What’s wrong with high standards?
October 28, 2008An article I read at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2008/10/18/AR2008101801738.html?nav%3Drss_education&sub=new entitled Grading Bar Too High, Loudoun Parents Say documents the controversy surrounding the grading scale of two school districts in Virginia. Fairfax County and Loudon County both have grading scales that require students to get a 94% or better to achieve an A and an 87% or better to achieve a B. One parent filed a complaint when her child received a C with an 84%.
I for one am behind the school districts in keeping their grading scales as is. Personally, I think expectations have dropped to far as it pertains to student achievement. In all due respect, many students that do not deserve to pass from grade to grade are being shuffled off through the system. Quite literally, students really have to put effort into failing a grade. So, a district has higher standards that, essentially, would separate the high achieving students from the low and people are trying to force a change to that.
What is wrong with a system that recognizes its outstanding students? Too often, systems have a low/easy bar when it comes to achieving an A grade. In many cases, students who do not deserve or have not worked for a grade that high are being rewarded just as the students who did work for it. That, to me, is a big injustice in the system. It is an injustice to the high achievers who worked for the grade and the low achievers who need to know that they must work harder to get that A.
Although I agree that too many schools have lowered the bar in regards to grades, I think it is too easy to jump to conclusions about grading. There is so much we don’t know about how the students are graded (forget the scale for a moment) – there are so many variations in rubrics, etc that make it difficult in some ways for students. They have to adjust for each teacher and all too often expect that all teachers should be like the “easy” teacher and that they, the student, should be able to get by with the bare minimum. I do agree that students need to work for the grade and be held accountable when they don’t – I just think that there are so many aspects to this argument – there is no way to reach a conclusion with the system the way it is now.