Marks Matter a lot

Most of the examinations’ results have been declared and results’ season brings with it a plethora of actions and opinions.

Though it’s probably not the wisest things to say at the immediate aftermath of results declaration, marks do matter.

At a time when student communities are divided with a few celebrating their performance and the others struggling to cope with the failure to meet the expectations, it has to be clearly understood that marks do matter.

Though a low score at the end of the report/grade card does not mean the end of the world, it must be acknowledged that marks actually matter.

Low scores are by no means a true testament of what a person is actually capable of. This message, that was initially the antidote to those struck by grief due to poor results and served as a motivation to perform better the next time, has been twisted and propagated endlessly. Making sense out of the situation becomes increasingly tougher when anti-marks quotes are used to justify an intrinsic quality of lethargy and indolence.

The negative remarks and vibes degrading the marking scheme had no trouble catching the social media wildfire as it was what majority of students wanted to hear, especially after a dismal show in the examinations.

There is no denying the fact that marks are not an outright indicator of intelligence or talent. This topic has inspired the birth of many quotes like ‘A person’s talent is much more than mere numbers’. ‘But that is the point. Marks are not mere numbers.

Though it is not the rating of creative juices in a person or his/her sheer intelligence, marks do indicate the quality of certain set of characteristics in that particular individual.

In this digital era, replete with access to information of any kind, students must know better than to ignore the importance of marks. Though there is a vast scope for development as far as the education system is concerned, one must stop mindlessly quoting anti-marking scheme/education system slogans.

Also, considering the humongous amount of competition in everything that has come to the fore, it becomes obvious to use marks as a necessary tool to filter the better from the rest, at least as far as basic intelligence and ability to work sincerely is concerned.  The amount of trust on an individual’s talent and hard work is increased manifold if the individual can support himself suitably with good marks.

1. What marks indicate?

As mentioned earlier, marks do not indicate the extent of creative ability. Also, the tactical prowess that prevails in the minds of geniuses and high intellectuals cannot be judged based on the marks obtained.  This is what we have all been told. It has been hammered in to the young minds, so much so that it has become something of a cool trend to display a report card bearing sorry figures.

In spite of having an education system with numerous glitches and marking scheme that receives a ton of complaints, it has been the result of this that most people are comfortably making a living. 

One might argue that it takes a highly intelligent genius less effort than a normal person which is true. The other special ones, who have an acute sense of business or a love for arts, have shown that low marks are not the end of the road. Though the drop outs who have gone on to become business pioneers and internationally recognized artists, do manage to inspire, one must also keep in mind that a majority of the population is surviving as a consequence of average or above performance in examinations.

Simply put, for a mind with average intelligence, the marks obtained are directly proportional the sincerity of effort and the resolve to complete the requisite syllabus needed for obtaining those marks. Blindly stating that marks do not matter is a direct insult to the dedication and effort put in by the numerous students hoping for their dreams to come true.

2. Motivation Factor

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time”-Thomas Alva Edison.

Considering the number of cases of depression and suicides as result of low marks, it can seem highly unlikely that marks can serve as motivation for an improved and enhanced performance the next time.  If we dig beyond the surface, it becomes clear that the reasons for such nervous breakdowns can be attributed to the frame of mind and the bearing our social conventions have on our decisions.

Since time immemorial, we have established the social conventions and have stuck to them as they have helped us survive. But when the time comes to modify a certain tradition, it has to be done at the earliest to reduce the victim count. Looking down upon those who have not academically excelled has been one of the major drawbacks of this country. As has been the case often, a person is driven to point of extremity, disdain and an all conquering feeling of worthlessness because of the ridicule impressed upon him by the society. Being subject to mockery and preemptively setting that person as a bad example will not help anybody’s case.

Though poor results are always a bitter pill to swallow, there cannot be a more honest way of letting a person know that he/she has to buckle up, face the music and come out on top with whatever aid that is required.  

The initial flurry of emotions, ranging from angst to despair, cannot be avoided since we are all victims of our mind and it is extremely difficult to get a grip on the situation immediately. What can be done to improve the situation, is to calmly analyze the areas of weakness and take all the things surrounding the results in the right spirit. Doing better the next time should be the target, irrespective of whether a student has done good or bad this time.

A genuine effort from the society stand point and the right frame of mind of the individual can actually change the trend and make the marking scheme into a vital tool to motivate and then enhance the overall development of that particular individual.

Marks do have the power to drive individuals to reach new heights in unlocking their potential. Results can be thought of as a reservoir for inspiration. It takes only one good performance and we can look no further than ourselves to continually inspire ourselves to keep pushing the limit.

3. Balance Factor

Staying true to the ‘every coin has two sides’ phrase, it must be said that everything is not completely right with the marking scheme. The counterpart being that not everything is wrong either.

After being through whatever we have, it is bordering on foolishness to say that marks have no bearing in life whatsoever. It is a laughable lie to state that marks do not matter. The converse is false too. A good result is in no way a ticket to a fantastic future in paradise. It can also not be of immense help in making way for a clear cut growth oriented career.

Our understanding of marking scheme therefore requires a balance factor. It must be understood that a lot of notions surrounding the marking scheme changes if we can get the right sense of marking scheme knocked into our thick skulls.

All forms of talent require a platform or foundation. It is quite tragic if loads of talents are gone to waste just because of lapse of concentration, focus or reason. And to unlock potential, we need to keep challenging ourselves. There is no point in blindly memorizing concepts just for the sake of good marks as this insanity is bound to let you down when real world problems are posed.

Whatever is the innate quality or talent that the individual possesses, it only makes sense to complement with a fairly decent looking grade card.

It is also of vital importance that we cannot approach marking scheme as though it is a cul-de-sac.  Scoring high and sitting on top of the ladder can only help you by making it easier to lay the platform and finish the ground work.  It takes a lot more than fancy marks to achieve the worth of one’s true potential.

Flip side is that scoring low and waiting for miracles to happen does not make a good story either. Unless armed with extraordinary levels of intelligence or unmatched talents and passion in any art form, a good result is vital to add color to the resume.

Failure in examinations is just a setback. No point in unnecessarily fretting about it and be taken over by negative emotions and actions. But marks deserve to be treated with better respect since they do matter. If you are unmoved by a pathetic grade card, it is perfect but only until you can show an improved performance in the following examination to support the cool demeanor. 

It is mandatory to have it ingrained within one’s conscience that solely marks do not make/break a career.

Source : collegedunia.com

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