ACADEMICS: A competitive atmosphere within schools has an overwhelmingly negative effect on students and their education.
By Dyala Harb, Staff Writer
Competition divides students based on their skill, pushes schools to value performance above improvement, and leads to more cheating in order to attain outrageously high standards. Students are constantly working to achieve the best grades rather than improve their learning and become better individuals. This behavior has been noticed by teachers, staff, and the students themselves here at Poly. This “dog-eat-dog” dilemma is damaging to students and gives the wrong impression of success. Competition is stressed within and among schools to an extent that is far more detrimental than beneficial.
When in a competitive atmosphere, many people feel the need to be the best. Students are placed under a tremendous amount of pressure to perform well as they are compared to their peers. “Too often, today’s culture sends young people messages that emphasize personal success rather than concern for others and the common good,” the Harvard Graduate School of Education stated in their report, “Turning the Tide.” The report demonstrates how certain perceptions of education have changed over time in many negative ways. It gives several recommendations for shifting from this emphasis on self-success toward consideration for the community. “Our system supports an achievement culture versus authentic learning,” Principal Dr. Michael Roe asserted.
Furthermore, competition has made it so that students are pushed far past their limits for the main purpose of achieving superior results. “Pervasive pressure to perform academically at high levels and to enter selective colleges takes an emotional toll on students and often squeezes out the time and energy students have to consider and contribute to others,” the Harvard report mentioned. Instead of applauding improvement, we only praise those with the best results. “Students have so much more to offer than just grades,” Mrs. Yuridia Nava, a Poly guidance counselor, claimed. This behavior of commending the highest achieving students is evident online and around the school.
One prime example of the emphasis on grades is our school’s tradition of placing the “top ten” seniors’ pictures on the wall in front office. This tradition commends seniors with the highest grade point averages (GPA) in their class. In a survey of 100 Poly students, 60 percent of surveyed students claimed that they felt “neutral” about the removal of these photographs, but nearly 30 percent expressed that they would feel badly about the removal–an amount that is nearly double the number that expressed they would feel good if these pictures were to be taken down. It is a possibility that students have become so caught up in our current system’s focus on the best grades, that they are discontent with a shift away from supporting achievement.
Students are very aware of the focus on grades versus a true learning experience. “Students take classes not because they want to, but based on how it will affect their GPA,” Michelle Krakora (10) claimed. Another student shared a personal experience with the role academic competition has played in his education. “As a child, I watched my siblings struggle to get into top-ranked colleges. Now I, myself, am faced with a troubling dilemma that many of my peers face today: do we sacrifice ourselves for our academics?” Derek Chen (11) revealed. Our educational system seems to encourage only the best grades and deems this “successful.”
As far as academics, a competitive drive leads students to cheat in order to do better than fellow students. “73% of all test takers, including prospective graduate students and teachers agree that most students do cheat at some point. 86% of high school students agreed,” The Educational Testing Service reported in the “Academic Cheating Fact Sheet.” Students now feel the need to cheat to achieve the ridiculously high expectations that have been set. “In the past it was the struggling student who was more likely to cheat just to get by. Today it is also the above-average college bound students who are cheating,” the report continued. After a certain degree, it becomes understandable that academic competition in schools is tremendously harmful.
While academic competition is clearly not being handled well, it seems as though sports have been improving competitive relationships. “We’re beginning to move in the right direction athletically,” Roe claimed. “That happened very strategically,” the principal revealed, explaining that schools have been working together to create healthier competition. Mr. James Vaughan, Poly’s athletic director and assistant principal, declared that competition has become less damaging in schools recently. “At one time there was a negative impact,” Vaughan claimed. He declared that there is now “healthy competition among schools” and the Citrus Belt Area Athletic Directors Association (CBAADA) has worked to place a greater emphasis on “cooperation and collaboration.” “When the organization first started, schools didn’t talk to each other much,” Vaughan revealed. the association has improved relationships through awards, meeting, and conferences that involve various schools. The positive change of competition in athletics is a great start to a shift from the extreme desire to be the best. Let us hope that this progress can take place in academics sometime soon.
Academic competition is a dangerous factor in students’ everyday lives. So what should we do about it? “We have to take a step back and look at the amount of achievement pressure that is placed on kids,” Roe announced. “[Counselors should] advise students not to be stressed and to take the classes they like,” Nava recommended. “Students can utilize their counselor to help them with the application process and choosing schools, majors, or careers,” she continued. “School doesn’t have to be stressful,” Nava concluded. “The notion of ranking students breeds unhealthy behavior,” Roe advised. Without a doubt, academic competition has harmed students’ education and led to negative behavior. Schools should discourage competition and pressure between students in academics and make learning the greater focus.