How are grades really affecting students

Grades are used by almost every school to evaluate and provide insight into a student's work, but this pressure of doing good could have negative effects on students and their overall health. According to “The Dispatch,” an online magazine, grades have been proven to cause anxiety and depression in students. Meeting deadlines makes students work tirelessly, causing them to become physically exhausted from staying up late to finish work and consistently waking up early for school. Grades cause students to be overwhelmed and exhausted.

For many students, grades are the most important thing, making them feel like their self-worth is determined by the grades they are receiving. A student at AHS said, “Personally I think that now people make grades such a big deal because when you get into high school you stop focusing on the material and instead spend your time writing down things and solely studying that and perfecting it, rather than learning a concept”. Grades are crucial in schools because it is the way that teachers and instructors communicate with students, but there are ways that teachers could be more lenient and understanding of a student's situation. Not all students learn at the same pace but still have to meet the same deadlines. Students start to compare themselves to other students as do teachers. It can be hard to live up to certain standards when you are not learning at the same pace as your peers. It is a common misconception by parents and instructors that students are lazy when they have a lot of various activities going on outside of school such as sports, clubs, and maintaining time with friends and family. Being pushed too much at school fosters a fear of failure and weakens interest in learning.

 When teachers are more concerned about meeting deadlines than the way a student learns and the diverse problems that teenagers deal with, students become unmotivated and disengaged from school. Teachers being reasonably lenient will give students a chance to become more successful inside and outside of the learning environment. Teachers do need to be stern and make sure that work is getting done and turned in; however, if a student is not learning at the same rate as others or just needs more time, instructors should help those individuals by giving them more time. I understand that expressing deadlines is important in the early years of school since it teaches students time management and accountability, but this can still be a skill that is learned with more leniency. While grades are important for a functioning school, they can be detrimental to students’ mental health. With help from teachers, students can feel uplifted and motivated in a school environment instead of anxious and stressed. 

By: Charlotte Varkala