The way current college students view classes and schoolwork differs greatly from how each should be approached. We have become so obsessed with getting good grades, we’ve lost touch with learning for learning’s sake. I attribute this trend to a major shift in perception. College is no longer viewed as a secondary form of education, but as a mandatory prerequisite for a career.
The number of students enrolled in colleges and universities has increased greatly in recent years. As of fall of 2014, there are 21 million students enrolled in American colleges and universities, an increase of over 5.5 million from the fall of 2000. This large increase can be traced to a growing emphasis on secondary education. Secondary schooling is now considered the only viable path for high school graduates and the prospect of attending college is thrust upon students at a very young age. In the past, many students attended university with the objective of gaining an understanding, not merely a job. But now, levels of education are merely a staircase in which each period of schooling exists only to bring students to the next, rather than as opportunities to grow and learn.
For example, when students ask their friends about previous courses, they do not ask about what they learned, but focus on the relative difficulty or easiness of the class. Students seek out classes that are easier even if they do not like the professor’s style of teaching or the subject of the course. Likewise, ratemyprofessor.com compares the simplicity of professors and is flooded with comments about harsh grading. Yet, it lacks detailed comments about the professors ability to convey knowledge and the substance of the course.
Our fixation is also evident in resumes. Resumes typically list a student’s GPA, yet fail to include a list of courses taken or what material the student has mastered. The fact that employers value grades over concrete knowledge supports the prevailing attitude that students should be focused solely on grades.
It’s easy to criticize our culture’s focus on grades, but putting such a broader perspective into practice is exceedingly difficult in the competitive college environment. Personally, I’ve fallen victim to the grade-obsessed monster that haunts most college students. Despite my past struggles, this semester I’m fighting the monster head on by making a concerted effort to learn and fully enjoy my classes. While I agree it’s important to maintain a high GPA throughout the semester, I feel it is much more important to actually learn from my classes. We should try to shift the focus from obtaining the golden A to taking advantage of everything an academic atmosphere has to offer us. In the process of learning for the sake of learning, you might actually get that A you’re striving for and along with it an understanding that will stick with you well beyond your final exam.