--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The school system is constructed to…" description: "\"The school system is constructed to praise you if you get high grades. And if you get straight A's, you're the one that everyone puts forward, and they..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e13/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_education_the-school-system-is-constructed-to-prai_2614198.jpg" --- # The school system is constructed to praise you if you get… ![“The school system is constructed to praise you if you get high grades. And if you get straight A's, you're the one that everyone puts forward, and they prognosticate that the straight-A person is the one most likely to succeed, because that's the way the school system is constructed and conceived.” quote by Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e13/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_education_the-school-system-is-constructed-to-prai_2614198.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e13/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_education_the-school-system-is-constructed-to-prai_2614198.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e13/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_education_the-school-system-is-constructed-to-prai_2614198.jpg) > “The school system is constructed to praise you if you get high grades. And if you get straight A's, you're the one that everyone puts forward, and they prognosticate that the straight-A person is the one most likely to succeed, because that's the way the school system is constructed and conceived.” [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He critiques how grading systems reward high scores, creating a narrow view of success that overlooks diverse talents. **In simple terms:** Grades are used to label success, limiting broader abilities. Key Takeaway Consider alternative assessments beyond grades. Themes education achievement equity Mood critical thoughtful Type analytical critical When to use this quote - school reform - college admissions - workplace hiring - parental guidance Key Concepts meritocracy social bias Questions to Reflect On - What talents are missed by grade focus? - How can schools value diverse strengths? A Different Perspective Grades don’t capture creativity or practical skills. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praise/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [School system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school-system/) ## Related quotes > [“College is not about being top of your class or getting high grades, it's about surviving your course.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mister-banatero/college-is-not-about-being-top-of-your-class-or-getting-high-grades/) Mister Banatero > [I come from a place where people get high, the grades get low, and if someone has a secret EVERYONE KNOWS.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wiz-khalifa/i-come-from-a-place-where-people-get-high-the-grades-get-low-and-if-2/) [Wiz Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wiz-khalifa/) > [“One of the chief ways to lure farmers from the hills to the banks of the Mississippi River, Walter Sillers Jr. and other Delta…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-berard/one-of-the-chief-ways-to-lure-farmers-from-the-hills-to-the-banks-of/) [Adrienne Berard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-berard/) > [I come from a place when people get high grades get low and if yo have a secret everybody knows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamika-leeigh/i-come-from-a-place-when-people-get-high-grades-get-low-and-if-yo/) [Tamika-leeigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamika-leeigh/) > [The reason why we don't want to absent in school,the reason why we always got a high grades in school,the reason why we always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhaninne-tejada/the-reason-why-we-don-t-want-to-absent-in-school-the-reason-why-we/) [Jhaninne Tejada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhaninne-tejada/) > [That one kid in class that doesn't give a sh\*t, doesn't study, but manage to get High grades.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-blog-that-describe-your-life/that-one-kid-in-class-that-doesn-t-give-a-sh-t-doesn-t-study-but/) [The Blog That Describe Your Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-blog-that-describe-your-life/) > [I come from a place where people get high, the grades get low and if someone has a secret everybody knows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wiz-khalifa/i-come-from-a-place-where-people-get-high-the-grades-get-low-and-if/) [Wiz Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wiz-khalifa/) > [How many more years will our educators continue to lecture us on the evils of whipping children until they bring home high grades? Year…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-baker/how-many-more-years-will-our-educators-continue-to-lecture-us-on-the/) [Russell Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-baker/) > [“To many, achievement meant high grades in every class. This idea had to be challenged. “What does getting an A really mean?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/starr-sackstein/to-many-achievement-meant-high-grades-in-every-class-this-idea-had-to/) Starr Sackstein > [I've always learned on-the-job, in real time. A problem comes up; I research it, and try to solve it. You can't study to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-szaky/i-ve-always-learned-on-the-job-in-real-time-a-problem-comes-up-i/) [Tom Szaky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-szaky/) > [The only way you can invent tomorrow is if you break out of the enclosure that the school system has provided for you by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-only-way-you-can-invent-tomorrow-is-if-you-break-out-of-the/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [I suspect the I.Q., SAT, and school grades are tests designed by nerds so they can get high scores in order to call each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/i-suspect-the-i-q-sat-and-school-grades-are-tests-designed-by-nerds/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [I would teach how science works as much as I would teach what science knows. I would assert (given that essentially, everyone will learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/i-would-teach-how-science-works-as-much-as-i-would-teach-what-science/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [From an evolutionary standpoint you can't just wipe everything out and start over, and I don't think you can do it in the school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/from-an-evolutionary-standpoint-you-can-t-just-wipe-everything-out/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [I was home-schooled. My mom wasn't a fan of public school systems. She was scared of letting me go. So, she home-schooled my siblings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/britt-robertson/i-was-home-schooled-my-mom-wasn-t-a-fan-of-public-school-systems-she/) [Britt Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/britt-robertson/) ## More by Neil deGrasse Tyson > [I don't want to go into space because of war. 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Where they feel certain about their explanations,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/they-scientists-of-centuries-past-call-on-god-only-from-the-lonely/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [We explore our environment, more than we are compelled to utter poetry, when we're toddlers. We start doing that later. Before that happens, every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/we-explore-our-environment-more-than-we-are-compelled-to-utter-poetry/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [You can't have people making decisions about the future of the world who are scientifically illiterate. That's a recipe for disaster. And I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/you-can-t-have-people-making-decisions-about-the-future-of-the-world/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [Science surrounds you. 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