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People figure the “smart kids” have it easy. The smart kids being the academically excelling individuals who seem to find schoolwork and homework easier to complete properly than the average bunch – most people assume they’re socially challenged kids who receive “special” treatment from teachers due to their non-existent social life. They’re smart and talented, and their parents shower them with presents and praise, and so do the teachers – or so it is thought. They’re lucky since they don’t even have to work hard and do so well in school. They have perfect lives at home and school since their parents and teachers absolutely adore them. Right? Such assumptions are what I refer to as “Dumb Assumptions”.

So how do they do it? In other words, how do smart kids get those oh-so-perfect grades and sail through tests and homework without sweating it? Believe it or not, we actually have to work at it. We’re not born with the facts in our head – we pay attention in class, we study and we try to remember as much as we can of what we learn. Eventually, these routines become subconscious habits and it’ll seem to the outside world that we’re not even trying but succeeding. We apply any knowledge we happen to know to anything we do, giving us chances to come up with broader ideas and solve the problems with less hassle. It’s not absolute genius or anything brash; it’s just plain maturity and common sense.

Cherished doesn’t even come close to a description of what most smart kids face, at least at home anyway, and our parents don’t shower us with anything our hearts desire. Our parents pressure us to do better or excel all expectations – they push and shove (metaphorically most of the time) us to our limits – and it’s not the most comfortable experience. Perhaps, in rare moments, we’re gifted with some sort of an item but only to “keep up the good work”. Unlike most parents who would heartily praise their child for receiving 98% on a math test, our parents usually shoot us a look of disappoint and inquire just what happened to the other two percent.

And it turns out that over ¾ of the students who excel in academics have problems at home. This is because the issues at home burden and overcome them at times, so they seek ways to temporarily escape the pain – school and studies consume most of their childhood so it’s the “best way out”. If they keep up their good grades and do well in school, their teachers praise them and somewhat raise their self-esteem, thus, just for a while, pulling them away from the stressful situation at home.

Teachers praise us, it’s true, but throw us more challenging problems and punish us more harshly than the other kids if we don’t complete our projects or hand in something on time or something similar to those things. They want us to keep up the academics and may go to harsher extremes to do so. So if you still think we’re lucky to receive all this “attention” from out teachers, I’m afraid you should think again.

I’m not one for bragging (it damages your self image) but I believe I am somewhat a smart kid. I get good marks and enjoy participating in school-related activities, and I throw in a few extra curricular things after or before school. Despite what many of my peers think, smart kids DO have a social life but most of them chose not to flaunt their popularity due to the extra common sense they possess. I have friends – good friends, bad friends, best friends, ex-friends, annoying friends, funny friends, and serious friends – but I happen to balance my social life with my academics.

Unlike what most people think, smart kids can have a social life, too. It’s true some people can be socially challenged, whether or not they are academically excelling, but it’s dumb to assume anyone who does well in school is a social outcast. I’ve noticed many things in groups of friends. Within a group of friends, there are certain roles some of them play. One or two of them are the “smart” kids, a few of them are the athletes, there seems to be an artist in some groups, there are extremists, there are the quiet and loud ones, and of course, the occasional “lunatics”. People feel more comfortable and accepted if, within a large group of friends, there are one or two smart individuals. They can seek advice from these friends as well as help in studies and confide in them about problems they face.

However, people usually feel uncomfortable and unaccepted if they are alone with one or two smart individuals as they feel “dumber”, so they try to act “higher” and this often leads to clashes between friends and crush good friendships to the point they will never talk to each other. In simple terms, words such as nerd and geek are used to make highly intellectual individuals feel lesser because people might feel uncomfortable knowing they are not as intelligent and try to put them down to rid of this uncomfortable barrier.

In conclusion, I’m just trying to convey a simple message that many people don’t seem to understand. Smart or not, we’re just people. We might have different likes, dislikes and interests but that is no reason for us to alienate one another. If it seems unfair that we seem to find school easier than others and the teachers “like” us, it’s because we actually put forth an effort and perhaps, find school interesting. We can have social lives and problems in our lives, as well. The problem with all teenagers is that we all want to blend in and be accepted. It’s an individual’s decision, really, but I advise you not to be someone you’re not. Blend out, not in – and you’ll shine. :>

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