Marks = Intelligence ?

“Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” Albert Einstein .

Jubilation, celebrations, disappointment, reprimands, humiliation and in a few cases suicide! This is pretty much the scenario in many Indian homes in the months of May and June as it is the season of results. The boards and many other competitive exams are out with the results of lakhs of students who appeared for various exams across all formats, ages and classes.

This breaking news dominates all newspapers, social media, workplaces, parties, meetings etc. The question arises, why this hullabaloo for student’s marks? Grades are just a quantitative indication of one’s performance in academics. While one should appreciate the hard work put in by children who have done well, it is equally important not to humiliate or put down the others who did not measure up to the expectations.

“ In school we learn that mistakes translates to bad grades. This unfortunate lesson gets burned into our brains, and we go through life shunning challenges that might end in failure. ” Mark Frauenfelder.

I am pained at how some schools and parents stop all other activities for their wards with the sole aim of cracking the exams with top grades for the Xth and XIIth boards. By doing so, they fail to realize that they are laying impediments in their child’s path to progress in the long term. With the prime focus only on the numbers, they ignore training the child in life skills which is so essential to deal with challenges that life throws at them. No wonder today the demand for child physiologists and counselors is on the rise, in our country.

I truly believe that marks are not the true reflection of a student’s intelligence. Is it fair to judge a student solely on his performance for the 3 hours of exam? I still can’t fathom the Indian parent’s obsession with their child to achieve a near centum in all subjects. As parents, we all want our kids to do well academically, but if his results are not top notch, it definitely is not the end of the world. Our society seems to link the grades in this crucial years to a matter of life and death.

“Grades don’t measure tenacity, courage, leadership, guts or whatever you want to call it. Teachers or any other persons in a position of authority should never tell anybody they will not succeed because they did not get all A’s in school. ” Thomas J. Stanley.

With the ever changing world, isn’t it time we changed our outlook regarding this grading system? Today there is no dearth of opportunities for a student to excel in any field.  His interest and passion for a subject can help him make a successful career out of it. As parents and teachers, it our responsibility to identify this in our kids and allow them to pursue subjects of their choice.

“A child’s mind is not a container to be filled out but rather a fire to be kindled.” Dorothea Brande .

Let’s not link our child’s worth to his mark sheet, but give him wings to soar across the beautiful horizon and charter his own path to emerge victorious!

So, do you think marks = intelligence? Would love to understand your views on this system.