Is Academia really a Meritocracy?

[mengzi]

[ QUOTE ]
Isn't a meritocracy a system based success through individual ability/achievement?


[/ QUOTE ]

a meritocracy is system wherein promotion or special status is gained through intellectual ability/academic achievementirrespective of interpersonal relationships

the first sentence of your original post is completely contradicted by what follows

[mik37]

Sorry, registered the wrong meaning of meritocracy.

[Xylem]

Well, at school it was possible my marks were down to me being hated, though my opinion is that it was because i have a tendency to look lazy and stupid, though my work contradicts it imo.

However in university the lecturers dont know me. Theres no real personal time as the classes are like 100-1 lecture/student ratio.

Omaha, could u tell me what was wrong with my writing. I wasnt trying to write well, but u may give me an insight.

Btw, to highlight what i meant about school i just remembered something.
In my A-levels (college) i was predicted D's E's and fails.
I was told to quit because it wasnt worth my time, and given the fact that i was already depressed, it made for a very bad time.

When it came to exams i couldnt even open the results, so my mate did. My exams ended up giving me 3 As and a B. A very happy day.

I think that says alot about markers, and their judgement.

Im not saying academia isnt a meritocracy, but at the end of the day its an institution(?) made by people who can get caught up in their own subjective thoughts.

[Xylem]

Omaha?

[T50_Omaha8]

lol...it's fuggin cinco de mayo and you get on my case for not checking 2p2 often enough? Sorry brah, I was drinking beer with friends.

To demonstrate my point let's analyze your last post (warning, nittiness follows):
[ QUOTE ]
Well, at school it was possible my marks were down to me being hated, though my opinion is that it was because i have a tendency to look lazy and stupid, though my work contradicts it imo. Poorly worded, the first part doesn't really make sense, and if a sentence starts two seperate phrases with "though" you should probably rewrite it...DUCY? I always appear lazy to profs too, skipping a good bit of class and doing a BS job on trivial assignments, but I don't have this problem you apparently have.


However in university the lecturers dont know me. Theres no real personal time as the classes are like 100-1 lecture/student ratio. Exactly--your grades tend to reflect the quality of your work in this environment.


Omaha, could u tell me what was wrong with my writing. I wasnt trying to write well, but u may give me an insight. an insight...lol


Btw, to highlight what i meant about school i just remembered something.
In my A-levels (college) i was predicted D's E's and fails.
I was told to quit because it wasnt worth my time, and given the fact that i was already depressed, it made for a very bad time. This is extremely unclear; I have a vague idea at best what you were trying to communicate, and I don't understand how it relates to the original thread topic.


When it came to exams i couldnt even open the results, so my mate did. My exams ended up giving me 3 As and a B. A very happy day. Still not really making any sense.


I think that says alot about markers, and their judgement. No, it doesn't.


Im not saying academia isnt a meritocracy, but at the end of the day its an institution(?) made by people who can get caught up in their own subjective thoughts. Remarkable conclusion!

[/ QUOTE ]If I were grading this as a post I'd give you a D, or maybe an E, but I don't know WTF that is.

[Big Poppa Smurf]

T50,

I think that's just how british or australian people talk casually or something.

[Xylem]

Yea, actually i dont think i should have asked for your advice it was wrong and unhelpful, not that you cared.

If you cant understand this post either i suggest you start going to lectures.

[T50_Omaha8]

[ QUOTE ]
Yea, actually i dont think i should have asked for your advice it was wrong and unhelpful, not that you cared.

[/ QUOTE ]Umm, you asked me to point out exactly why your posts are incoherent and, to put it politely, inspire little faith in your scolastic abilities.

I originally just threw out as a sarcastic response that based on the way you word your posts, it's pretty likely that your writing ability is lacking. Face it, you opened yourself up to this type of criticism by starting a thread like this. I wasn't planning on writing any further in this thread, but you seemed very interested to know why I thought your posts were inarticulate. I feel that I provided ample evidence.

I'd be interested to know exactly where I was wrong--most of my comments were pretty subjective (although few would disagree that your post was rambling and incoherent). Wait, doesn't subjectivity have something to do with the topic of this thread?

[catalyst]

[ QUOTE ]
My guess is that you're not as smart as you think you are.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm pretty sure this is the answer.

[Xylem]

No wonder no one likes the yanks.

Yea, i did open myself up for criticism, and can see how my informal style can be easily criticised.
I can also see why you feel it necessary to put me down, believing i need it.

Im not here to look smart, i just wanted a bit of advice.
Frankly i dont care if u think im dumb or not i know im intelligent...
Even my mom said so.