LETTER: More honors indicate wrong priorities
No, I'm not writing this to get my name in the paper and to go on an obnoxious ego trip. I just thought it would be interesting to see how much trouble I could get into by partaking of the controversy du jour.
More importantly, though, I know that there are people out there, myself included, who sometimes become obsessed with less-than-earth-shattering issues and consequently make themselves really miserable, and I think this letter might help to put things back into perspective -- at least partially.
There's been a lot of debate about whether graduation honors at Rice should be extended to include a larger percentage of the student population.
Those in favor of doing so have argued that if schools such as Princeton, Yale and Harvard grant honors to large numbers of students, then there is no reason why Rice cannot place a comparable percentage of its students on, as it were, a pedestal.
Also, I have heard a number of people say that restricting honors to so few seniors reflects an elitist attitude on the part of the university, and to tell the truth, I partially agree with this.
Opponents of extension of honors, on the other hand, often seem to base their position on their opinion that the uniqueness and implicit prestige which Rice derives from limited honors and the resulting competitive atmosphere is important to the university and its students, and that even if there is no "shame" in conforming to the standards of other schools, neither is there anything significant to be gained by such a move.
Others worry that making it easier for students to qualify for high honors would be the first step towards mediocrity, which could have serious implications for the futures of individuals and their communities.
Personally, I don't think extending graduation honors to more students is a good idea, but for slightly different reasons.
As far as I'm concerned, competition is of less than secondary importance in college.
Yes, I admit freely that for the longest time I was terrified of getting a "B," and to some extent I still am, but thanks largely to organic chemistry, I'm at least better prepared to accept realistic limitations.
I've also learned that, counterintuitive as it may seem, academic performance sometimes has to become less of a priority in college than ever before, because college is probably one of the most crucial periods of emotional development in one's life.
In my case, it has been a time to question my intentions in coming here as well as whether my major area of study is more than just what somebody else thinks is right for me.
It has been a time to realize that I don't have to wait until after graduation to contribute to the rest of the world: When I helped out with RSVP's World Hunger Day, I didn't care that I only finished half of my homework for the next day because I knew that raising money to feed the homeless would have more immediate and more certain benefits than finishing Exercise 4.128 or whatever the hell it was in my Mech assignment.
Most importantly, this semester I have learned that I care about a great number of people -- many more than I ever realized before -- and that if the house ever catches fire and my resumé burns up, these people will still be here and everything will be okay. End of cheesy (but totally sincere) anecdote.
As a side note, there are other people at Rice who will tell you similar stories and opinions, and it is to them that I am indebted for the opportunity to come back down to earth before it was too late.
But getting back to the point of my already-probably-too-long editorial: Graduation honors are limited because they're an extra, not because we want students to fight over them.
I've learned to view these honors in the same way I view the classic Chem 105 extra credit lab points: If you get them, more power to you; if not, nobody can penalize you because you didn't blow anything up.
Raj Wahi
Wiess '98
This item appeared in the Opinion section of the November 3, 1995 issue.
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