Chasing gold: The GPA-5 obsession and the cost of winning

Every year, when public exam results are published, groups of ecstatic students celebrate with live music and drum beats, and teachers join in as well.

These students proudly flaunt their GPA-5s as they've just unlocked the keys to the kingdom. However, the rest usually push themselves to the sidelines, psychologically cornered, and left to stew in their perceived failures.

In 2024, a total of 1,331,058 students took the HSC exam. Out of them, 145,911 achieved a GPA-5, leaving 1,185,147 students without the so-called 'holy grail' of GPA-5. This majority is often seen as collateral damage in the academic race.

These students haven't failed — in fact, they're far from it. Yet, they are psychologically pressured, judged, and all too often ignored by their families, friends, and even their educational institutions.

They aren't small in number either— more than a million students, some scoring as high as 4.67 or 4.9, are made to feel like they fell short. In this chaotic celebration of numbers, no one bothers to check on those who might be silently struggling. 

Even worse, results could be handled with some discretion, and institutions could acknowledge achievement without making it a public spectacle.

But instead, schools and colleges have made it a public agenda.

This GPA-5 glorification ignores the emotional well-being of students who fall short. For them, it's not just a missed grade; it can feel like a complete failure of self-worth. Until we stop making academic results public spectacles, students will continue to be pressured into thinking their worth is tied to a number. 

Bangladesh's race for academic excellence has taken a disturbing turn in recent years, as society places an unhealthy emphasis on achieving GPA-5 in public examinations.

What was once a sign of commendable achievement has now become a mandatory expectation for many students, resulting in intense psychological pressure and, in some tragic cases, student suicides. This glorification of the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) exams has turned education into a numbers game rather than a holistic learning process.

Every year, Bangladesh witnesses similar cases of students taking drastic measures and being unable to cope with the failure of not meeting inflated academic expectations.

Though the skyrocketing numbers of GPA-5 may look like a positive indicator of improved educational standards, it raises critical questions about grade inflation and the dilution of academic rigour.

These results overestimate their abilities, setting them up for future disappointment when encountering the real world, which does not operate on a rigid grading system.

The definition of success is different in our society. Instead of focusing on capabilities, talents and skills, we measure success with academic grades. While good grades may open doors, they do not guarantee success, happiness, or personal fulfillment. A child's worth cannot and should not be measured by a single number. 

Our approach to school and higher secondary education is responsible for this growing obsession and judgement with GPA-5.

By judging their academic prowess and calibre with a single exam, our focus is drifting away from the fact that a well-rounded education system where students can think out of the box is what we need.

We do not need an unwanted glorification of certificates that might not remain very useful for a long time or make them feel like failures in their earliest exams. As we continue to see the toll of this GPA-5 obsession on young lives, one thing is clear: academic success should not come at the cost of mental well-being.

Zarin Tasnim is a lecturer in the Department of Political Science and Sociology at North South University.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.