School Grade Inflation

[Jalopy]

The topic on schools got me o thinking of schools and one of my concerns. Grade inflation. I know we should be cocerned with self esteem of students but making everyone pass is ridiculous. As an example thehonor role in our high school is listed eaxh quarter in the local news rag. Of the 300 kids in high school over 150 were on the semester honor role with over a 3point average based on a 4 point system. I know that is only 50% but it means that 50% are doing work in the top 25 percentile. I know we have have smart kids and a good faculty but that just doesn't seem right. And I do not know when a student was held back in a grade level in orde to grasp the material expected. Instead they are passed on up the ladder to be in the same social group they started in. So what happens when they get to graduate and then they meet real life? In reality which is helping their self esteem most?

 

[Jim62]

Well, there's always pro basketball..........you apparently don't have to be very smart for that. Or Burger King or McDonalds. They're always looking for a few good folks.

Around here, they do 2 honor rolls for the newspaper to print. I forget what they call them, but they're pretty impressive sounding. Maybe like "exemplary" and "outstanding". The end result is that EVERY student is on the honor roll, and nobody gets their feelings hurt.

Wish they did that when I was in school---sure would have taken the pressure off. :dunce: :tiphat:

 

[jkwilson]

They wouldn't like me if I was a teacher. Do the work or fail, just like life.

 

[Lammie]

I know that some of the kids on the honor roll are taking remedial classes and some are special education students, so I suspect that's part of the inflated rolls. And I suspect a dummying down of curriculum. I don't think that social promotion exists. Around here, we try to get them caught up and get them graduated. You have to have, what is it now? 26 credits to graduate. If you don't earn those with your peers, you have to do credit recovery classes. I'm sure that some of those numbers are inflating the honor rolls, as well. In a semester or two you can earn back all the credits you failed to make, and graduate with your class or even early.

Is that fair? Maybe not, but those kids arent college bound anyway. And some of them are the kids you don't want in class with your kid. I guess it all evens out.

 

[TexasBred]

Professors have graded on the curve for ages. Of course some smart a$$ would ruin the curve a lot of times....Maybe that's what they're doing.

 

[bigbull338]

the honor roles dont mean squat when it comes to passing the exit exam to grad school.

 

[hillsdown]

What I am appalled by is that it seems that the younger generation cannot read worth heck. It is absolutely pathetic. 2 of my nieces are on the so called "honor roll" and they really cannot read very well. I told their mother that she needs to make them start reading books again and off the d@m phone or computer texting and screwing around on FB all the time. I don't care who you are , you need to be able to read better than a grade 4 level .

Also, why do schools let kids text on their phone while they should be learning in class, cell phones should not be allowed period during school hours and really, an 8 year old needs a bloody cell phone let alone with internet access so they can tweet :???: Stupid people/stupid parents ... :roll:

 

[1982vett]

Got a brother-in-law on his last semester as a prof at UofF (35 years). First test of the semester today. He said out of 9 he told to leave, 6 were late to class and 4 didn't bring a pencil to take the test.... :dunce:

 

[TexasBred]

What I am appalled by is that it seems that the younger generation cannot read worth heck. It is absolutely pathetic. 2 of my nieces are on the so called "honor roll" and they really cannot read very well. I told their mother that she needs to make them start reading books again and off the d@m phone or computer texting and screwing around on FB all the time. I don't care who you are , you need to be able to read better than a grade 4 level .

Also, why do schools let kids text on their phone while they should be learning in class, cell phones should not be allowed period during school hours and really, an 8 year old needs a bloody cell phone let alone with internet access so they can tweet :???: Stupid people/stupid parents ... :roll:

I"m clicking the "Like" button for this post.

 

[larryshoat]

When my daughter was in college she worked as what they called a proctor for the math department. Every quarter she got 10 new students, her job was to be a tutor, do the testing, and hopefully have them ready to enter a real college math class. Of the 10 typically 3 would make it. I ask her one day " how many just don't have what it takes to do it" her replay was " only 2 or 3 don't have the ability to make it the rest are simply too lazy".

While we're on the subject these universities are far too quick to enroll kids that are never going to get a degree. The kid is there for a couple of years, racks up 30 or 40 thousand dollars in student loans, ends up dropping out and has to try and pay that back with a job at Walmart. If the university had to share in that cost they would be a lot more up front about who they thought could make it and who couldn't.

Larry

 

[jkwilson]

While we're on the subject these universities are far too quick to enroll kids that are never going to get a degree. The kid is there for a couple of years, racks up 30 or 40 thousand dollars in student loans, ends up dropping out and has to try and pay that back with a job at Walmart. If the university had to share in that cost they would be a lot more up front about who they thought could make it and who couldn't.

Larry

You're going to get my blood pressure up. :x IMO, this is a direct consequence of the efforts at improving self-esteem and the ideas of no winners and no losers. Everybody tells every kid they should go to college. Sorry, some of you aren't cut out for it. Life isn't fair! Deal with it!

Maybe you think too slowly, or don't have a good memory, or just don't "get" math or maybe you just got the short end of the stick when it came to brains.

But that's not bad unless you have it drilled into you everyday of your life that you are a failure if you don't go to college. We need smart mechanics and plumbers and welders, and we need hard working oilfield workers and miners just as much as we need smart engineers and doctors. Kids should be encouraged to try a lot of things and to fail at the ones they suck at or don't like so they know what things they are good at and what things they are not good at before they get all wrapped around the axle trying to be somebody they can't be.

 

[Jim62]

.........."Also, why do schools let kids text on their phone while they should be learning in class,"...........

Just heard about one of the high dollar schools up around Austin where students are REQUIRED to text on their cellphones. Tests are taken by cellphone, and answers are texted to the teacher. If you have a question for the teacher, you have to text it rather than simply raising your hand and asking.

Strange world nowadays.

 

[dun]

.........."Also, why do schools let kids text on their phone while they should be learning in class,"...........

Just heard about one of the high dollar schools up around Austin where students are REQUIRED to text on their cellphones. Tests are taken by cellphone, and answers are texted to the teacher. If you have a question for the teacher, you have to text it rather than simply raising your hand and asking.

Strange world nowadays.

In my ever so humble opinion, that is pure stupid BS. Won;t be long and carpal tunnel will be as common as obesity in kids

 

[fit2btied]

.........."Also, why do schools let kids text on their phone while they should be learning in class,"...........

Just heard about one of the high dollar schools up around Austin where students are REQUIRED to text on their cellphones. Tests are taken by cellphone, and answers are texted to the teacher. If you have a question for the teacher, you have to text it rather than simply raising your hand and asking.

Strange world nowadays.

In my ever so humble opinion, that is pure stupid BS. Won;t be long and carpal tunnel will be as common as obesity in kids

The student handbook at our school says students are not allowed to have cell phones at school. About 75% of the Jr. High kids are still carrying them daily - even the kids who can't afford pencils, paper, tennis shoes for gym class, etc. If they go off in class or we see the student with them out, we take them and the parent has to pick them up in the office. We get cussed for inconveniencing them. I was recently called to the principal's office because a mother called the school and reported that her son had just sent her a text message from my class and she wanted to know why the principal was not doing his job of making sure I was doing my job. She wouldn't identify herself or her son, didn't matter that she knew her son was in violation of school policy, it was all our faults and we were wasting her tax dollars. Most of our students' families live on welfare and when I worked for the Div. of Family Services, they didn't hold out any taxes! :roll:

 

[HEREFORD ROADHOG]

What I am appalled by is that it seems that the younger generation cannot read worth heck. It is absolutely pathetic. 2 of my nieces are on the so called "honor roll" and they really cannot read very well. I told their mother that she needs to make them start reading books again and off the d@m phone or computer texting and screwing around on FB all the time. I don't care who you are , you need to be able to read better than a grade 4 level .

Also, why do schools let kids text on their phone while they should be learning in class, cell phones should not be allowed period during school hours and really, an 8 year old needs a bloody cell phone let alone with internet access so they can tweet :???: Stupid people/stupid parents ... :roll:

They can't reed , right, spel, or do math ( couldn't figure out how to mess that up ). But somehow here in Ohio, We are the 2nd best at improvement in the nation :???: . They keep making it easier to pass the tests, & give the schools so many " extra credit points " that somehow even if you only pass 2/3-3/4 of the state tests ,you can still be rated as an"excellent" school That's a big WTH moment for me ......... As far as the phones,unfortunatly,it's easier to look the other way than deal with a ticked off parent, if you take it away & make little suzy mad . :help:

 

[fit2btied]

......... As far as the phones,unfortunatly,it's easier to look the other way than deal with a ticked off parent, if you take it away & make little suzy mad . :help:

We are a small district with K-12 all in one building, different wings for elementary, jr. high, and high school. Not trying to be sexist, but in our jr. high hallway, there are 4 male and 2 female teachers. The closest high school hallway has 2 males and 8 females. One of the men and 2 of the women from the HS side try to enforce all the rules. In the other classrooms it's a free-for-all! Kids carry 44 oz. styro cups of soda, coffee, food of all kind, candy, etc. They are allowed to listen to their I-pods, MP3's, they wear their hats, etc. They are allowed to use their phones for classwork - calculators, timers, updating their Facebook page (which is blocked on all school computers - teachers too), as a tecnology assignment. The principal says it's up to the teacher to decide what they are comfortable with. :roll:

In our jr. high hall, it's another world! We don't allow food or drink in the classroom, we confiscate any phones or other nuisance devices (anything a kid doesn't need at school), etc. We've been told we don't have to let kids wear hats in class, but that we can't legally make them take them off in the hallways before or after school. :bs: We don't even have to tell them to take them off - when they hit our side of the building, they know to take it off or lose it! They hate us now and can't wait to get to high school where they will be in charge! Hopefully, someday they'll appreciate what we're trying to teach them. Sorry - snowed out for the rest of the week. That's going to push back the schoolyear well into hay season. Oh well, I guess I could always get another real job. End of rant.

 

[dun]

......... As far as the phones,unfortunatly,it's easier to look the other way than deal with a ticked off parent, if you take it away & make little suzy mad . :help:

We are a small district with K-12 all in one building, different wings for elementary, jr. high, and high school. Not trying to be sexist, but in our jr. high hallway, there are 4 male and 2 female teachers. The closest high school hallway has 2 males and 8 females. One of the men and 2 of the women from the HS side try to enforce all the rules. In the other classrooms it's a free-for-all! Kids carry 44 oz. styro cups of soda, coffee, food of all kind, candy, etc. They are allowed to listen to their I-pods, MP3's, they wear their hats, etc. They are allowed to use their phones for classwork - calculators, timers, updating their Facebook page (which is blocked on all school computers - teachers too), as a tecnology assignment. The principal says it's up to the teacher to decide what they are comfortable with. :roll:

In our jr. high hall, it's another world! We don't allow food or drink in the classroom, we confiscate any phones or other nuisance devices (anything a kid doesn't need at school), etc. We've been told we don't have to let kids wear hats in class, but that we can't legally make them take them off in the hallways before or after school. :bs: We don't even have to tell them to take them off - when they hit our side of the building, they know to take it off or lose it! They hate us now and can't wait to get to high school where they will be in charge! Hopefully, someday they'll appreciate what we're trying to teach them. Sorry - snowed out for the rest of the week. That's going to push back the schoolyear well into hay season. Oh well, I guess I could always get another real job. End of rant.

Sounds like the HS side needs a couple of old time nuns. Sister Mary Rapheal would whip them into shape in no time, I speak from experience!

 

[jkwilson]

Sounds like the HS side needs a couple of old time nuns. Sister Mary Rapheal would whip them into shape in no time, I speak from experience!

My knuckles hurt just thinking about it!

 

[HEREFORD ROADHOG]

......... As far as the phones,unfortunatly,it's easier to look the other way than deal with a ticked off parent, if you take it away & make little suzy mad . :help:

We are a small district with K-12 all in one building, different wings for elementary, jr. high, and high school. Not trying to be sexist, but in our jr. high hallway, there are 4 male and 2 female teachers. The closest high school hallway has 2 males and 8 females. One of the men and 2 of the women from the HS side try to enforce all the rules. In the other classrooms it's a free-for-all! Kids carry 44 oz. styro cups of soda, coffee, food of all kind, candy, etc. They are allowed to listen to their I-pods, MP3's, they wear their hats, etc. They are allowed to use their phones for classwork - calculators, timers, updating their Facebook page (which is blocked on all school computers - teachers too), as a tecnology assignment. The principal says it's up to the teacher to decide what they are comfortable with. :roll:

In our jr. high hall, it's another world! We don't allow food or drink in the classroom, we confiscate any phones or other nuisance devices (anything a kid doesn't need at school), etc. We've been told we don't have to let kids wear hats in class, but that we can't legally make them take them off in the hallways before or after school. :bs: We don't even have to tell them to take them off - when they hit our side of the building, they know to take it off or lose it! They hate us now and can't wait to get to high school where they will be in charge! Hopefully, someday they'll appreciate what we're trying to teach them. Sorry - snowed out for the rest of the week. That's going to push back the schoolyear well into hay season. Oh well, I guess I could always get another real job. End of rant.

Fit, you didn't say if the principle was male or female ,but if it's a male, he really needs to grow a pair. :hide: If it's a female ,she needs to find another line of work. There is NO excuse for all of that to be happening. What is your graduation rate ?

 

[bigbull338]

i always wore my caps to school,an i wore them in the halls.but never wore them during class.an if some1 wouldve said something about wearing them in the hall it wouldve quickly got them flogged.we had our own code.during lunch we chew our tobbacco an dipp our snuff,an nothing would be said.