“…see grades will equal stautus for power, so just like college
you’re so caught up in letter grades , you skip the ‘F’ing knowledge.”
—“School’s In” by J-Live
In less than two days, my college will be back in session, and I’m eager with anticipation. What better way to display that excitement than to include a profound quote that makes a reference towards school! Indeed, it can be difficult to go back to school for both the students as well as the professors after a two to three month break, but the learning experiences and rapports created throughout the semester are extremely rewarding and makes the return a transition that is much more easy for me to endure.
Some students are returning from a previous semester while others are brand new or even transferring into the college, but something most of them have in common is that they want to be successful. As their professor, I am cheering them on and want them all to be successful as well. However, what determines one’s success as a college student? Most people associate the final grade with the student’s academic achievements, but is this the end all be all?
J-Live, born Jean-Jacques Cadet, (j-livemusic.com) is a rapper and former 7th grade language arts teacher takes this question to a deeper level. I most recently stumbled upon his music while searching for some underground artists to add to my Ipod rotation. When I heard this particular song and then these specific lines, I knew I had to include his song as a profound hip hop quote to represent going back to school.
Throughout my tenure as a college student and even from pre kindergarten to twelfth grade, I believed that “grades will equal status for power,” as J-live brings to light. Interestingly, my philosophy has been slightly modified after becoming an English professor. Even though I was never the student so caught up in the letter grades that I’d intentionally “skip the ‘F’ing knowledge,” I have come across a multitude of students and people in general who care more about the grade than what they are actually learning and retaining for years to come.
Of course, I must admit that I have been guilty of cramming in knowledge simply to do well on a test and then having most of the knowledge gradually seep out of my brain in the days and weeks to come because my sole purpose was to get that “A.”
Yes, the final grade is a significant part of one’s academic career, but the knowledge he or she leaves with is even more important. My goal, as always, is to enlighten my students and to encourage them to be more passionate about enhancing their knowledge rather than just focusing on getting that ‘A’ in the course. Years from now, I want my students to know how to avoid comma splices and run-on sentences and not to have someone question how they finished the course with an ‘A’ but are unable to compose an essay or basic cover letter for a potential job. As your school semester begins, do not lose sight of what is even more important than the grade: the knowledge!
Please feel free to share your thoughts
~Anonomz aka Tanya Harris
Bonus English Lesson:
J-Live using a simple yet complex technique to drill the point home about obtaining knowledge over grades by incorporating a double meaning. “Skip the ‘F’ing knowledge” not only represents the ‘F’ word, but it also represents the failing letter grade ‘F.”
Journey of Anonomz 