Week 2-Give Yourself an 'A"

I was struck by chapter 3 of The Art of Possibility. I have always believed that grades are an arbitrary measuring system that ultimately cheapen and sometimes pervert the desired outcome. I find the 'explain why you earned an A' activity interesting.

I often discuss this concept with my students. Of course, they look at me like I am insane. In fact, every I ask my classes to tell me why are grades important. I usually get back responses like: 'for allowance money,' 'to get into a good college,' 'to stay out of trouble at home,' or ' to be successful in life." This usually leads me to concede those points, but I then ask them to explain what making high grades really means. This is not answered as quickly. One year a Vietnamese student, which is interesting because of the author's experiences in her music class, explained that grades give you a way to compare yourself with others and they prove you are better or worse than some people. Most of the class didn't buy this assertion. I then asked them if the smartest kids always make the best grades. To this question the students, for the most part, agreed that grades were not an indicator of intelligence. It's always a fun discussion because it gets some of my slackers and 'reluctant students' talking more than they normally do. We eventually agree that grades may be a necessary evil, but there is more to true learning and scholarship than just an assigned letter.

Maybe I am being like the shoe guy he didn't see a market in a shoe less village, but as public school teacher I do not see a way around the standard grading system. It is too entrenched in the minds of the community; however, I am going to come up with a version of the letter assignment to use with my kids next year.

Ohhh, am I getting an A?