Readers of a certain age will recall a time when academic grades reflected actual achievement, when sports awards recognized genuine athletic prowess, and when most young people contented themselves with residing outside the bright circle of popular acclaim.
But all that has changed. Where a grade of C used to stand for competent but uninspired work, it now stands in place of D or F, either of which is viewed as an academic nuclear button. Participation trophies are the norm in baseball and soccer, lest some children feel less accomplished than others—even if they are.
To make matters worse, instructors are under pressure to not only inflate students’ grades but to write glowing recommendations, even if this forces their ...
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