As a high school student, grades and school have always been a priority for me, and other students alike. The reality is, high school competition has plagued Marriotts Ridge in a way that seems irreversible. Competition has extended past friendly competition to a fight for who can be the best in their grade, but how did things get this far?
In my experience as a student at MRHS, competition is high amongst all grades. Many students find opportunities to be a part of every club, every honor society, every sport (some of which they have never even played before) and every AP class they can fit on their schedule. The workload is too much, there are only so many opportunities available. What happens when certain students take every opportunity they receive?
When considering grades, the school system has implemented the idea that simply excelling in one subject is too little. There is an expectation that one must be good at everything in order to get into a better college. Most of us feel the pressure to get better grades, but now there is additional pressure to also take the most advanced courses. A handful of students have a schedule of all AP classes, just because some students do so does not mean all other students should feel the need to as well.
Competition has created unrealistic standards, fostering rivalry and a lack of sportsmanship amongst students. There have been several occasions where I overhear conversations of students reclaiming the annoyance they feel for students who have all A’s. Students’ first thoughts are always a snide remark on the unfairness or dislike towards students who achieve more than them, rather than feeling supportive for a fellow classmate, which is a shame.
There is a natural sentiment for students to feel reserved towards those where school comes easily; however, complete dislike for peers has bubbled solely because of one’s grades and achievements. Competition has created an environment for students where learning is no longer the priority, but getting straight A’s is.
Competition itself has only given students a different, more lazy, way of studying. We memorize, take the test and forget everything we learn two weeks later, like an Etch A Sketch. No matter how much we try to deny it, our education has been compromised by the idea of being the best. We do not focus on genuinely learning content; the main goal is to get the grade needed to keep an A.
Even on social media, there are accounts dedicated to bettering one’s college resume, with suggestions so wildly out of reach to some students. I have seen a multitude of videos of impossibly unique extracurriculars and classes, feeling like I simply don’t do enough.
Competition should not be entirely erased, what we need at MRHS rather, is healthy competition. Students should feel motivated to do well in school while also learning and fully understanding content they are being taught. Competition can certainly be a good tool for motivation to push students to do better in school. The manner in which we use and view said competition can help to change its impact to be more positive for students.
I can only judge based on my own observation of MRHS, but high school competition has harbored negativity and a negative impact on students at our school. Being in every extracurricular should not be a norm and being in all AP classes should not be a norm. In a generation full of overachievers, it is difficult being just an achiever, and we can only hope to change that.