Let me say right up front that I am huge believer in the power of a good education. I am a staunch supporter of our educators. It is a wise ambition to get good grades; it should be a great learning experience to receive a college education as well as advanced degrees.
Let me also say that I believe in viewpoints stated by Mickey Drexler, CEO of J Crew, in a recent Women's Wear Daily summit as reported by fashionista.com. Mr. Wexler was expressing his views on hiring talent.
"The person is a resume, not what's on a piece of paper." Mr. Drexler goes on to mention that GPA's don't matter to him, nor does what school the applicant attended. What matters to Mr. Drexler is hard work and emotional intelligence.
There is a linkage here in Mr. Drexler's thoughts about what a grade point average means (or may not mean) and the pressures in some points of our society toward the attainment of the highest possible grade point. I'm linking Mr. Drexler's comments to a documentary that I believe each of us, parent or not, should watch. "Race to Nowhere" compellingly makes the case that parts of our educational system has been forced to overindex to the pressure of earning a high grade point and getting high test scores at perhaps the expense of learning how to critically think. You can see a trailer for the movie here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uem73imvn9Y
Mr. Drexler thankfully runs counter to the popular model that pyramids accordingly: businesses are looking to hire only out of the best schools - to get into the best schools students need an exceptional gradepoint. . .to achieve exceptional gradepoints students cram to get superior test scores.
The results of these pressures may mean that while, yes, students (and job applicants) may have high GPAs, to get those high marks may have resulted in neglecting the whole individual. Have we holistically educated? Have we truly given the individual the ability to engage in critical thought? Have we invested the student with the tools needed for emotional intelligence?
What can we do as businesspeople and as citizens?
Continue to support education passionately, not for the sake of churning out 4.0 students or so that our district has the bragging rights to the highest test stores, but for the sake of genuine learning. We should understand that test scores and grades are just one measure of a student's overall ability. We should actively support districts that are not only committed to math, language arts and sciences, but are also commited to physical education and the arts. We should be committed to creating a greater desire for learning and to the nurturing of the entirety of the student, not just the part of the student that is tested by state.
As businesspeople, we should be actively cognizant that a gradepoint or a diploma from a great school is only one indicator of an individual's ability. Let's open our minds to hiring the right people, with the right intelligence for the right job. Recently, in the job market, I have seen a plethora of educational restrictions placed on job openings. I know of some of the brightest people who have been passed over because they do not have a college degree or an advanced degree. These are smart people who could have helped these businesses build incremental profit and goodwill. These restrictions, then, result in lost business opportunities.
Again, a college degree, a great education are all wonderful things worthy of our support, but to lmit our field of vision and opportunities to these things is not smart. To understand, as Mr. Drexler does, that a person is not a piece of paper, or a grade point, is smart.
Next: The Need for Emotional Intelligence in Leadership
Brent Frerichs is the author of "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" available on Kindle
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0095KPA6A
No comments:
Post a Comment