e num ers ame

While achieving a high ATAR is considered essential, the true test of strength is in the struggle

Ireceived a message just after the HSC results were released. lt read in pan, as follows, "1 got 64 in English, 65 in Legal Stuclies, 68 in Business Studies, 7 3 in General Mathematics and 64 in Chemistry that's what I got and I can't change it. I just need to continue to work hard to get somewhe re".

1 also received three other messages, two from students who, again st their expectations, got ove r 90 in Legal Studies. The third was about the studemwho came first with 100%, a student who sought m y assistance when seeking to improve her responses.

The apo logies, the relie f, the joy from these different students was palpable. But none of them unde rstand t he meaninglessness of numbers, 100, 92, 90, 64! These numbers do not indicate the struggles each of these. students shared with me through the year The journey was individual for each one, and they faced their own specific clifficul ties and successes

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'64 ' for example, had to face a realisation that academic success framed around competition a nd time tria ls was not a personal strength. With wo rk experience, he saw a manager who worked alongsid e his employees. He found out that the manager was personally paying for the. medical care of a staff member suffering from cancer. He told me he wanted to be. tl1at kind of manager. DL1cing work experience, '64' made. an observation about tl1e supply chain that has since been ad o pted b y the business, saving it time and money

The Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (AT AR) does not measure his observation or his insight. '92' at 17 years, has already had considerable sporting success, competing nationall y as a sta te champion for many years.

A year younger than most, the HSC can be difficult when time and experience can affect tl1e quali ty of analysis and insight.

Neve rtheless, after spending Year 11 struggling academically, '92' finally started to believe that she could do very well academically by app lying the same discipline and sa:ucnLre to academic stuclies, as s he did to her sporting success. There were, of com·se, tears and frustration o n the. way. She sometimes stated aloud that she could never get over 12 marks i n a section of the paper worth 15 marks This did not stop her from se nding draft responses again, and ag,iin, and again. Sh e kept refining her answers and seeking her best form.

The J\TAR does not measure her growth in clisciplin e o r humilit)' in accepting tha t s he needed to keep trying.

'90 ' has an older sibling in whose s hadow her academic returns have always been compared. In this context, sbe waited a very Jong time before committing herself ro cryi ng her best. Fear of faihtre can paralyse.

'90' would never ask questions in class for fear of feeling exposed for 'not knowing'. When submitting draft responses, they would usually carry an apology. A strategy was devised whereby she would create an outline ro a question first, and t hat would be marked prior to her writing a complete response. This, she. realised, reduced the tension around havi n g to focus on achievement. Rather, focusing on tl1e Iittle steps helped manage her processes and anxiety. le also hel ped her to concentrate o n skillbuilding.

The ATAR does not measure self -definition or the effect of the success of an o lder sibli ng on a yow1ger sibling's growth.

'100' worked consi stently and quietl y throughout the HSC year, displaying great cliscipline and tenacity. Howe,, e r, she came seco nd in the trial HSC, not first. This means that within the schoo l coho r r she was n ot always the stro ngest candidate. The student who beaL her in tl1e trial exam worked extremely hard and born students clisp layed excellent organisation, tenacity a nd insight Both sought spec ific mentoring to eraclicate mistakes. '100' competed against herself, whereas me other student so metime s compered against others In t!Jis regard '100' only wanted to do her best, whereas the other smdent wanted to d o her best and also beat everyone else.

The ATAR does n ot measure how a person achieves against his o r her own best self.

Of all tl1ese muubers, in som e. ways, '64' clisplayed some character traits that none o f the others clid. '64' captained a schoo l team and would always help others. When asked to give a speech at a formal dinner, '64' found qualities to celebrate in every o ne of his teammates. He was nervous speaking in front of a large, forma l gatherin g, but '64' prepared his speech as a leader would do: around the success of each of the others

During the yea r, '6 4 ' befriended tl1e most marginalised students and included tl1ern in the popular group. He also wore the putdowns from three teach ers w ithom anger - though h is anger would have been justified. Veiled comments by tl1ese teachers implied that '64' was dumb and would never achieve Tr is hard to assess what impact the low expectations of these teachers had on the academic success of '64'. It is very important that teachers and parents do not define success in terms of numbers. Numbers are inherently limiting and as shown, can be quite mis leading.