I would consider myself a "smart kid" in school. I would always do my homework and extra credit. I would always get favorable comments on my report card and get high honor roll throughout middle school and high school. High grades and GPA's are drilled into our brains right away in elementary school. I remember being in Gifted & Talented (GATE) art in elementary school. At the end of the day you would go into the art room with a handful of other students who were chosen. We would do special art projects while the other students who weren't in GATE art would have a study hall.

That was my first experience of being singled out based on grades.

Middle school is where they started to emphasize grades and GPA. You got recognized at the end of the year award ceremony if you were on the honor roll or high honor roll. I remember stressing out over getting C+ in a class for one of the grading periods. I thought that was going to mess everything up. Late elementary school/early middle school is when I first started comparing myself to other students. I would compare what we got on each assignment and each test which wasn't healthy mentally. That habit would continue to now, at 20 years old.

In high school, it was at an all time high. How could it not be? The school would encourage comparison between the students with placing students in advanced classes. It would put out class rank out at each semester. They would give out scholarships based on class rank (top 20). In addition, they would have Honors night in which students would receive their scholarships. Everyone was striving for the 4.0 or higher if they were in AP classes. It was drilled into your brain that you need to have a high GPA and ACT/SAT score in order to get into college. However, that is not the case. I had a pretty good GPA at the end of high school and an average ACT score and I still got into my #1 school choice. What they really don't emphasize is community involvement and also school involvement. That's what really is important when coming out of high school, not your GPA.

To be honest, in college no one cares about your GPA. Yes, you need a good GPA to get into Grad school but there's more that is considered such as letters of recommendation and other standardized tests. No one asks on a regular basis what your GPA is or what you got on your ACT. It's because NO ONE CARES! They have other stuff to worry about such as jobs, classes and grad school.

In college, they make the honor roll (aka Dean's List) private and not available to public viewing. They don't pin students against each other. They encourage students to help each other in order to succeed. There are more important things in life than your GPA. It's okay to not be perfect. It's okay to have a bad semester. It's okay to get a "B" or "C." Don't let your GPA define you because YOU ARE MORE THAN YOUR GPA.