If you got your classwork back, what would you rather hear, a C or a pass? I would rather hear a C because I know how well I am doing or know how much I need to improve. Many schools have switched from the traditional A-F grades to the new pass/fail grading system. Famous colleges have even adopted the pass or fail grading system, “Yale has adopted the pass or fail system, Harvard and Stanford followed suit” in the 21st century (Strittmatter). The reasons why we should keep the traditional letter grading system is students would get specific feedback from their grades, and letter grades promotes competitiveness. First of all, letter grades give specific feedback on how well students are doing on their assignments. Pass or fail systems only offers two options, while letter grades provide 5 levels of achievements “to pinpoint a student's work ethic and comprehension”(Morgan). With 5 levels, grading is more accurate and it also shows the areas of weaknesses and areas that have improved better. In a letter grading system, an A or C grade can differentiate an excellent student from an average one. With a pass or fail grade students are only put into two categories, average or better and below average. When students are given specific feedback with letter grades students know if they’re on the …show more content…
Students feel more accomplished when given an A rather than a pass because it is harder to get an A than a pass. Grades show how well a student is doing in the course and it allows for improvement and specialization. When given a letter grade, students know exactly how much they need to improve and when applying for colleges, colleges look at the letter grade, not the pass or fail grade. A letter grade is superior because it conditions students to be extraordinary, not
In his article “College Students Need to Toughen Up, Quit Their Grade Whining”, Robert Schlesingner addresses the emerging issue of grade inflation, and more specifically, the greater sense of entitlement that seems to prevail in the modern scholastic realm. Mr. Schlesingner begins his address by presenting his background and what standards and expectations were common during his time through both lower-level education and college. During his time [time in what?], a grade of C represented “adequate” or average work, B correlated with “an above average job”, and obtaining an A required “spectacular” performance by the student. [more concise] However, as cited by Mr. Schlesingner, an investigation by the University of California-Irvine seems to indicate that the values of each letter grade has changed, at least in the mind of the modern student with more students now believing that A’s and B’s should be more easily obtained and that the amount of effort put into a task should be considered when grading. Next, Mr. Schlesingner presents his opinions on this topic of grade inflation and the proper influence of student effort on grade. To conclude,
I agree that students are changing their attitudes toward grades. Books and tuition are really expensive, paying all this money gives no choice but to pass all classes. Repeating a course is a waste of money. Also most community college students that are looking to transfer to a university need perfect grades to be acknowledged. Some teachers attitudes are changing as well, perhaps because
Michael Thomsen argues against the A-F grading system in his essay “The Case Against Grades.” Thomsen even goes as far to say that the A-F grading system is to blame for the difficulty in reforming American education (1). He supports his conclusion with a few thought-provoking studies and statistics, but overall there are holes in his argument and he does not offer a realistic alternative. Thus, I disagree with Thomsen’s conclusion as I think that the A-F grading system is currently the best method for the United States to use.
Alfie Kohn discussed multiple fabulous points in his article, “Degrading to De-Grading”. The author suggests more effective ways to assess students’ progress other than numerical or letter grades. Kohn goes into detail about why our current grading system is flawed. Grades can cause students to lose interest in learning which causes them to stop taking challenges. If students are not engaged and interested than they are not retaining the information they are being taught. The grading system can also cause students to develop unhealthy competition with one another for instance, “I got a better grade than you!”. Indeed, grades are a wonderful concept, but they tend to be more hurtful than helpful. In some cases, grades can have positive effects on students. For example, setting goals for various assignments, or receiving help where they are struggling. Though, there are alternatives that could make positive changes in the system.
Introduction Many colleges and universities have adopted or are considering adopting a grading system that provides a larger number of marking choices than the A through F whole-letter system. This usually takes the form of a plus-minus (+/-) grading system in one version or another. While a variety of reasons have been put forth for the move to +/- grades, a key motivation
First and foremost, letter grades have been used since the 19th century without any complications. “The traditional grading scale is universally recognized. Virtually everyone knows that earning an A is good while earning an F is associated with failure. The traditional grading scale is easy to interpret and understand. The simplistic nature of the system makes it user-friendly for teachers, students, and parents. It also allows for a direct comparison from one student to another within a specific class” (Meador). Ultimately, parents remember and understand the letter grading system. It's easy to be happy that their child earned an
Letter grades have been used for centuries. However, should we keep using them? Many people in our world today believe they are a nuiscance, while others argue that the system’s long life only proves it’s competence. Although many may argue against it, letter grades are a thing of the past and should be discarded in order to clear a path for the future.
It's June, and another graduating class is hoping, among other things, to achieve high grades. Of course, "high" is a subjective target. Originally a "C" meant average; today however, the expectations and pressures to give and receive "A's" and "B's" takes its toll on teachers and students alike. This nullifies the value of the traditional grading scale and creates a host of entirely new problems. The widespread occurrence of grade inflation seriously affects the credibility of secondary and post-secondary education in America.
The American education system has not changed drastically since the 1900s. In the early 1900’s before grading, teachers were expected to communicate in depth to their students on how they were doing in the class. This worked well for small groups and individual tutoring. The ability for this information to be passed on to those who were not involved with the learning process, such as employers and parents was limited. By the mid 20th century schools changed drastically as they introduced grades in the form of letters. The American schools now became more standardized as A, B, C, D and F represented ones grade. Depending what percentage a student received determined letter they got. An example is an A is a mark of 90-100%
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.
Do you want to be prepared for life as an adult? Letter grades will prepare you for that, while the pass or fail system will not. Changing the grading system would be extremely inaccurate, eliminate competitiveness, and it just wouldn’t prepare students for life. Letter grades are much better than a simple pass or fail grading system for many reasons.
Personally, I prefer letter grades because I am capable of viewing the what I have which allows me to know whether I should work harder in the class or keep doing what I am doing. Having grades gives a kinda comfort for me because I have something solid; it is a system so it does not change. After reviewing a few essays on grading systems, the majority of them tend to be against having the letter system. One of the documents I read, “How Three Schools Buck the
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.
Grades are a personal feedback given to students about their progress and accomplishments. If grades are achieved high enough it may give an effect for future references. This can affect SAT and ACT scores. The ACT is an achievement test that measures
Finally, achieving a high grade in college is more difficult than in high school. In high school, grades are easier to achieve and there are greater opportunities for marks. Usually, a student is graded on many different areas, including; attendance, participation, effort, and organization. Also, students are graded on evaluations and assignments. These are the areas which are graded, and these account for a large portion of the final