Submitted by john on November 22, 2006 - 21:42.

Neil deGrasse Tyson, one of the world's best known astrophysicists, regular contributor to Natural History Magazine, and director of the Hayden Planetarium, recently had this to say about schools and the way they reward students:
“Straight A’s are not evidence of good teachers; they’re evidence of a student who will do what’s necessary to do well in exams, no matter who the teacher is." Dr. Tyson's point was that schools are set up in order to reward these types of students, and are not necessarily interested in recognizing any other talent.

He goes on:
“If you collect a bunch of people who have risen to the top -- screenwriters, poets, novelists, politicians, athletes—and ask how many of them got straight A’s, the answer will be near zero.