And I mean that literally. High school students have attempted and succeeded in proving Darwin’s theory – “survival of the fittest” – year in and year out. It never fails to amuse me of how competitive students can be when trying to achieve the marks they think they deserve. In fact, I hardly doubt that someday we’ll be watching a bloody fight taking place in a classroom, with a teacher looking oblivious to the situation, between students battling for a scrap of “meat.” Now, that meat can be just about anything – from grades to scholarships – that can turn a perfectly intelligent human being to one ferocious animal.

However, let’s talk of scholarships since I hear they’re quite a hit topic between grade 12 students themselves. A scholarship is basically a grant written on a lovely piece of paper, awarded to a student for financial aid, as for the purpose of attending a college or university. But how does one obtain this scholarship? By making sure your grades are at the top, volunteering in your community, getting great references and so on! But, wait! What does this result in? The sound of words such as “grades” and “top” can easily stimulate an animal’s instinct and thus a battle has commenced between pupils. In fact these battles have already started within each grade level without being officially announced. Have you ever heard concise questions that ranges from “What did you get on the quiz?” to “What’s your final mark?”

I am not a stranger to such questions and in fact, am guilty of being one of those people who ask. I cannot speak for all, but many of us, including I, express such questions in order to have a knowledge of that person’s academic capability. That knowledge can then be used for your benefit as to strive to beat that person or congratulate yourself (loudly or quietly) for getting a higher mark than him or her. If you do manage to outdo that person(s) and attain a first-class academic record, then congratulations, for you have just achieved a good chance in holding that lovely piece of paper we talked about earlier on.

Darwin’s book was only intended for the animal kingdom, and yet, us so-called clever human beings have adopted this theory. This theory became part of each one of us (well some of us) where we did and still do have the notion that in order to get out this prison cell alive and outstanding, we have to work cunningly and defeat everyone else.