These reasons point to a conclusion that grades do not determine an individual’s success.

Good
grades do not guarantee a person will be successful and bad grades do not predict that a
person will be less successful in life, and vice versa.
Despite this, it is wrong to deny the importance of grades. It is essential to recognize the role of
test scores and grades in measuring student’s progress throughout school (Price-Mitchell M.
2011). However, they are only rather one imperfect feedback of a student’s learnings as stated
by Deese and Deese in their book How to Study: and Other Skills for Success in College.
Deese also adds that society utilized it to judge what a person will possibly achieved in the
future. These includes scholarships and acceptance in prestigious universities which also
require high grades. But beyond the academic field, not all companies look on the applicants’
academic accomplishments. The hiring process differ depending on the company. In an
interview with Architect Somera, he stated that their firm does not check if the applicants had
high grades in their transcripts but take consider of their character and skills. He also adds that
they hire people who were not academically excellent but who are willing to be taught by the
firm.
Some of the most successful people in the world were not straight A students nor valedictorians.
A famous example will be Bill Gates who stated “I studied everything but never topped, but
today the toppers of the best universities are my employees.” He dropped out of Harvard and
then later co-founded Microsoft making him one the richest people in the world. A research by
Karen Arnold from Boston College also shows that majority of former valedictorians do not
appear to be at the top of their adult achievement areas. The studied subjects did not implicate
change nor impress the world.
According to Architect Patadlas when asked if she thinks grades determine success. She
answered no, reasoning that grades measure very little of a person’s success. Although it can
state the current discipline of a person but there is a possibility of inconsistency. A person may
change after graduating with honors, and the real world is different from the education setting.
If grades do not define success, then what is the key to success? There is no specific answer
for there are many factors that contribute to a person’s success. One that can be notably
mention is a person’s character, the qualities of an individual that motivates and dictates an
action or decision. Traits are critical for success (Raghavendra, S. 2015). It determines if a
person is a hardworker or a procrastinator; a leader or just a dictator; self-disciplined or
negligent. In traditional objective grading system this cannot be easily measured by a standard
test. If a person has a good character, it is also essential for a person to be consistent not only
during academic years but in the later years. Charles Darwin stated that those who will most
likely to survive our those who can adapt to change. One’s character strength shall prevail no
matter the circumstance.
As educators and schools recognize the flaws in the conventional grading system and the
education itself, they have incorporated new ways for the better. As an example, Far Eastern
University, with the arrival of the K-12 system changed to a Student-Centered Learning
paradigm. As the name suggests the goal is to focus on the student’s learning through
performance-based results and by making the student the dominant figure in the class.
Professors will now only act as mentors and guidance, and students are encouraged to
discussed more in class. The grading system was also changed with lower passing rates but
complimented with more requirements. This is also compliment with DLLECT for the professors,
aiming to have a better understanding and consideration of the students. There are yet any
results for the efficiency due to new incorporation, the effort of improving the system is evident.
New ways of teaching strategies and grading system are still in process of development as
everything else in the modern world, in hopes to improve not the grades but importantly the
learning that will equip these students with enough competence and character, and that will
hopefully lead to their own individual success.

References:
Mitchel, M. P. (2011). The Fallacy of Good Grades. Retrieved December 7, 2019, from
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-moment-youth/201108/the-fallacy-good-grades.
Plessis, S. du. (2019, May 19). 5 Reasons Why Grades Are Important. Retrieved December 7,
2019, from https://www.edubloxtutor.com/5-reasons-grades-important/.
Deese, J., & Deese, E. K. (1994). How to study: and other skills for success in college. New
York...: McGraw-Hill.
Raghavendra, S. (2015, February 21). beyond IQ: Determinants of Success in Life. Retrieved
December 7, 2019, from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/beyond-iq-determinants-success-life-
srinidhi-raghavendra/.
Barker, E. (2017, May 18). Wondering What Happened to Your Class Valedictorian? Not Much,
Research Shows. Retrieved December 7, 2019, from
https://money.com/money/4779223/valedictorian-success-research-barking-up-wrong/.
Clifford, C. (2017, June 30). When billionaires were kids: Here's what Warren Buffett, Jeff
Bezos, Bill Gates and others wanted to be when they grew up. Retrieved December 7, 2019,
from https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/30/what-warren-buffett-bill-gates-and-others-were-like-as-
kids.html.