Some people find the competitive environment in schools to be beneficial for students and their academic achievements, while others tend to question such a stimulus for education, claiming that it negatively affects children. In my opinion, a competition among students is highly inspiring and positively influences one’s accomplishments in studies due to several reasons I provide below.
First of all, competition among students can potentially raise their motivation to succeed and force them to look up to their peers and put more effort into their commitment to studies. Since school is not often perceived seriously by kids, a race seems to develop internal incentive to achieve greater academic results. Moreover, such a form of education can positively affect educatee’s dedication and consistent involvement in the process due to a necessity to stay on track in order not to lose their position in the class ranking.
On the other hand, a competitive environment in school might become an obstacle to socialization since classmates are no longer considered to be fellows or team members, they become opponents, with whom no communication can be established. As a consequence, the main priority at such a young age would become self-affirmation in the community, but not a development of essential social collaboration soft skills. Additionally, undergraduates showing considerably weaker performance compared to their peers can get demotivated, or worse, be discriminated against and insulted by others.
In conclusion, personally I always find myself to be more productive and engaged in the process in a competitive environment. However, it is crucial to realize and explain to people, especially to children, how important it is to separate the concepts of competitor and enemy, and to be willing to stay collaborative even in a race.