You know how in jail you have a long number that sticks with you? It defines you, tells you your name, your birthday, and sometimes even defines your future? Well your GPA and class rank is just like that. These numbers are like those jail ID numbers in high school…except you have an opportunity to change that number.

High school has many times been defined as “the best four years of your life” that may be true in many ways, but without a doubt it can also be defined as some of the most important and stressful four years of your life. Tests on top of tests, homework, assignments, then there’s also the added pressure of college. Four years isn’t always enough time if you ask some.

Your freshman year it isn’t stressed as much as it should be how important it is to not mess up your classes­ and to actually go to class. Just because you’re the babies of the school doesn’t give you any privilege to not do good and work to make yourself do well. In all honesty, you have no room for mistakes.

GPA is the abbreviation for grade point average which means a number that indicates a student’s average grade. To break that one down, it’s a few numbers that determines how smart you are based on all the classes you’ve taken.

That three-letter abbreviation does a lot for you. For example, if you keep a good GPA through high school colleges will be more likely to like you and it’s easier for you to get scholarships, your class rank which also plays a role with getting you into a college and helps you with scholarships as well is also depended on by looking at your GPA. It isn’t easy to keep a perfect GPA. You need to be consistent with your school work, tests, and make sure your grades are always where they need to be.

“I have a 3.6 GPA, but as a freshman I wasn’t aware of how much of an impact my GPA & class rank had with me getting a scholarship or getting into a good college – I feel like it is important because it does help you with those bigger after high school things,” sophomore Nathaniel Cobb said.

But what about those kids who work two jobs because they have to support themselves with no outside help, so school work no longer becomes a priority? Or the ones who can’t focus in class because all the home problems that they’re having? It becomes a question whether a GPA and class rank is really a reliable source when it comes to colleges and school districts.

Each person has a different life, a different way of dealing with school. So should a simple number really have so much impact on what a person does with their life? A class rank is just another way of comparing yourself to someone else. Really, that’s all it is useful for. Yes, it’s a great way to set goals. But someone with a lower than average class ranking who tries to do well, cannot tell me at one time or another they’ve looked at their ranking and felt bad compared to someone else’s ranking.

“I think class rankings are unnecessary, lots of kids could be very intelligent but not have the time, or have a lot going on at home and aren’t stable for school at the time. Everyone has potential some more than others,” freshman Torianna Buttery said.

There are a wide range of kids who have ability and just don’t show it. Most of the time that’s on them, it’s their choices that made them be where they’re at. But for the ones who try, and want to be something but haven’t quite got the hang of it yet, it shouldn’t be a competition with those who know how to play the game.

There shouldn’t be a constant worry in the back of minds about getting somewhere in life because of small number defining them and what their class work shows.

But, since schools across America probably have no intention of getting rid of this system it’s something that has to be taken into consideration with every little thing a student does. One failing class, and your GPA is down a little more. Your GPA does matter. Your class rank does matter, all of it matters. Anyone who tells you it doesn’t is crazy. It should be one of your top priorities to keep that number high, because once it’s down it’s hard to get it back up. But, incase you do mess up you can always fix it. It’ll be harder, and you’ll have more work but that number can always be changed as long as you want to change it.

Everyone’s got the potential to be somebody and as much as it sucks a simple 1.5 or 4.0 or that number on 1 or 64 spot on a class ranking scale is what defines you. It’s just something you have to make what you want it to be. For your four years of high school you have to be that number that defines who you are.