When a teacher was grading his exams, he witnessed a polite student request that he share part of his points with a classmate who received the lowest grade. Winston Lee was evaluating examinations at Letcher County Central High School in Kentucky when he came to the last bonus question on one student’s exam. “If you could, could you give my bonus points to whoever gets the lowest score?” said the student on his test.
Winston was “taken aback” by the kid’s proposal, as he had never witnessed a student seek to donate his points in order to benefit another classmate before. Because he was struck by the young man’s compassion, he agreed to his request and gave the 5 bonus points to a student in need. “Have to shout this out,” Winston wrote in an online post. “I’d honestly never seen anything like this…
One of my guys, an A+ student, provides his 5 bonus points to anyone in need. Giving up what is properly his, his earnings, to any peer who may have been struggling particularly hard on the day of the test. He didn’t care if he considered them a friend, if they were cool, or what situation had caused them to score lower; all he wanted to do was help, be kind, and do a loving act.”Winston believes that by sharing his student’s compassionate request, others may be inspired to be “a little more like this young man.”
“I was pleasantly surprised,” Winston stated of his exam grade. “I interpreted it as a very compassionate, loving, and kind act.” He is the type of student that frequently exhibits compassion in the classroom.”
“In my teaching experience, I have never heard of a student willingly giving away something they had earned in order to provide an extra opportunity for someone else.” So the ultimate message is to follow in his footsteps and pay it forward.”