Post 65: I might 'B' disappointed.

So, as you may or may not know, the end of the Spring Semester is here. I got decent grades, B's. But, I don't really feel proud. I don't really feel satisfied. I have been told that it is good, that my school is famous for being tough about grades, that Canada has a different grading system, etc.

In the end though, B's just don't feel like A's. That is what I guess it really comes down to. That, and that I didn't get A's. Next semester, I plan to try really hard to get them. I want to get A's, but at the same time I don't want to feel disappointed with a B. A B isn't bad. I have friends and classmates who are happy if they get above a C. I have friends and classmates that are satisfied just getting a C.

Yet, here I sit disappointed with B's. I guess, I just feel like I can do better. Like I should do better.

Anyway, Canada does have a very different way of grading than the States.

Essentially, it looks like this:

Canada : 80+ = A 70+ = B 60+ = C 50+ = D 
America : 90+ = A 80+ = B 70+ = C 60+ = D 

It looks like it would be easier to get an A here doesn't it? After all it is 80% or higher. But it isn't. In the States, if you wanted an A you really only needed to do what they told you. An A was basically doing everything you were supposed to at the level you were supposed to do it. B was not quite, but almost. C was try harder. D was you're not really trying. In Canada (or at least at my University), A is exceeding expectations. It is you did everything you were told to and asked to do and then some. B is more of a meeting expectations. C is not quite, but almost. D is you're not really trying. 

So, when I see a B, I see not quite but almost. But I also see the percentage, I see it as in the C range, and it worries me. 

I think I can be overly focused on the grade itself rather than just trying my best. Which isn't uncommon, is it? People focus on a number or grade rather than what that number or grade means. 

In weight loss, people focus so much on losing weight that they aren't being healthy, yet the reason they are trying to loss weight is to be healthier. 

Students memorize terms and then spit them out on the test, but then forget them as soon as the class is over. But what does it matter to them, they got the grade they wanted. 

It is more important to get a good grade than to learn anything. This is something that comes up when people say that English is an easy major compared to the sciences. I disagree. Only partially because I know people who struggle at English and excel at Maths and Sciences, because it is partially dependent on your thinking process. 

But, also because it perpetuates a negative stereotype of the major that leads people looking for an easy degree to take it.

I know that yes, it is easier to get a C in English than Math for most people. However, if you actually want to learn something and truly get something out of your experience in the class, it isn't easy. Anyone can go over flash cards a few times and come up with on the spot B.S. that will lead them to a C, but to actually understand the message behind the writing and to learn what it is that the class is meant to teach is hard. 

People constantly complain about how they don't get poetry, well maybe if you had paid attention in English you would have, at least, some ideas. And really a lot of poetry can be interpreted different ways, is just being lazy or ignorant. People put a lot of effort into writing poetry, so to dismiss it without even trying is really rude. Even if the only message you get from reading something is surface level, that is still fine, as long as you tried. 

And yet, here I am, dreading a B. I did get something out of the class. I learned a lot of things I didn't know. I still remember most of the terms. I found a lot of the main ideas interesting. But, I am still obsessed with the letter 'B'. Because 'B' just echoes in my mind as 'almost'.