3 ms·
You're point about the wrong impact is spot on. I have a gift of getting good grades. I know what things will be on the test, I know how to answer questions so
by Afton 10y ago
You're point about the wrong impact is spot on.
I have a gift of getting good grades. I know what things will be on the test, I know how to answer questions so that I leave enough wiggle room to avoid exposing ignorance on a topic, and I know how to structure an answer to get partial credit if I really don't know how to answer a question. My GPA in my first undergraduate class was essentially all A+s (curse you intro to the philosophy of language!).
For my second undergraduate degree, I just flat out rejected that approach. I exposed my ignorance where possible (and typically as early as possible rather than on the final exam). What was surprising was how little impact this had on my grades. Some, but not much, and I learned a lot more. Now I try to pass that on to my kids, but the structure of school is such that everything in that system is oriented towards the wrong goal.
Really pushes me in the direction of homeschooling, I have to say.
- cgriswald 10y agoRight on. I strongly believe that if we do not admit something about ourselves, we cannot change that thing about ourselves. The most important skill I think I've ever learned in my life is to say "I don't know" often and unabashedly. For me, saying "I don't know" was more of a social fear than an academic one. I thought people only liked me for my performance. But, like you, I learned that saying it didn't really affect the outcomes I thought it would, but it did result in learning a ton more. And I think, socially, it actually helped, because it humanized me to people who just saw me as "that super smart guy who gets good grades". I was no longer a machine they could not compete with, but a companion in the same struggle. It's also much less exhausting just being true all the time, rather than trying to achieve some arbitrary educational or social metric.
- pc86 10y ago> I have a gift of getting good grades. > You're point about ...
- Afton 10y agoThank you for adding to this conversation. This important point, that people make both typos and homonym errors, is a critical insight into this issue.