There’s no doubt that we’re prepared for college. We’re constantly praised as the most intellectual students in the nation and told that college is easy in comparison.

But pride has its consequences: we forget to be humble. Many students have false feelings of self-entitlement, thinking that if they work hard, or even just go to Marlborough, they deserve an A.

But we don’t go beyond what’s expected. We think the knowledge we learn just to get an A is all we need to know, but it’s not.

The girl who really deserves an A fully understands the material taught in class, but also strives to learn more about the subject on her own. She doesn’t just cram the night before. She researches on her own free time, studies in depth,
and goes beyond the requirements. Only these students should be singled out as acing the class.

We should reform the grade distribution so that Cs are once again the average grade, not the abysmal grade. Cs should mean be what Bs mean now, and grades should be spread out more evenly.

Now before you storm to the newspaper room with a fist ready to pummel my face, hear me out.

It’s rewarding to receive an A on a paper. But then you look around and everyone has As, and suddenly your grade seems unfulfilling. With grade inflation, it’s impossible to stand out.

If Cs become average grades, students would be motivated to really strive for that well-earned A and would have the ability to stand out.

As should be handed out like college acceptance letters, not like food from Leadership in Learning lunches.