Better Grades In School Boil Down To Aiming For THIS Strategy

Academic achievement is a worthy priority for top performers.  A student's marks should represent the fruits of their labor by mastering concepts and skills required to be successful in a field. 

In some professions, obtaining high academic marks is required to maintain credibility.  Most technical fields objectively measure such performance.  Mastering the subject matter of these professions is non-negotiable for demonstrating the competency of aspiring professionals entering that field. 

Unfortunately, achieving high marks in classes is not as simple as it should be. How is it that sometimes two equally bright students achieve dramatically different grades? What about that other student who doesn’t seem to take the subject seriously but ends up with an ‘A’? 

The school system has changed its purpose. Since the Industrial Revolution, schools have shifted from fostering philosophical freethinkers to producing obedient employees who learn to interpret and execute instructions.   

What caused this shift?  The rapid expansion in economic opportunity.

The Industrial Revolution opened new opportunities for people of all classes to become wealthier through hard work. To ensure employees were ready on day one, schools were instructed to change their instruction delivery to instill more discipline in the students.  

However, as the economy and workforce have evolved, the school system has remained stagnant. There’s an old saying that the school system follows an 18th-century model for a 19th-century workplace, taught by teachers born in the 20th century to students born in the 21st century. 

With a wild mismatch over four centuries, it’s easy for students to be confused about how to approach school.  After all, it’s no longer about being the brightest student in the room, though it could help. 

It’s time to figure out–what’s the missing piece of the puzzle? 

Hear me out – School is just a game. 

Games have rules, systems, and rigid guidelines that regulate their operations.  Each game has roles where different players play them out in a well-oiled machine.  Games also have a start and a finish. 

The school system is the same, too.  The only difference is that we’re usually the only players on our own team. 

The Grading System — Why We Use It  

The grading system can be stressful and confusing. For some, anything below an 'A' is unacceptable. However, does the system hold any value if everyone receives an 'A'? Why not implement a binary pass/fail system? 

Traditionally, the grading system was designed to rank students relative to one another. When applied correctly, an 'A' indicates best performance, a 'B' denotes strong performance, a 'C' reflects satisfactory performance, a 'D' suggests below-average performance, and an 'F' signifies that the required standards have not been met (i.e., failure). 

Imagine being in a room of the world’s top-performing mathematicians and receiving a ‘D’.  It may be a below-average performance, but if the average ‘C’ level performance is at a world-class standard, is that ‘D’ really that bad in this context? 

Now, place that same student into a class of average mathematicians.  That same student instantly becomes one of the top performers and receives an ‘A.’  However, what is the value of that ‘A’? 

Much has changed since then. We’re now experiencing grade inflation, with standards shifting from relative to absolute. While this may seem like a more even playing field, it has created a frenzy among parents and students to achieve only top marks. 

Almost every student and their parents want to see 'A's across the student's transcript.  Anything achievement below a top score is viewed as a deficiency, sometimes to a fault. 

However, the deficiency isn’t usually in a student’s learning ability.  There is one more missing piece of the puzzle to consider. 

The Secret To Achieving Higher Grades 

The teacher's job is to make everything as fair and objective as possible, but there's one problem: 

Teachers are human, too. Their preferences, biases, and emotions determine which aspects of the subject are most important for students to master. After all, we are learning from real people, not robots, in live classrooms. 

What does a teacher being human have to do with students getting higher grades?  There's one natural conclusion to draw from this insight: 

For higher grades, focus more on compliance over learning. 

At first glance, this doesn't make sense. Since our tests are on subject material, shouldn’t we focus our energy on studying for them? 

Well, yes and no.  

Yes, we should study the material thoroughly to understand how the subject works.  There are areas where mastering the content today is essential for future classes and professional work. 

Even though the subject matter is essential, it’s not the only thing to consider in our studies.  Teachers have their own emphasis and style on specific points that they expect students to reproduce on an exam. 

This is both good news and bad news simultaneously. It is good news because it can shape how we study and reduce our focus on unnecessary material, but it is bad news because it shows how bias creeps into the educational system. 

As unfair as it may seem, we must adapt to reality to maximize our ROI in the classroom. Each teacher has priorities, and the sooner we understand those priorities, the better our chances of achieving higher grades. We will still need to learn, but we should apply our knowledge or learn differently. 

From my experience with students, the following formula works for 98% of cases: 

1. Follow directions to the point. Never reinvent the directions. 

2. Answer the question being asked.  Do not go off-topic. 

3. Emphasize the same points that the teacher emphasizes. This is known as reflective communication. It will warm teachers’ hearts and help students earn extra credit if they feel generous. 

For the other 2% of cases, we review the nuances and adapt to what the teacher expects from the student.  It’s all part of the game. 

How To Increase Your Personal Compliance  

Increasing personal compliance with the teacher isn't a mystery. We must note the game's rules that guide us closer to the mark.   

It doesn't matter if a student is in high school, college, or some professional level education.  Here are the principles to leverage: 

Treat The Subject As A Game  

All games have rules and a route to victory. Every subject–English, history, science, math, and more–has a clear set of guidelines about what is expected to achieve the highest possible grade. 

Most schools have clear learning objectives for every concept taught.  These objectives serve as the rules for achieving the best grade possible.  It is wise to get a copy of these objectives from the school or state website. 

Beyond learning objectives, many resources are available online to help students learn the best practices for studying their subject and common pitfalls. Become aware of these and document them for regular review. 

Focus On The Teacher’s Communication Style  

Every teacher has a communication style. Some are elaborate and love to elaborate vividly on various subjects, whereas others are much more direct and to the point. Pay attention to your preferred communication style and how to adapt it, as it will be important when completing assignments and taking exams.  

Psychologically, the easiest way to build a relationship with someone is to subtly mirror their actions. If they are direct and straightforward, we should be as well. If they enjoy telling elaborate stories, we should reciprocate that. If they communicate formally, we will reflect that. If they are informal, we’ll also relax with them. 

When reflecting on a teacher's communication style, we should do so respectfully and without making a scene. Nothing is worse than a teacher accusing us of being copycats when we are just trying to engage. 

Develop & Adapt A Personalized System To Work With The Teacher 

As we master what to look for to achieve the highest grade possible in the class, we must build a system around it to ensure consistency. Well-constructed systems make it easy to achieve consistent results. 

For some students, organizing their work can be as simple as creating a OneNote notebook. For others, a three-ring binder that separates homework, quizzes, and projects may work well, too. Some students may benefit by differentiating their classwork into smaller pieces, such as concepts, definitions, people, etc. 

When building a system, we must be careful not to become overly rigid. Infrastructure is crucial, but we must adapt to the class and teacher we are working with. Therefore, starting with the basics and modifying it for the class is helpful. 

Ultimately, we must recognize that every teacher is unique. The system should adapt to the teacher. Unfortunately, the reverse doesn't work.  

Use An Appropriate Amount of Supplementary Resources

While we often wish to assign the responsibility of teaching entirely to the teacher, some classes present so much information that this becomes impossible. Students in AP and college-level courses quickly realize this reality when the teacher can't cover everything in the limited class time available. 

To overcome this dilemma, we must utilize supplementary resources. YouTube is filled with valuable content that provides additional perspectives on a subject. Other resources include For Dummies books on various topics, AP exam prep materials, and free worksheets that offer extra practice in the areas we need to improve. 

A word of caution: Don’t overuse supplemental resources. Just as fitness supplements aren’t a substitute for working out, neither are academic supplements a substitute for class materials. 

Instead, select a manageable number of resources to work with and stick to them. We should only consider changing things up in the most desperate situations, as we need a consistent approach to succeed in the class. 

Draft A Plan To Stay On Point  

Having resources is great, but without a clear purpose, we risk abandoning them at the wrong time.  There's a predictable trend in nearly every class:  

At first, the pace is relaxed to allow students to adjust. However, as we near final exams, the pace becomes more intense and overwhelming.  Therefore, we must stay proactive in the beginning because life will happen to us, and we may be unable to maintain high speeds in the end. 

We need to stay a few steps ahead when planning our study strategies. It may be more challenging in technical classes, but it's all worth the effort.  

We should read a book 10 to 15 pages in advance if assigned to read a book. If we are assigned math homework, we need to look ahead one or two sections to understand why we are learning what we are currently learning. 

At the end of the week, evaluate the plan’s effectiveness.  If it’s effective, we should continue the trend and prepare for the following week. If it's ineffective, we need to adjust early, as that's when we have enough time to consult with our teachers about the best strategies for the class. 

As we progress through the class, we need to plan to review current material and revisit past material if necessary. This is especially important for subjects that build upon one another, such as math, history, and physical sciences. By revisiting and strengthening the foundation, we can construct the castle walls higher than ever.  

At The End of the Day, Achieve and Move On  

The good news about academic games is that they don’t last forever. Nearly every game has a start date and a final exam. Everything that happens in between leads us to the finale. 

Students juggling a busy schedule should aim for the best results with the least effort. While diving deep into the material would be amazing, it's important to remember that there's so much more to enjoy outside of class! You'll see the rewards down the road in your journey by putting in a little effort at the beginning. 

Once the game is beaten, it’s over! There's no need to revisit the class (though we may revisit the material independently to review for more advanced courses).   

For those who achieve a high score, celebrate! For those who fall short, don’t beat yourself up. Instead, reflect on it and consider what we can improve for next time.

Finally, for those curious about the subject, the best time to explore it freely is after class. Once final grades are posted and deadlines are gone, you can explore the subject at your own tempo.

Students–if you're reading this at the start of a semester, now is the time to plan. If you're reading this in the middle or closer to the end, begin by incorporating some elements into your study strategy for the future. From there, you'll have the foundation to create a better plan for the upcoming semester.