Tips #17

Some lines should never be crossed. Other lines should be abolished. When I received my first grade school report card, I noticed a bright red horizontal line running across the top of a chart containing rows for grade assignments ranging from 'F to 'A and columns for each subject. My line fell at the A- level. This red line stayed with me as long as I attended St. Sebastian's. The teachers explained that I should be receiving grades at the level of the line or higher. Grades that fell below the red line meant that I was not working up to my potential. Apparently, I had taken an intelligence test to be admitted to this Catholic school, and the height of my line was based upon my score.

I was lucky. My parents had fostered my belief that I was smart and capable. The line did not affect me very much. I assumed naively that I had the highest line of anyone in my class. Much to my chagrin, I found out later that my best friend's line was drawn at the A level. You see, I had high expectations. My friend was smart, but I still wondered if there was some kind of mistake.

Years later, I realized that the real mistake was in drawing the red lines in the first place. I was lucky; my teachers expected me to do well, my parents expected me to do well, and I expected myself to do well. There was never any question in my family's mind that I would be going to college. But what about people whose lines were drawn at the B or C level? As long as they managed to earn grades that were above their lines, they weren't pushed to do better. If they earned some D's or F's, they had a built in excuse. They were expected to be average students. Many of my classmates had plans to go to college, but if they did not enroll or did not earn a college degree, it was okay because according to the red line, they were not the best students.

The school's administrators probably thought that they were doing the "weaker students" a favor by not pushing them beyond their intellectual abilities. The administrators wanted everyone to work hard, but they would not be alarmed as long as everyone was working above their red lines. They assumed that intelligence was the determining factor in one's success in such diverse subjects as music, spelling, penmanship, reading, and mathematics. Most educators now reject the idea of a universal intelligence that can predict our likelihood of success on such a wide range of skills. There are many kinds of intelligences or potentials that we all have in varying degrees. A better predictor of success in school, I imagine, is the expectations that others have of us and that we have of ourselves.

Take a moment to think about the expectations that others have of your academic potential and then consider what expectations you have of yourself.

Do others encourage you to do well?
Do your friends earn good grades?
Do you set high standards for yourself?
Do you do whatever it takes to live up to your high standards?
Do you keep your commitments?
Are you confident that you will find a way to succeed in every class that you are taking?
Do you make excuses?

As far as I know, Catholic schools no longer draw red lines to suggest appropriate levels of achievement. Times, back then, were different. Now we understand how ridiculous it was for a school to think that it could establish accurate standards for each student based upon the results of one test taken by a six-year-old. We know about self-fulfilling prophecies--how people's predictions help shape actions in ways that generate the anticipated outcome. Simply put, if you believe that you are likely to fail, you probably will. If you believe in yourself and are confident that you can be successful, then you are more likely to obtain the result you want. If you believe that you control your own fate, then you will be in charge of your success. If you believe that other people or events determine what will happen to you, then you are at everyone's mercy.

Do not allow anyone to draw a red line for you. However, you should draw red lines for yourself. Set them high. Strive to reach your true potential in each subject you take. You might be surprised at how well you can do if you believe in yourself, if you are patient, if you seek steady progress rather than immediate results, if you seek help when you are having trouble, if you do whatever work is necessary to reach your goals, and if you refuse to allow yourself the luxury of making excuses. College is a turning point in your life. Enjoy the experience, develop your skills, and broaden your outlook. But, get your business done. Keep your grades high by setting goals that reflect your high expectations of yourself.