Crikey, that took me right back to junior school in the UK. Every Friday we had a spelling test and a maths test. The teacher read out the questions, we wrote down the answers. Then we were sorted into rows.
The kids with the high scores sat in the row next to the window, there were three other rows.
No wonder we are all scared of making a mistake or admitting we can't do something. It was drilled into us by shaming and naming at school.
It was in the late sixties and early seventies. I remember the same teacher slamming a desk lid down on a boy's hand and another teaching coming in and slapping her face because of it. Different times.
I’m not really into grade-shaming, but I’ll admit it did push me in school. I was pretty competitive—more intrinsically motivated, but definitely driven by some outside validation too. That said, I think it’s important to stay humble. There’s always something to learn from people, no matter what their academic background looks like. My brother barely made it through high school, but he’s brilliant with anything mechanical or electrical and completely self-taught. He built a go-kart from scrap metal at age 12. That kind of mind? That’s its own kind of genius.
Totally agree—humility is key. Academic grades don’t tell the whole story, and there’s so much to learn from different kinds of intelligence. Your brother sounds like a great example of brilliance!
School unfortunately tries to train us that the world is a zero sum place. Only one person can get the top grade, and we are all ranked from top to bottom. Half of the people in every class will be in the bottom half. It's a lesson that many people believe forever.
But the truth is that the world is an expanding pie. Knowledge begets more knowledge. Trade is mutually beneficial and both parties gain at once. Your success can accelerate my success too, and doesn't necessarily (although sometimes can) happen at my expense. Surrounding yourself with smarter people helps YOU and doesn't make you worse off.
Crikey, that took me right back to junior school in the UK. Every Friday we had a spelling test and a maths test. The teacher read out the questions, we wrote down the answers. Then we were sorted into rows.
The kids with the high scores sat in the row next to the window, there were three other rows.
No wonder we are all scared of making a mistake or admitting we can't do something. It was drilled into us by shaming and naming at school.
That is next level, to actually sort the kids in different rows. I had never heard of this practice before.
Those were different times, I hope. The effect lingers though
It was in the late sixties and early seventies. I remember the same teacher slamming a desk lid down on a boy's hand and another teaching coming in and slapping her face because of it. Different times.
I’m not really into grade-shaming, but I’ll admit it did push me in school. I was pretty competitive—more intrinsically motivated, but definitely driven by some outside validation too. That said, I think it’s important to stay humble. There’s always something to learn from people, no matter what their academic background looks like. My brother barely made it through high school, but he’s brilliant with anything mechanical or electrical and completely self-taught. He built a go-kart from scrap metal at age 12. That kind of mind? That’s its own kind of genius.
Totally agree—humility is key. Academic grades don’t tell the whole story, and there’s so much to learn from different kinds of intelligence. Your brother sounds like a great example of brilliance!
School unfortunately tries to train us that the world is a zero sum place. Only one person can get the top grade, and we are all ranked from top to bottom. Half of the people in every class will be in the bottom half. It's a lesson that many people believe forever.
But the truth is that the world is an expanding pie. Knowledge begets more knowledge. Trade is mutually beneficial and both parties gain at once. Your success can accelerate my success too, and doesn't necessarily (although sometimes can) happen at my expense. Surrounding yourself with smarter people helps YOU and doesn't make you worse off.
Those are very wise words to live by. You are absolutely correct, we can always grow the pie together.