Flunking the No-Zero Policy With failure rates and low test scores plaguing high schools across the country, educators are searching for new reforms that lead all students to success. One such reform is the no-zero policy, whose mandate prohibits teachers from giving a student a zero for late or incomplete work. In theory, this policy more accurately assesses a student's learning, rather than their behaviour. However, when applied to real students and teachers, the policy receives a failing grade. If the objective is to create a learning environment in which all students are pushed to succeed, the solution is clear: keep the no-zero policy out of high school assessment. Although instituted with good intention, the no-zero policy is in fact detrimental to students' learning. For some students, the possibility of earning zero marks on an assignment acts as motivation to improve work and study habits. It also pushes students to manage their time according to class deadlines. However, without the threat of a zero looming over each assignment, coursework becomes optional and deadlines become merely a recommendation. As Cara Smusiak, a senior editor for Today's Parent states, "the potential for a zero doesn’t prevent kids from succeeding; it ensures kids take some responsibility for their education" (par. 7). If a student were to fail an …show more content…
Prohibiting teachers from using zeros as a response to late or incomplete work undermines their authority and disregards their personal teaching strategies. In his article for the Winnipeg Free Press, Michael Zwaagstra explains how teachers suffer under a no-zero policy: "No-zero policies (...) unreasonably interfere with the professional discretion of teachers to determine grades. Teachers know their students and realize that it is unrealistic to expect the same strategies to work with every student" (par.
In her article, “The Case Against GRADES”, Alfie Kohn discusses the grading system and its faults. She opens her argument with information from an older psychological study that proves the negative impact of the current grading system, and she reinforces this with the proof that “no” research has contradicted this statement. Also, she gives many key reasons including: “Motivation”, “Achievement”, “Quantification”, and “Curriculum”. Kohn supports these topics with other reasearch for why the system is failing the students. She asserts that, “… the absence of grading is a necessary condition for promoting deep thinking and a desire to engage in it.” As support, she offers other solutions and then debunks them by proving that they would not solve
In 2010, Alyssa faced one of the horrors students face: bringing home a bad report card. Afraid of her parents’ reaction, the girl hid her report card to avoid showing the grim 76, for she, like other kids, does not want to be grounded for it. However, should students feel pressured to get a high grade? Should kids fear getting a bad grade? In reality, no parent should punish their children because of a “bad” grade; such action is detrimental to the students’ health and relationships. There is a more healthful, efficient way to improve grades, although, in reality grades are insignificant in today’s society.
Our education system is failing and in his essay “What Our Education System Needs Is More F’s” Carl Singleton writes that nothing else will right the ship or fix this issue except for his proposed solution which is to simply fail more students. As a matter of fact “by the dozens, hundreds, thousands, even millions” (Singleton 1) is how he describes the failing grades should be distributed. He claims that illegitimately passing students has existed for the past two decades and even implies that it stems further back than that with many teachers in the school system today “who never should have been certified in the first place.”(Singleton 1).
Almost every person who has graduated from high school has taken the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), which is generally used for college admissions. We all remember the stress of taking a test that could affect our future educational plans. Now due to the “No Child Left Behind Act” of 2001, this kind of test is now being administered to children from the 3rd to 8th grades as a way to determine if the school or teachers are educating them properly. High-stakes standardized tests of this nature should not be used to determine the educational abilities of either schools or the teachers.
In effort to maintain high education standards and being labeled a “Distinguished School”, the educators decided the best plan of action would be to change the student’s answers, due to the fact the students were not preforming to the level needed to pass to the next grade. The No Child Left behind Act of 2001 set measurable goals to improve education. Sadly in this case the standards set by government did not help the students it did a horrible disservice to the students. The educators did not teach or tutor the students when they fell behind. Changing the scores of students whom did not grasp the information and just passing them on sets them up for epic failure.
A am not sure that schools understand the impact of inconsistent grading practices on the school and the students. As a teacher, I would not have understood but as an administrator I can see benefits to student learn by adding consistency into the equation. The key is to do the research and involve the stakeholders to developing the consistent grading methods to help student achievement. The author does suggest finding teachers in the building that have come up with creative ways to supplant the zero and the who have created meaningful feedback opportunities. This would be key because then the teachers would be able to see the impact on their students rather than bringing in sources from outside the school. This would also allow the principal to lean on teachers as
Public schools across the nation are being labeled as low performing schools at a very fast rate. Low performing schools (LPS) are schools that do not meet the required standards that state officials set each year for all schools. These standards may include a certain graduation rate, certain goals for standardize testing, and a limited number of behavior referrals. The majority of public schools do not meet these standards. They often struggle with high dropout rates, low standardize test scores, low graduation rates, and disciplinary problems. These problems can truly hinder the future of these schools and the students attending them, so they are placed on the academically unacceptable list; low performing schools list. Although those problems standout they are forming from smaller problems within the schools. Many of the schools on the low performing list lack in the quality and quantity of teachers and books. This causes students not to meet the expected standards on standardize tests. Low test scores can lead to high dropout rates and low graduation rates. Another small problem they face is overcrowded classrooms which bring along the huge number of discipline problems. It can add to the low test scores because teachers are often interrupted with discipline problems while trying to teach large classes. Students who have trouble grasping the concepts that the teacher is teaching and who are constantly involved in disciplinary cases often dropout of LPS. When public schools lose students the state officials cutback on the schools’ finances that they receive to fund the school.
What happens when students hear this new mode of grading and stop trying? What is the challenge of going to school and working hard, if they do not have to make sure they get all of their school work done to pass? Teachers will not need to try so hard to get their lecture through to their audience. Although allowing the no zero rule helps children in many ways, it hurts them in more ways. In society there are no grading scales, no one is going to give these young students an easy pass. If they cannot do what they are supposed to do in their career, then they will fail. These students need to understand the meaning of working hard to achieve in school, so they understand what it will be like with a job, or family. Most jobs run on a pass or fail scale. It is easy to think that changing the grading scale is what the students need, and that this will give parents what they are looking for to stop the children from dropping out of
There is added pressure to schools to get better scores which adds pressure to the educators and the students. The added pressure can cause health problems with the students or the educators. If health problem come from the stress of the tests it could negatively affect the student’s ability to learn (Pros and Cons, 2013). The test itself is a problem as well. The test is supposed to be unbiased based on the grade level but in most cases the test is not. As much as they try...
Teachers have always used grades to measure the amount a student has learned. This practice is becoming ineffective. Many students have a wide range of grades, which show that grades may not show what a student really knows. Therefore, the standard grading system should be replaced. Some reasons why grades should be replaced are bad grades can hinder a child’s performance, grades define who a student is in the classroom, and grades are not an effective way to see if students have learned the material. The current grading system should be upgraded and every school should incorporate the plus/minus system in their method of grading.
Thomas R. Guskey, “Grading policies that work against standards…and how to fix them”, NASSP Bulletin, Dec 2000, vol84, n620
The No Child Left Behind Act was set into place with the goal to improve student performance in school, and close the achievement gap between students; as Stecher, Vernez, and Steinburg state, “When congress passed the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), it established an ambitious goal for the nation’s states, districts, and schools: All children will be proficient in reading and mathematics by the 2013-2014 school year” (1). While the No Child Left Behind Act was implemented with good intentions, the act itself is one of the main reasons the United States is falling behind in educational rankings. One of the most common complaints of parents surrounding the No Child Left Behind Act is the weakest link factor: the weakest student sets the pace in the classroom. The weakest student...
In more serious cases, schools that have not met their AYP in four or five consecutive years may be taken over by the state, restructured, teachers may be fired, and new teachers brought in.... ... middle of paper ... ... The seven deadly sins of no child left behind. Phi Delta Kappa, 88(10), 744-748.
Having some courses with no grades gives the students the ability to learn the material, be more interactive without worrying about the interaction, and increase their performance in challenging tasks.