Today, my lecturer posed a question that made me think deeply. It was simple yet loaded with meaning:

“Imagine you are a professor, and you have the privilege to give 2 extra marks to one student. Student A has 68 marks (distinction is 70), and Student B has 38 marks (pass mark is 40). Who would you give the marks to?”

Without hesitation, the entire class answered: Student B.

We reasoned that helping Student B cross the passing mark would allow them to move on with their career. It felt like the right thing to do—kindness in action, right?

But then, our lecturer laughed and said something that left us stunned:

“I would highly prefer giving the marks to Student A.”

The classroom fell into silence.

I, too, was convinced that helping Student B pass was the best use of the privilege. After all, wouldn’t it be life-changing for someone to go from failure to passing?

Then, a brave, curious voice in the class broke the silence and asked, “Why don’t you prefer Student B? He’s so close to passing. You can literally change someone’s life with this privilege. Why choose the other one, who’s going to succeed anyway?”

Our lecturer smiled and explained, calmly but firmly:

“I would rather give marks to the hardworking one than the careless one.”

That answer hit different. It made sense, though.

In reality, we often use kindness to spoil the careless rather than motivate the hardworking. We prioritize giving help to those who might not appreciate or learn from it over rewarding those who’ve genuinely earned recognition.

This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t help those in need—but maybe we need to reflect on the difference between helping and enabling. Sometimes, true kindness is rewarding effort and discipline instead of saving someone who didn’t try hard enough.

It’s a perspective that’s tough to digest, but it stays with you. What do you think? If you had this privilege, how would you use it?