Reply to What did the top 10% of students do differently?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I guess I’m from the school of Hard Knocks. There’s a reason that Jews and Asians punch way above their weight academically. They’re not smarter. They work harder and are more disciplined (I’m Jewish). I’m reading way too many excuses and rationalizations in the comments above. I don’t doubt that some kids face real challenges and I don’t mean to demean them. However, I hold multiple Ivy degrees. I met a few really smart people in school. But, by and large, my classmates were like everyone else but put in more effort to achieve. I’ve found the same thing in my career. [/quote]

Not just effort but time. In our neighborhood we have five boys in the same class at school this year. Three of them do 3-4 extra hours of math every week. Over the school year that’s over 100 hours spent on math outside of school. Yes, they are Asian and Jewish. Two kids spend 4 hours a week on football. Yes, they are white. Guess who is better at math? Guess who is better at football?

The kids who spent the time on math are great at math, ok to terrible at football. The kids who spent the time on football are ok to great at football, ok to below average at math. Not because they are Asian, Jewish, or white, but based on how they spent their time. None of them are natural math whizzes and none of them are amazing natural sportsmen. [/quote]

Exactly. 3 to 4 extra hours a week on math is a modest sacrifice. Are most kids more likely to benefit in the long run based on their math skills or football skills? My kid took a one week break from a HS sport to crank out an important paper. The coach supported the temporary leave (my kid kind of sucked but loved the sport and team). My kid ended up at a great college and is doing well professionally.

As an aside, I’m not high on football due to the data on brain injuries but that’s another thread. [/quote]

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