Many students use the One Question as a means to address issues they may not always think about. Sophomore Emily Rogers came up with a new One Question for the 2013-14 year on a topic relevant to most students today.

Next year’s One Question, “How can we maintain a passion for learning in a school system where a pronounced emphasis on receiving good grades has a tendency to reduce genuine interest in gaining a deeper understanding of subject material?” is one that connects to students who may immerse themselves in grades so much that they lose interest in subjects they were once passionate about.

“It’s a complicated topic,” Rogers said. “I honestly think that the problem lies in the school system and its emphasis on grades as an end result.”

When Rogers first came to Jefferson last year, she noticed that as people struggled to maintain their grades, they cared less about actually learning and more about achieving high scores. In English, she participated in a discussion about the goals of education: getting good grades and learning and how these mindsets often times pull in opposite directions. This raised the question of how to prevent the endeavor of achieving good grades from completely crushing passion for learning. Some may see it as a difficult question, but it is one which Rogers felt was necessary to ask.

“By discussing and thinking about the issue, we take the first step in the right direction,” Rogers said. “As humans, I think we are naturally inquisitive and interested in knowing as much as we can. It may take some work to reignite the passion, but I definitely think it can be done.”