education whereas the elimination of quantitative evaluation relieves students of pressure, fueling them with intrinsic motivation rather than superficial, extrinsic motivation to succeed. Similarly to Malcolm X, students would be given the opportunity to discover the intriguing world of education without being tied down by requirements and standards.
Reflecting on my own experiences throughout my educational career, grades have frequently caused me to resent learning, possibly minimizing my potential for success. When assignments are not graded, I am often enthusiastic towards learning and putting in my best effort, displaying a positive outlook. In my AP Language and Composition course, the grading system was modified with a final grade at the end of each quarter in reflection of all work throughout the marking period. In this system, I was exposed to a variety of assignments and would conclude each with a thorough reflection of my process and performance. As I progressed throughout the course, I gained awareness of my strengths and weaknesses while learning to appreciate the process of reflection based on my own point of view and other’s feedback. I looked forward to completing assignments and I did not hesitate to take risks. I saw each task as opportunities to expand my skills rather than fear failure through a grade. Likewise, I become more engaged with the task at hand instead of dreading it and completing it with minimal effort. In other classes that resort to the common grading practice, I often find myself stressed out when under the pressure of constant grading with high expectations hanging over my head. This results in wasting my energy worrying about an assignment rather than actually completing it.
As opposed to my AP Lang class, modern school curriculum and grading practices have indoctrinated my mindset whereas my first thoughts when presented with an assignment always surround grades based on their apparent impact on my level of “success.” Furthermore, school implements academic goals that suggest students strive to achieve “getting straight As,” or “exceeding standard.” Shouldn’t the point of education be to learn information and develop a variety of skills? If this was truly emphasized, schools would emphasize goals concerning “understanding the topic” or “learning specific skills.” This grade-focused mindset is not limited to only ambitious students; grades are a typical fear among my friends and schools across the country. This demonstrates that students correlate learning with negative pressure for success, dreading an assignment rather than being excited to learn.
Moving forward, schools need to reduce the emphasis on grades and turn their attention to giving students meaningful feedback, promoting self-evaluation and inspiring them to seek knowledge in order to truly provide a quality education. By redefining success as improvement in terms of growth, students will feel encouraged to take risks and be more engaged with each task. A sole number inaccurately reflects success or failure, while providing feedback and encouraging a process of reflection can help students understand the steps towards improvement. Minimizing the emphasis of grades leads to individual motivation and diminishes pressure from teachers, parents, peers and self-pressure. Overall, this change in the educational system would develop students into strong individuals with the desire to learn, encouraging them to attain their full potentials as citizens of our world.
The true purpose of education is to emphasize the importance of gaining knowledge and individual progression. Qualitative feedback is an essential component of success, providing students with the ability to strengthen their weakness, better preparing them for adulthood. Educated students are those that walk out of the halls and enter the world with an extensive breadth of knowledge and the ability to reflect upon their achievements and limitations, addressing their weaknesses with goals of improvement. Hence, schools must promote the desire to learn without emphasis on grading and guide each individual towards evaluating their own progress to truly educate their students. With proper education, students can fulfill their potentials and develop into intellectual individuals.
