Student Feedback—Point III

Please forgive my poor writing on this blog post. I am not feeling well and this topic really gets to me.


III. Look at class grades and test scores


This proposal could be useful as long as the following things were taken into consideration.
--Previous grades and test scores
--Incongruity between grades and test scores
--ESL population
--Random bouts of failure
--Extra credit
--Evaluation Process/Teacher Expectations

1. In order to see whether a student has improved, we must look at their previous scores. Some students progress slower than others, therefore it is important to discover if that is the case. If that is the case, then progress, however slow, is a plus. Schools/Districts cannot just look at a grade or test scores to determine whether a student is trying or knows enough, therefore it is risky to look solely at these things.

2. Sometimes there is a huge discrepancy between a class grade and a test score. Personally, I used to be a horrible test taker. I was too anxious about my score to take my time and read carefully. I was not what you call a “test-taker.” In high school I would get A’s and B’s in all my classes, but when I took the SAT, I scored very low. I have seen similar things happen with my own students. When I taught sophomores, 98% of then passed the CAHSEE on the first try, while 50% failed my class. This suggests that they knew the material, but were not willing to do work when they were out of my sight. I had many students choose to not do their work because they said that it would be easier for them to just take the class in the Summer session (which I will get to later!). Because I knew my students knew the material, I knew it wouldn’t be right to base their knowledge on just grades or test scores.

3. Another important factor in determining whether a teacher is good or not based on grades and test scores is how big an ESL (English as a Second Language) population they have. These things do matter. If one teacher has 60% ESL students and another has 10%, then their scores and grades would be like comparing apples to kiwi. In that sophomore class that I taught where almost all my students passed, the two that didn’t were both ESL students. Yes, that could just be a coincidence, or it could mean a lot. The thought of weighing a teacher’s abilities on these things is scary if it were to be done blindly. I mean, if we are to expect the same progress from all students at the same time, regardless of former education or nationality, then we would have major problems.

4. Random bouts of failure are bound to happen throughout your high school years. It turns out that things that happen outside of school also affect what goes on inside as well. It has happened many times where I have had a student suddenly stop trying or seem distant. Usually what I found was that something was going on at home and they did not know how to handle it. In some cases, the “not caring” routine lasts a full year or two. There are those cases where students think school is a joke and they don’t realize until later that it’s important. I know of one student who did just that—failed his first two years and then committed himself to graduate on time by going to night school after regular school just to catch up. He spoke to his fellow classmates about it, trying to help them realize sooner than he did. He may not have been able to convince all those he spoke to, but that’s kind of the point. Some students need to decide for themselves when it is right to start living the way we think they should. It’s like being an addict and then one day, poof, you just realize that you need help. These bouts of failure happen and cannot all be taken care of by the magical teacher. Sometimes the teacher has nothing to do with it. Sometimes the bouts of failure even happen on testing days!

5. The topic of extra credit really irks me. Yes, I was one of those mean teachers who only gave extra credit to those who fought for their grades. I was so mean, I had them do extra assignments that were educational and connected to what we were learning in class. These extra credits assignments had deadlines and expectations and came few and far between, if at all. The part that gets me is that I know that there are teachers out there who give extra credit for the most ridiculous things, like school supplies. Students would always complain to me about the fact that they could bring in tissues for extra points. I would respond to them by asking, what was the educational value of such a task. Look, I know that sometimes extra credit is given for silly things in order to get supplies and let the student feel like they are helping themselves. If teachers do this, then it is okay if they were giving 5 points per box at a limit of three boxes per student, ONLY when the total amount of points in is so high that the tissues probably won’t even affect their grade. If bringing in tissues can take you from a D+ to a C, something is very wrong. Extra credit can be okay in moderation, but it makes looking at grades and test scores to judge a teachers’ worth a bad idea.

6. Imagine a world where the only thing that keep teachers hired are grades and test scores. What would that teacher teach? The test. How might that teacher grade? Easy. This can be as bad for the education system as tenure. Students have this ability to figure out which teacher they would rather have due to their expectations of student work. I have heard students suggest that other students take or transfer into other classes just to get an “easy A”. It sickens me to hear such things. Being a teacher, I have no idea what goes on in other people’s classrooms. All I know is what the students say. Yes, the students could be full of it, or they could be right. I once was a long-term substitute at a school for a semester. When the semester ended, I had to be let go because I was not yet credentialed and No Child Left Behind had kicked in. Even though the woman who took my position was not yet credentialed either, she was “closer to getting her credential” than I had been. What an awful way to choose a teacher for our students. After about a month of no longer teaching these students, I went back to the school as a substitute for another class. I had time to stop by and say hello and see how the classes were doing. As I talked to these former students, I kept hearing the same complaint; “We don’t learn anything. All we do is watch movies”. First of all, it made me happy to hear that these students were hungry to learn. Second, it made me sad that they were put in that situation due to the idiotic notion that the one closest to the credential is the better one for the job, and second. Again, the students could have been full of it, or they could have had real concerns about their school experience and what it would mean for the next year.
The way a teacher evaluates students is also very important. Sometimes students expect credit for assignments just because they turned them in. I was never one for giving credit just because you wrote your name. I realize that what I teach may be hard for some students, but I need to see you try in order to give you credit. Administrators can look at the way that teachers evaluate their assignments from essays, worksheets, random quizzes, etc. if the teacher makes their evaluation methods clear (which I am suggesting!).

Perhaps it doesn’t sound like I am helping at all, but am bringing up points to not look at grades and test scores. This is not my intention. What I want to explain is that looking at such things requires a lot more than people think. How can we deal with this type of thing? Well, we can keep clean, clear records of our grades, grading scales, expectations, etc. Basically, I think that if students and teachers kept daily track of what they did in the classroom, that would help others see what actually goes on. As far as expectations, that one is a little more tricky. Expectations, however, can also show in daily assignment. If one teacher writes that in an hour and a half all they will do is vocabulary words and read from a book, while another teacher adds that they will also do grammar and notes, then we can see a difference there. Now, just because one teacher goes over many things in a day, doesn’t mean that the students grasp all of them, but more practice on more things on a regular basis is very beneficial to students. Perhaps teachers could have more time to spend discussing such things with the other teachers in their subject.