Maybe you are in that "highly skilled" group. Unfortunately, average student have different behavior.
But I like being pushed hard in a class - it brings out the best in me. Easy A's just engender boredom and contempt.
I remember once being pushed to enter an athletic competition where the field was not so good. "It'll be an easy win for you" I was told. That made me completely uninterested. I entered one where I was told "You'll be in way over your head." and I was. I came in last - but there was never a more satisfying one to me, because it was my best job ever, and just being on the field with those other excellent competitors was exciting.
An analogy would be just qualifying for the Olympic team, even if you have no hope of getting a gold.
On HN, I imagine a significant number of us here are sufficiently motivated to learning even without anyone to remind them of its importance.
What a sad way to live, and I wouldn't hire one of them, either.
I found the course catalog at college to be exciting reading, and was frustrated to be only able to take a small fraction of what was available.
I remember several "aha!" moments where suddenly I understood something that had always baffled me, and felt like I'd been given the keys to the universe.
I wasn't interested in paying lots of money for nothing. I also wasn't interested in attending a university known for easy grading.