Before 10th grade, I had an insufficiently rigorous course load to yield a competitive GPA. After taking the most rigorous classes for a year and boosting my GPA, I have decided to help my classmates tackle the competition at my school by helping them organize their schedules and classes for future academic years. I have reached out to these classmates through class projects and tutoring sessions. So far, I have helped about five teenagers become competitive. I have also frequently volunteered at a local food pantry.
Many students in college today are failing their classes because many of them just do not care about getting good grades. In her essay “The Pursuit of Just Getting By,” Amy Widner addresses this issue as well as the consequences for “practicing” bad habits in college. Widner stresses the importance of hard work, skills, and knowledge. Every student should give their best effort to graduate from college so they can get a good job. As Widner explains, since people are paying so much money for a college education, people should pursue more knowledge instead of just getting by.
“The task ahead of you is never as great as the strength within you”. I live by these quotes each day which shapes up of who I am. If I start something I must always finish and give it my all, whether it’s on the field and off the field. To give one-hundred percent in a game and in the classroom, that winners never quit, and quitters never win. Whether I win or lose, as long as I gave it my all, then that’s all that matters.
This article also outlines how motivation can push someone further his or her academic career. Richard Rodriguez describes the difficulties balancing life in the academic world and the life of a working class family. As a child, Rodriguez was the exception to the stereotypical student coming from a working class family. He was always top of his class, and rather than spending his time out with friends or with his family he spent his time with books and notes. Initially, this approach makes Rodriguez stand out as an exceptional student, but as time goes on he becomes an outsider both at home and in school.
First high achieving students grades are what keep them focused and motivated in school. On the other end of the spectrum are students who simply do not have the willpower or drive to earn high marks in school. There are students who focus who too much on grades, and by doing this end up memorizing the material being taught and not absorbing. They are like little robots spouting facts and information, but not being able to truly comprehend its meaning.
Some simply shut down and it appears to teachers, colleges, and parents that the student has stopped caring about their education, when in reality they simply are not at the exact same level as their peers, which is an incredible burden to be put under. This challenge that every modern student faces does allow some to exceed above and beyond, yet this pressure does not always draw out the best. Some people crack under pressure similar to a china plate that’s dropped. Perhaps they can’t handle it, or maybe they’re too afraid of failing so they don’t even bother trying to begin. Generally speaking, the responses under pressure vary from individual to
I have been taught from a very young age not to judge a person by their words, but by their actions. For the success and failures of life show the paths of which one has journeyed and and plans to endure. The hardest path that I ever had to venture came about during my sophomore year in high school. In this year I was determined to distinguish myself from my peers and show that Tiana Johnson could handle the rigor of college classes, and - in less than three years - handle college itself.
The Right Path to Success For most students, grades are important for deciding their success in life. However, there are two different types of motivated students that determine their path to mastery. One type of motivation leads to high achievement while the other leads to less satisfying grades and poor decisions. These two types of motivated students for academic achievement corresponds to Daniel Pink’s claim in Drive that to find success, Type X must become Type I.
I studied every time I had an opportunity. I stayed in my classes during my lunch period when I didn’t understand a topic. I practically gave up my social life and meeting new people to better myself and ensure that I would get the grades I wanted. Although I experienced failure I still achieved, demonstrating how gritty I was to succeed.
“Να είναι καλύτερος άνθρωπος από τον πατέρα του”, from the darkest struggles and stressors, the strongest heroes endure and reach their greatest potential. The greek quote mentioned above describes what has pulled me through since my father’s passing in 2011. I started at Perrysburg High School after a long three years following that traumatic event. Despite the immense pain, I would not let my grades fall. My father always cherished and motivated me to achieve good grades that could help me in life.
In Kurt Wiesenfeld’s article “Making the Grade”, he address the issue that students want a higher grade than they deserve. He goes on to prove this be by giving examples of previous students that he has had and what can happen when students get the grades that they want and not what they deserve. In Wiesenfeld’s article he states that about ten percent of students that take his class do not care about their grades until final grades are over. “You might groan and moan, but you accepted it as the outcome of your efforts or lack thereof,” Wiesenfeld stated.
Therefore, I had a big problem with my English since I did not speak English back then which made my first year very hard with struggles to get good grades. That is what made me into a better student because with bitter experiences I or anyone tends to grow and get better. It took me about one year to speak English well and understands what is going on. Thus After tasting the bitter experience of having a big struggle I started to get straight A’s in all my classes in my sophomore year up until now which made my GPA get better and better after my struggles in my first year at school in the United States. I always feel accomplished whenever I make an achievement making people recognize my hard work and talents feels satisfying which makes me more determined to achieve more in my college career.
Although all these things are what I would define as academic success, I can’t honestly say I follow all of them. Things I need to work on fixing are my procrastination problems when it comes to studying and working on projects and talking to my teachers more often when I’m lost on the material we’re covering or confused on what to do for an assignment. Many people have these issues as well, but that doesn’t make it an excuse for me to just leave them be. By working harder to make myself a better student, I’m also helping myself develop life skills that are necessary in the working world.
Teenagers seem to always have the need to lay their precious little noggins from slamming against their desks during class. Their eyes are as salty as the vast oceans of the world. Their eyes flake small crusts ever so rapidly. This problem needs to be put to rest. I, myself, have also suffered so greatly from this issue along with many other fellow students.
Have you ever wondered how grades actually do help students throughout their career in school? Yes, many do believe grades do not help, can cause stress to students overall making them perform at a lesser level and sometimes some believe that school isn’t even needed at all in a child’s life. Grades can affect a student’s learning and constant low grades can bring them down and their mindset of just being a below average student. However, grades do help students by showing the student’s progress in school whether they are doing good or bad and grades give a goal to get a better grade by trying harder to get that grade a student wants. First, grades show progress to everyone besides just the student.
