I used to think being a successful student meant having straight A’s, but after my first year of college, my idea has changed. People can be successful without having the best grades. A successful student is one who tries their hardest and obtains the best possible grades and test scores for their capabilities. But more importantly, a successful student is a person who learns and understands the material of the course.
The first part of being a successful student is trying their hardest. Someone who is lazy and manages to achieve passing grades should not be deemed as successful. Someone who studies, does practice problems, and puts their best effort into a course and then achieves acceptable grades should be considered successful.
The second part of being a successful student is obtaining the best possible grades and test scores for that particular person. Some people are bad test takers so more than likely their grades will not be as high as those who are great test takers. So if a bad test taker achieves a “C”, then it is success. If a good test taker achieves a “C”, then it is probably not a success, unless the course happens to be really tough, like organic chemistry.
The third and most important part of being a successful student is that they learned and understand the material from the course. What has a student gained from a class if they received an “A” and learned nothing? What has a student gained from a class if they learned the material but do not understand how to do it on their own? They have gained nothing, and the class was a waste of time and, in the case of post-secondary education, money.
In conclusion, a successful student is one who tries their hardest, obtains the best possible grades and test scores for them, and learns and understands the class material. Many students go through school and do “okay,” but the successful ones follow this regiment. Unfortunately, success in this country is usually based on popularity and money, so many students that are successful by my definition, are not successful from other definitions. Maybe the United States should redefine its definition of success; it might make a difference.
