What is it about grades and A’s and A*’s that make us forget what the world is about. What happened to integrity, knowledge and learning to gain something than to score full marks. When we were in school, we weren’t just concerned about getting straight A’s or into universities abroad. We didn’t take tuitions for each and every subject. We were happy with four or six A’s because we knew it was all our effort. We didn’t run after god knows whom after school or mention expensive tutors to silence our teachers. We concentrated in classes so we wouldn’t have to take additional help in the first place. But o-levels now has become a joke. To score anything below an A* is like getting a D. Children are becoming more and more grade conscious and less grateful. Tears spring in their eyes if a B is found on result day. Hysteria strikes if they don’t make it to a college where their friends are. It is unbelievable.
When I first joined school, I always found these children to be very mature and sensible than our generation. But with time I realized why this was happening. The parents put an implausible amount of pressure to do well in their exams. Future relationships are dependant upon this factor. Today its all about who is going to Nixor and Lyceum. Who will make the cut and who will stay behind.
I try to reason with these kids, tell them how grades are not that important. An A does not ensure a better life and hardly a successful one. If that were the case then Bill Gates wouldn’t be so rich today. But maybe it’s the world that we live that has set such high standards, which are impossible to achieve by everyone.
Iam writing this because I am angry. Iam not only angry at these children but also at the system that corrupts their minds. It’s all about owning apple products, getting into a university abroad and thus being cool. Those who stay behind are ultimately considered losers and if you don’t have a business degree, you are nothing. Where is this coming from? Who is brain washing these children to think in this disgusting way? Certainly not the teachers.
More often than not, girls approach to tell me that they want to study Art but their parents think they cannot make a career out of it. And more often than not I roll my eyes at their ignorance and generalization. At the parent teacher meetings, fathers are just interested in knowing whether their sons can make money out this subject, if not it’s a waste of time. We often ignore such fathers but can’t help think about their questions. Why does a child have to make a career out of every subject he studies, cant he simply take it because he enjoys it. After all, people do study philosophy and math together knowing there isn’t much they can do other than teach. But isn’t that the most integral thing in the end? To know that your child is happy at what hes studying.
In the end, it’s only about making bucks and big ones. You are liked because you are rich not because you are humble, a wonderful human being or amazingly talented. You are tolerated and appreciated because your wallet is thicker than the much greater person sitting next to you.
