Student’s Obsession with Perfection Leads Them to Dropping Classes
By: Abdirizak Abdi
Staff Writer
In many classrooms today lingers the unabating obsession with grades, and the consequences impact how students view learning and themselves.
“A good number of our students come and share concerns about their grades,” said Elizabeth McKinney, a counselor at Green River. “Some students are after a perfect grade while others are just concerned with passing a class.”
The drive for grades has supplanted the primary objective of schooling—to learn. Fixation on grades can be attributed to many factors. A primal reason is everyone’s favorite flaw: perfection. The begrudging admiration for perfection is not only in classrooms but rather everywhere—in our media feeds, social circles and work places. It has become a symbol of worth and success.
Society’s celebration of accomplishments further amplifies this phenomenon. It acknowledges all but the intrinsic benefits of education. The superficial product—single Scantron marks and grade-books—greatly influences the trajectory of a student’s life.
College placements, scholarships, internships and employment opportunities are all subject to exceptionally good grades. This often leads to students focusing on the reward of education as learning plays second fiddle. Furthermore, knowledge acquired is considered to be expendable after it is used to secure a good grade.
A lesser known factor largely faced by international students is the crushing culture of parental expectations. Most parents who send their children to institutions in the U.S. do so out of high aspirations. Upsurge in tuition and living expenses often compels them to make substantial sacrifices. Students are therefore expected to be superlative and a less-than-stellar academic standing imposes a lot pressure on them.
“Many international students express how getting a perfect grade is very important,” McKinney said. “The consequences may be dire if they don’t do well.”
The ramifications of grade obsession are many, with a large portion of them having a significant impact. This intense fixation on performance may conceal a host of mental issues, such as anxiety, depression and lowered self-esteem.
According to McKinney, preoccupation with perfection often lends to extremist thinking. An all-or-nothing mentality steers one to be overly hard on themselves. The fear of failure becomes more painful than failure itself.
It is disheartening when students base their self-concept or find self-worth in their grades or grade point average. For many students, grades are the ultimate determination for self-worth. If they get an A- instead of an A, they believe they are a failure. If they fail a class, they bury themselves in an abyss of self-indictment and guilt.
Often students fail to see how little grades actually have to do with their true identity and competence. Self-worth should be correlated with internal validation rather than a grade point average.
Every human is the only existing version of themselves and this offers the possibility of having different abilities, tastes and interests.
For the students reading this, you are able to add value to a multitude of other environments because only you can offer thoughts from your specific perspective.
Our value as human beings lie in being unique individuals.
Green River College is dedicated to providing optimum conditions for the success of all students. There are many resources on campus that are designed to assist and support students with their academic work.
“The college has put in place resources that are dedicated to ensuring students receive all the help they need before they even begin struggling,” said Jenny Wheeler, the registrar of Green River college.
To my fellow students at Green River College, failure is not weakness. Let us outgrow the delusion of limitless perfection.
Go easy on yourself when things are not going well. You are more than just a decimal or letter grade.
