BrieAnna Wallace
Professor Loput
ENC 1101 (12:30 P.M.)
20 February 2012
Ignorance Killed the Cat
In “Making the Grade” by Kurt Wiesenfeld and “In Praise of the F Word” by Mary Sherry, both authors establish an issue with the grading system in schools. Somewhere along the line, love for knowledge died and a generation of indolent students were born. They both however, point the finger of blame in different directions. Wiesenfeld claims society has molded the student to believe he/she can simply charm their way to good grades, whereas Sherry holds complete liability in the pampering of high school teachers.
In the materialistic world we live, it’s easy for Wiesenfeld to grasp how love for knowledge has diminished. Fast fortune with
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They are both correct. There shall be integrity in the educational system once again, if and only if, teachers and students alike apprehend the importance of working hard for a desired
The biggest issue with Sherry’s plan to stop grade inflation is that she didn’t account for the fact that there is no universal grading system in the world. Grades are based on a criterion set by a particular teacher, and the teacher is the final person to decide what grade the student receives. An A
In the article A’s for Everyone, Alicia Shepard recognized a pattern in which her students placed too much emphasis on the letter grades received as opposed to the actual understanding and retention of the curriculum being taught. To understand this phenomenon, Shepard drew upon both the historical catalyst which led to it and her personal experience as a college professor. The systematic indoctrination of the importance of letter grades originated during the Vietnam War when "Men who got low grades could be drafted," (p. 3, par. 4). This having occurred, the pressure to obtain a higher grade became less about gaining knowledge and more about regurgitating information to receive an A. Subsequently, future generations stressed to their offspring
In “The Dangerous Myth of Grade Inflation”, Alfie Kohn explores the phenomenon behind grade inflation. Whether it is complaints or just the general idea that such an undesired occurrence has routinely taken place, Kohn certainly explores them all. He begins with addressing that the issue has not just transpired, but has been in existence over time as many have complained periodically. As Kohn notes on page 261, grade inflation is recognized as a poor occurrence, yet Kohn reveals the struggle as “truly substantive issues surrounding grades and motivation have been obscured or ignored.” Why is this so? Kohn goes on to explore the issue through some evidence and research, but finds that while grades have become higher more recently than before, that still does not prove inflation exists behind the rise in grades (261). By this Kohn reveals a trend to the reader with the facts, or lackthereof, behind grade inflation.
While many believe that the grading system has a concrete standing in the success of education, other’s believe that it actually can inhibit or at least lessen the effectiveness of learning. In “A Young Person’s Guide to the Grading System,” Jerry Farber states that for the longest time, many have dismissed the fact that grades could be harmful to the learning process. He argues that grades lack the ability to bring about self-discipline within the students learning the content. While the educational system has rendered changes throughout the years, the grading system maintains its virginity and has been fairly untouched. He insists that many educators are in strong belief that grades are the only way to ensure that learning is to take place within the classroom. Most of society would dictate that the system has been fairly effective in getting individuals through their schooling. But as Farber points out, students tend to focus more upon the grades they are receiving and less upon the content itself. Throughout his writing, Faber uses many forms of rhetoric to persuade the reader to believe the fact that the grading system is corrupted and should be changed, and offers a solution which is referred to as the Credit System. With this being said, it can be stated that Farber effectively conveys his argument through his appeal to a younger
Many students go through their academic career struggling to balance school and personal life while maintaining focus in the classroom. In the passage, “In the Praise of the ‘F’ Word,” Mary Sherry argues that the only way for unfocused students to become motivated in their academics is for teachers to threaten them with a failing grade. We should disagree with the author because many students struggle with obligations outside of school, personal problems, and family responsibilities. Therefore, many students would not improve their studies once they receive a failing grade, but instead, become overwhelmed with failing and attempting to balance numerous other responsibilities.
Kurt Wiesenfeld's article, "Making the Grade," presents the social issue of grades. The author explores the extent of this problem by examining the social environment in which these students were raised. Wiesenfeld also addresses the changing attitude towards what a grade represents and the true value of a grade. The author effectively uses several writing strategies to engage the reader, influence the audience and illustrate how much thought he has given this issue. The essay is organized by a logical progression from thesis to individual claims and the author provides real-world examples for the issues. With those real-world examples, Wiesenfeld explains how serious the problem can become and demonstrates why the issue should be addressed.
Schools and college professors, who give you a good grade for excellent productivity on assignments, allow students to perform poorly, but still benefit relative to a person with an A. Two articles that observe grade inflation, find the rising problems of grade inflation, and finding solutions for grade inflation. Stuart Rojstaczer, an author from Grade Inflation Gone Wild, is a professor of geophysics at Duke university, and created gradeinflation.com in regards for his concern about grade inflation. On the other hand, Phil Primack is a journalist and teacher at Tufts University, and published in the “Boston Globe” Doesn’t Anybody Get a C Anymore? While college students, who work with little effort and still attain easy A’s by working poorly on assignments and exams, Primack and Rojstaczer, develop a firm connection towards grade inflation and the solution that can regain control over real education.
Of Mice and Men’s George and The Scarlet Letter’s Hester Prynne the main characters in these two novels. Both are misunderstood by the people around them. Of Mice and Men was written in 1937 by John Steinbeck to show the most vulnerable people in society at that time. The Scarlet Letter was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850 to illustrate the way of life for the Puritan society and the way some were punished or misunderstood due to not following the Puritan ways. In Of Mice and Men and The Scarlet Letter Steinbeck and Hawthorne share a common theme between the two novels. By comparing and contrasting the characters, setting, and conflicts it is illustrated that
In this Compare And Contrast essay i will be comparing of what my parents think i will do this year and how i will do this year. We will be looking at the similarities of what i said and what my parent said. Then we will look at the differences of what i said and what my parent said then i will compare to see what is similar and what the differences are between my writing and my parents.
“Grades don’t prepare children for the ‘real world’- unless one has in mind a world where interest in learning and quality of thinking are unimportant” (Kohn, 9). Grades, as we all know, have been the ultimate form of estimating how much of a certain subject someone has learned for many years. As the years have passed however, new innovative ways to help the way kids learn, other than judging them with numerical values and letters, have surfaced that can possibly rid us of this barbaric system. Alfie Kohn has done a very effective job explaining them, while pointing out many of the flaws in the old schooling system with his read “The Case Against grades”. He does this by providing eye-opening facts along with refreshingly innovative ideas to get the reader’s attention while tapping into their emotions and allowing these two to join forces to create a logical appeal.
Historically, letter grades have served as a tool to rate educational intelligence. By looking at the progression of a student’s grades over time, people are able to determine whether or not the students are developing skills in certain areas. Using a one letter grade to determine progress has received many critiques as a common system used in America’s education. Critics claim letter grades cause students motivation and creativity to decrease because grades shift students focus from learning the material to obtaining a good grade.
Both flax and chia seeds are nutrient dense oilseeds. Both have become popular in recent years with flax seeds being the more widely known of the two. Both are excellent additions to your diet. Each of them can provide you with a range of health benefits. If you want to pick one and are unable to make up your mind, consider the comparison below.
Dunkin’ Donuts and Krispy Kreme Donuts both have Facebook pages to communicate with their customers and employees. In this paper, both companies will be discussed and the similarities and differences of the two companies and how they communicate with their audience through their Facebook Pages. Building meaningful relationships with customers and employees online requires good interpersonal communication, particularly listening. Social media is now being used by businesses to build relationships.
The key to being able to differentiate one newspaper from another is often, if not always, the way the latter presents its news, both aesthetically and stylistically. These aspects have gradually divided newspapers into two distinct categories: broadsheets and tabloids. The former being a more neutral and respected type and the latter a newspaper for more or less entertainment purposes only. This can be well observed in two specific articles that both report on political campaigns.
The reporting and presentation of the same news incident in different newspapers are very different. This essay will analyze the articles about the association between concussion and suicidal risk. The Toronto Star and The Globe and Mail present the same story with several differences between them. Most importantly, we will further analyze some implications of these differences, namely in the appearance, language, and the content.