The newly integrated grading system is unnecessary, perplexing, and is going to cause problems in the academic lives of students

The grading system that was in place prior to this school year is one that we’re all familiar with. On this scale anything below 59% was deemed an F. Teachers were also allowed to have their own late work policies.

Both of these systems worked together in order to, as accurately as possible, assess the student’s level both intellectually and when it came to academic integrity, both in terms of cheating and honesty.

The new grading scale lacks a much-needed emphasis on effort and efficiency, which the article defines as students’ hard work put into all non-test related assignments (homework, class discussions, and extra credit), as well as the time and skill level they show with the work they’ve submitted. The absence of these core components is baffling and entirely unjustified.

This new system as a whole isn’t too far off from the one students have become accustomed to over the years, however, the few new inclusions that it does present (the two-week late gap to submit work, a change in the lowest percentage for an F grade, no longer allowing extra credit, and placing more of a spotlight on quality of tests and projects opposed to smaller assignments and class discussions), have already proven to be a negative in the lives of some students.

COMPASS English teacher Michele Mize says, “What’s going to happen is that kids are gonna start to rely on it too heavily, and then they’re going to start swimming in missing assignments.” Mize believes that students will begin neglecting their work due to the two-week gap to turn in assignments, which I strongly agree with.

The fear of falling behind in assignments raises an obvious concern, as time management is not only an important life skill but an extremely important skill for students, which is why it’s so troubling that it’s barely factored into assessing students.

Mize goes on to state that “while I do see a little bit of value in it, in the end, until we have it solidified and in place authentically, I feel like it’s going to increase the learning gap.”

The gap that Mize mentions is especially relevant when it comes to discussing grades, as ever since the COVID-19 epidemic, this gap has widened exponentially, meaning students’ actual knowledge isn’t at the level needed to truly prosper in the grade that they’re in. I believe that this new scale will only worsen this gap, making it an even bigger problem than it already is, because not enough resources are being provided to help the students who are behind due to the effects of the pandemic. 

Heidi Lund, a QUEST geometry teacher says, “As a parent, I’m for it, but as a teacher, it’s been difficult. I think that for some students it’s hindering their motivation to get things done.”

“I think that [the new F percentage] can be very motivating to a student who is really struggling, and they no longer see the hole being so big,” says Lund. “However, when you have two students that are sitting next to each other and you have one who isn’t doing anything and one that’s just not doing well, there’s a difference, which is going to show in the 45-50 range.”

Lund states that “it is motivating, but then at the same time I feel like students think they can do less now to pass a class.”

Lund and I have a similar outlook on the system as a whole. We both believe that some good issues were addressed (mainly the F change, which has a real chance of helping students increase their grade if they did poorly on a big assignment), but the overall execution of these changes is going to negatively affect students in the long run by making it harder for them to stick to deadlines.

PEACE freshman Scarlett Watts has a different view on the changes introduced by the new system. She says “Yes [to the necessity of the changes], because all students with different academic backgrounds and weaknesses have an opportunity to improve.”

She also believes that the new system will help decrease stress amongst students and take off some of the pressure when it comes to getting low scores on missing assignments. 

In spite of the fact that our opinions are drastically different, Watts’ perspective on the changes offers an interesting insight into the mindset of students, especially when it comes to the two-week late work gap. 

Extra time to work on assignments is a good thing, but too much time is going to cause some students to ignore official due dates, procrastinate, and eventually forget to turn their work in all together. I feel if this gap was shortened to one week this would be significantly less of a problem.

Andrei Cruz, a freshman in QUEST is of the opinion that the new system is uncalled for and that there weren’t enough changes to warrant the switch. “I don’t think the change was necessary because the grading system before was just fine,” says Cruz. “There isn’t much of a difference with the new change so it didn’t seem necessary.”

Cruz believes that “An increased focus on tests and projects makes sense, though I feel assignments should also help more towards your grade since they can show you know the topic as well.” 

Although this new system has the potential to grow on both students and teachers over time, I don’t think it should get the chance to. The system doesn’t teach students healthy habits when it comes to time management, and it doesn’t focus nearly enough on every day, smaller-scale assignments like homework and classroom worksheets, which are a big indicator of a student’s understanding of a particular subject. 

When connected to the topics being taught in class, extra credit is a really helpful tool for students who might be bordering on a passing grade. A ban on it (done as an attempt to eliminate bias in the grading scale and better balance the playing field amongst students) was completely unwarranted, as the students who have the chance to do it should still have the opportunity. 

Change is bound to occur, especially in education, but this is one change that wasn’t given nearly enough thought. All of the adjustments made, although backed by good intentions, are incredibly surface-level, and do little to nothing in terms of helping students who are struggling, or improving upon flaws in the previous system.

Bottom line is that students are going to suffer because of these changes, and until the district comes up with something better, we’re going to see a steady decline in the grades and academic efficiency of students.