
Kindness is all that matters. While grades hinder learning (and don’t even assess it), kindness stays. Kindness has impact. Kindness is the great leveler, no matter what race, socio-economic background, privilege or challenge, we can all be kind.
Perhaps we should think more about cultivating kindness and less about what scores our kids get on tests that measure nothing more than what they remembered that day and will forget tomorrow. Kindness is more important than SAT scores, which university’s name is on a degree, or the number of zeros on a pay cheque. Actions make the world a better place and the driver should be kindness to all sentient beings and the planet.
In a world where some people are born more advantaged than others—be it financially, cognitively, through family connections, or whatnot—the ability to be kind is the one thing that is equally in everyone’s reach.