GOOD GRADES ALONE IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH
Every undergraduate in high schools tends to be so desperate to acquire good grades, a good number of which went out of their comfort modesty and faith to acquire same. this makes me to wonder if good grades alone is good enough? In this article, we shall we looking at how the quest for good grades marred the lives and ambitions of many graduates.
In our present society every student aspires to come top of their class or better yet graduate with good grades, perhaps this is a good decision and a goal set aside by a serious minded enthusiast many, but unfortunately the idea is good but the perspective is myopic.
Many undergraduates conceptualize good grades as a panacea to good success but in the real world, it is not true
Parents are not left out , as most parents choose to focus on their children’s performances and grades at school, not minding their level of creativity and innovations, if at all they have anything to offer aside good grades.
Attaining high grades and graduating with first class or distinction from high school is seen as an assurance to securing high-paying jobs or future success. This perception is not far from the truth as no one want to employ or hire someone with poor grades, that’s why most firms require students with minimum of 2:1 or upper credit for employment.
But from experience, research and findings, it is obvious that good grades are not good enough when it comes to climbing the ladder of success. Perhaps students of nowadays have suddenly forgotten the true definition of success. Being successful entails consistency, mental toughness and emotional brevity in defeating entanglements, impediments, disappointments and oversights.
Show me an individual who is innovative, capable of holding temptation and fearless in carrying out any given task and I will show you an individual who is not far from being successful. Good grades does not measure one’s ability to think outside the box and solve problems, it does not really measure one’s skills, innovations, emotional intelligence and leadership ability. Grades, exams and test scores only measures one’s ability to answer questions that was covered in a given text or handout and ‘regurgitate' the same information in time of assessment and nothing more.
This is why our world today is not run by valedictorians or first-class graduates but by fairly educated individuals and “B” or “C” graduates. What matters most in life is pursuing goals with a sense of purpose.
In my research, I discovered that 41% of self-made millionaires were “B” students, 29% were “C” students, 21% were “A” students while the remaining 9% were either school dropouts or uneducated entrepreneurs. Also, according to “Current Biography Yearbook (Edition 1959–2005 and 2007)” out of all the successful people in the world, at least 768 of them are school dropouts and they are successful in different fields. Among these individuals are notable great men like Bill Gates, Richard Branson, Steve Jobs, Thomas Edison, Lawrence J. Ellison, Michael Dell, Henry Ford, Watt Desney, Mark Zuckerberg and many more.
Good grades can be gotten through different illicit means such as examination malpractices, sorting of lecturers etc which after graduation there will be nothing to show for it. In my opinion, a “C” student who has the ability to create innovations, think outside the box and is practical-oriented is far better than an “A” student who only has a certificate with good grades in the labor market.
In a department, first-class students are averagely pompous and never humble themselves to learn or to be taught whatever skill from the low grades students based of the mindset that the low grades students have nothing to offer since their grades are poor, whereas these low grades students are usually lousy, all-rounders and risk-takers, they can learn whatever from whoever, that’s why most of them today are staunch and vibrant politicians and successful entrepreneurs.
Do you also know that some of these so-called low grades students are the supposed “A” students that ventured their time into other things such as business, skill acquisition, trade etc while still in school.
Finally, considering the labor market, most employers of labor rather prefer a humble “C” grade employee who will do his/her jobs the way he/she was told to and within the circumference of righteousness than a proud best grade employee who will demand for a higher payment in exchange for his/her qualification and tends to show that they know better than the employer who may be a lower grade graduate. In other cases, low grade managers see first class employees as a threat to their jobs and hence will see no pleasure in hiring such. Graduates with good grades fear less about been sacked as they believed, they are the “hot cakes” and would be needed by every meaningful firm or organization which is why we still have a quantum number of unemployed first class graduates roaming the street in search of jobs till date.
Am not discouraging anyone from being a best grade student but I recommend that it is imperative to back up your good grades with practical skills, innovations and humility, and success will come knocking on your door. Remember, good grades alone does not guarantee good success.
