+/- frustration

To whom it may concern--

The plus minus grading system will be detrimental to the success of students. There is no positive aspect to this ridiculous system. 

1.) Unnecessary stress. Students are stressed out as it is--classes, academic and cultural organizations, recreational activities, part time jobs, and numerous other pursuits. The University of Texas is competitive as it is why add even more competition and stress to the college experience? Students already have a hard enough time to even get into UT, this +/- grading system will definitely not be an incentive. UT does not need to live up to these so -called Ivy League Standards. If people wanted a bare minimum school, they would not have chosen UT. It is respected: If this establishment is implemented it will change the world, however, not for the better.

2.) Learning. This system will sharpen the division between having to learn and wanting to learn. Wanting to learn is what is encouraged and fostered throughout one's life. By making the distinction between grades finer, learning and studying is going to inevitably become a chore to get the desired grade. 

3.) A Reward? An argument for this grading policy is that it will better reward students within the classroom. This logic is flawed. With the current proposed system an A is not equated with the levels of a B. There is a B-, B, and B+ whereas there is only A and A-. This is innately unfair.

4.) Hurts the brightest. Competition is seems to drive the world. Sadly, competition gets so intense it leads to academic dishonesty (cheating and plagiarism). Hence this will obviously lead to these. Also this system will hurt those who make A's. Ace-ing a test is next to impossible in college--it is done, but not always. This system penalizes the brightest because those that make A's in college can usually make anywhere between a 90-100, now those that could have made a 4.0 may be making a 3.67. Furthermore, this grading system may impinge of the accessibility of scholarships for students of all caliber.

5.) Aggravated Professors. Because every letter grade is now tiered, the professors are going to have a lot more frustrated students trying to bump up their grades to satisfy them. However, with this system a simple curve will not be able to satisfy the entire class. Instead, each student will be trying to make it within their goal based on the letter grade divisions. 

6.) Graduate Schools. As mentioned before, this system necessitates learning as a chore, this leads to stress and a much more one pointed focus on schoolwork. With this, there is less time for extra activities, nor is there time allotted for fun and relaxation. With our university taking into account this grading system competition to get into post-professional schools are going to be even more strenuous. Students who make an A in Organic Chemistry at another university with a 91 will be viewed with a much better light than someone at UT who has made a 91, which equates to an A-. Getting into Medical and Law school is hard enough as it is, why make those students chances even less.

Lucky

I am lucky/blessed/fortunate.

....is that how I am defined?

Today in KIPP class we brought up a subject that has been and will always be on my mind. Education. We prepare and prepare for 'real world' throughout our entire childhoods and adolescence. But what do we actually take away from it? My favorite story: 1st grade in Singapore. We had to write a composition (or essay) about any topic we wanted to write about. I wrote about a purple snail. What did that get me? An F, with the reasoning that nothing like this could ever happen. In contrast, a friend of mine was recently going through his old elementary school belongings. Being raised in this country (the US) he was naturally given the assignment, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" He answered "I want to be a dinosaur." no joke. The teacher gave him a smiley face.

Our world is seeing a drastic chasm between discipline and creativity. Both are needed in an ideal society. 

With a lack of discipline in the United States, the education system has witnessed somewhat of a degeneration, at least from my understanding of the situation. A speaker came into our class today. She made me realize where our society stands. In her day she knew every person on her street. How many of us can say that today? All the neighbors would stop and talk to her. She said her mom knew about the trouble she had gotten into at school that day even before she came home just by word of mouth. Now what do we see in our communities? Isolation. Fences separate our properties. Lawsuits are so common nowadays people are scared to do what used to be everyday things. Fear is undermining our society. It is a flaw that the legal system has abused to such a great extent and the sad part is that our generation is going to pay for it.

Even more than the lack of community in our neighborhoods, this lack of community still separates the same cities. St. Louis is a segregated city, check out Savage Inequalities to learn more. 

Poorer schools get the shaft. Their funding is cut to the bare minimum. They can provide reduced lunch prices and no more. Their music and art programs are cut. The potential for Mozarts and Renoirs is there, but the lack of opportunity is frightening. 

Again. Do I attribute my success in my academic career to luck or to my perseverance?

I'm not sure. 

Hyperconjugation

The last weekend at home just flew by. Food was good, the comfort of my bed and bathroom were much needed. Last week was very meh. But this weekend was totally relaxing and worth it. 

I always ask myself, as do my friends, "Remind me why again you live in Texas?" This is an issue I have been dealing with for the past 2 years and it's not that I regret my decision to stay in Texas, it's that question what if....I had decided on Berkeley or UCLA?

What would my life be like? Would I have that Californian mindset? Miss home? Eat such reeeediculously fresh food all the time! Be right next to my religious organization's centers and have friends that are on the same spiritual path as myself by my side. How different would my life be? Life would be much more expensive, that's for sure. But I would have no chance to dive into the Liberal Arts side of myself if I had gone to California. There would be no Plan II. There would be math, science, and more science. EW. 

The one thing that has assured me that I have made the right choice is without a doubt my friends. People to talk to, people to keep me company, people to love and who love me back. Granted I could have made the same kind of friends in Cali, how can I know that to an absolute certainty? I can't. I know I have the best friends right now--that is a fact and the reason I have no regrets. 

Plus I have made a promise to myself. I will graduate in 3 and a half years and what would have been the second semester of my senior year (at least from February till April) will be spent at Hidden Valley in Escondido CA. I cannot wait! It's a working retreat so I'll be a resident there but I'll pay my housing and food by working--I'm not sure what they'll want me to do....but we'll see. 

Sigh but back into the swing of school. OMG Heroes was so good tonight. This season is really moving at a good pace. HIMYM was the best of the 3 of the season so far.

ps Magown said he has 2 X chromosomes

......awk.

pps who missed me more this weekend? ravi or ishanee?