The Real Reason We Need To Stop Trying Too Hard In Education

We spend our days filling up the margins of our journals while glancing at pictures of celebrities on social media. We hit snooze time and time again, only to push aside any ideas that don’t match the status quo. We never have enough time to eat or play with friends, but we always find the time to scribble down a thought that lives outside of class-to-class routine. A nurse is providing education about a new prescription for nitroglycerin, but a teacher is lecturing about the political strategy of the abolition of slavery. We get angry at each other for juggling our social media accounts and for asking for help with any aspect of our lives during class time.

The solution to all these problems is to do less, but we don’t know how to do less. Any attempt at doing less sends us into a downward spiral where we feel inadequate and defeated. And so we work harder and harder, frantically trying to find a balance in life that never seems possible to reach. 

It’s an unhealthy routine that teaches us that success and failure aren’t just binary options, but rather shades of gray that are impossible to distinguish between in the midst of pressure. Something needs to change; we need a way out from this unhealthy cycle that pushes us towards achieving meaningless totals and numbers for grades, accolades for resumes, and more.

The Real Reason We Need To Stop Trying Too Hard In Education :

1. It Worries Us Unnecessarily

We are so worried about grades that we can’t even go to the bathroom without a bookworm journal, pen and paper. We feel the need to write in a journal before taking our first trip to the bathroom, because we get distracted by what people have said about our appearance being “too casual” or “too dressy.” 

We can’t even use the restroom without feeling guilty because we are not writing away as much as it should be written. We allow ourselves a few seconds of rest and see sullenly how much of the time has passed without actually moving from our designated, silent spaces.

2. It Takes All Of Our Time

We spend half our lives in a classroom and the other half writing and revising. We have no time to pursue the things we enjoy outside of school, like sports or music or art, which is where real growth happens. Instead we spend all of our time working hard at school, getting good grades which results in good jobs and higher hopes for our futures.

But what will we do with them? How will we invest our time? What are the practical steps that need to be done to ensure success in life? Can we even see the whole picture when so many threads are pulling us in different directions?

3. It Diminishes Our Self-Image

The image we have of ourselves is tied to our grades. We have a high opinion of ourselves when we get good grades, but it sinks as low as it can go when our grades suffer. The cycle keeps going, so that the more you work hard at school, the more work you feel like doing to get good grades, and so on and so forth. You never see the opportunity to let your grades fall where they need to be and instead try harder in order to keep them up for what feels like the rest of your life.

4. It Hurts The People We Care About

We are so busy that we don’t want to waste our time with trivial things like having a meaningful conversation with anyone. We aren’t willing to let people close to us down and blame them for our insecurities and priorities. 

We have too much time on our hands, so we use it by making extreme decisions over the people in our lives, causing them pain and confusion. It makes us question whether they even care about someone as worthless as we are and whether they will ever connect with someone who feels that way.

5. It Corrupts Our Character

When our grades plummet, we may give up at school and say that this whole thing is a waste of time, but we don’t realize that it is also a waste of time. We are choosing to be in this fight over grades when nutrition and socializing are just as important but don’t require us to defend ourselves against others who judge us for being lazy or dumb. We have worked too hard at something for which there is almost no reason to suffer if you know the real reason why you are doing so. When you see yourself through these eyes, there is no point in defending yourself against what others say about you.