Parents and educators want children to succeed in school, which is good, but it shouldn’t be the sole measure of a child’s success in general because grades can be subjective.
For example, when I was still in school, my scores in mathematics and chemistry were not good and this always compromised my performance. But while I did badly with these subjects I always excelled in other subjects like history, this was always an assured A. I was really good at memorising whatever I was taught and I could re-write it exactly as it was taught, but I couldn’t do the same with other subjects. Did that mean I was a bad student? I don’t think so.
There is need to outgrow our past education adversity. Performing poorly in one subject, or missing out on an admission in some prestigious university, should not be an impasse whatsoever to one’s education success, human growth or development.
In fact, it is through such circumstances that we seek growth, develop other important skills in the disciplines that we believe we know better, which can also serve as a point of reference for our success and meaningful contribution to national development.
Well, for the past decades, especially after colonialism, education became an instrument that defined someone’s success. However, even though success in education is very important in the pursuit of professional growth, it shouldn’t be the sole indicator of success.
The writer is a PhD student at Beijing Normal University
pontiankbr@outlook.com