Nice. Now there's this. I went from an American high school to a Dutch university (admittedly a decade and a half ago, but still) and was shocked to discover that Dutch students as a matter of principle refuse to put in any effort that will push them beyond the barest minimum above a passing grade whereas the Americans I was used to at least tried to shoot for, say, a C, and if they were especially ambitious, a B or…
Completely agree. I moved from an American university to a Dutch one. Grades in the Netherlands are out of 10 (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_grading_in_the_Netherl...); Nobody bothers to take more than a 6, most end up with a 5.5.
I get weird looks when I tell classmates I'm aiming for a 9 or a 10 (almost equivalent to an A or A+ in US universities)