I’ve recently taken up a teaching post with a university teaching business communication. One thing I’ve observed with kids today is their penchant to take up the “kinder” instructors and most especially those who give high marks. While each university might have its own grading standards, there are bound to be teachers who really think high marks are candy to be given away. Why not? Being the fun teacher and generous grader raises your stock with students making you one of the most sought-after teachers. Never mind if kids actually learn anything.

But I do mind. So even if I, I’m a pretty strict grader. I don’t believe in giving kids exceptionally high grades. It’s a fact that in a class, a few will excel, a few will suck, and everyone else will try to scrape by the bare minimum. Problem is, everyone expecting high marks from me.

Mediocre work deserves a passing mark. Kids who think that they are doing great by scraping by with the bare minimum should be jolted back to reality. High marks are only given to those who exert more effort and display above-par understanding of the subject matter. It really bothers me why kids often pay attention to grades rather than on learning.

As I’ve ended one of my lectures the other day, I told my class that only the basics count in the real world. Sure this wouldn’t be entirely true in terms of being the latest one to discover newer ideas. But hey, nothing complex can exist without any foundation, right? Besides, grades do look good on paper but in reality it would be skills and know-how that would matter.

I’ve been the “cool guy” for these first few days and I have no problems being just that. I’m all for their learning and if it makes me unpopular by being a strict grader, well, they just have to learn that you have to be George W. Bush to be a C student and become the President.