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I can not even imagine our local school district thinking of implementing this policy:

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 27fe2.html

(There is a link for the actual Dallas ISD letter that went out to parents.)

It is a 9th-12th grade policy, so I am left to wonder how DISD is "dumbing down" grades K-8.

Appa23 wrote:I can not even imagine our local school district thinking of implementing this policy:

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 27fe2.html

(There is a link for the actual Dallas ISD letter that went out to parents.)

It is a 9th-12th grade policy, so I am left to wonder how DISD is "dumbing down" grades K-8.

That really sounds bizarre. I can't see how letting students retake tests that they fail, or hand in late assignments, does anything other than encourage them to be lazy and to not study. It certainly won't prepare them for life after high school.

I haven't yet read the letter or the actual guidelines, but the highlights at the bottom of the article are horrifying. Do these people actually believe they're benefiting the students by doing this? What's next, the elimination of grades entirely? "You graduated with all A's, even without doing any homework or completing any tests or projects on time. Here's your diploma, and be sure always to remember the following words: Do you want fries with that?"

And to punish the TEACHERS for failing "too many" students! If this goes into effect, I predict a mass departure of the best teachers from the district, leaving only the lemons and those who are stuck by location and family issues.

This is the grading policy "from the horse's mouth", for Pre-K through High School:

http://www.dallasisd.org/academics/gradepolicy.htm

I'm horrified again by the final quote:
"The district’s goal is to fully prepare students for college and the workforce, not to replicate college and the workforce in kindergarten- through 12th-grade setting. "

And teaching them that there are few or no consequences to handing in work late, that bad work has no penalty (the "no homework grade unless it raises the average" bit), and that you get a second chance when you blow the first (the "retest" bit) prepares them fully for college and the workforce? College admissions personnel are going to love them for this!

Hmmmm.

The Concerns and Facts pdf that is linked seems at odds with what has been reported. The original news story seems to imply that these guidelines will apply to all grades but the district website does not. I'm not taking a position on whether or not these are good policies but the reporting does not seem accurate if these are actual guidelines. The "At a Glance" at the end of the original article seems to lump together new standards without identifiers about which grades each applies to.

From the Dallas ISD
2008-2009 Grading Policy and Procedures:

Teachers cannot give grades on homework unless they help kids pass.


True, but only at grades 2-5. At grades 6-12, homework grades can be recorded at teacher discretion as previously practiced.

Parents must be called before recording a zero in the grade book.
True, but only at grades 2-5. Teachers at grades 6-12 are encouraged to contact parents if a zero would result in a failing six weeks grade for a student, but are not required to do so.

Students can retake any test they fail anytime.

Students at every level must be given one opportunity to retake any MAJOR test (as defined by grade level/dept. teachers) within 5 school days the failing grade was received or no later than 10 days of the date of the test.

Students cannot receive a zero or grade penalty for work not done or not completed on time.

As part of their grade level/department grading procedures, teacher teams at each campus determine the grade penalties and/or grade reduction procedures. As campus instructional leaders, principals have the authority to approve the teacher-developed procedures.

Compare these to what was reported in the news story:

•Homework grades should be given only when the grades will "raise a student's average, not lower it."

•Teachers must accept overdue assignments, and their principal will decide whether students are to be penalized for missing deadlines.

•Students who flunk tests can retake the exam and keep the higher grade.

•Teachers cannot give a zero on an assignment unless they call parents and make "efforts to assist students in completing the work."

AJ, the Dallas ISB apparently "softened" some of the policy after the news media, teachers, and bloggers criticized it in public.

I did provide the link to the version currently on the DISD website.

If I was a teacher, anywhere, I would be peeved if someone told me how I had to determine grades, the number of tests that I could give or had to give, or the amount of homework that I could give.

Now, I am guessing that no teacher gives anything approaching 1 hour a day of homework in grades 2-6 (on any regular basis). especially in the lower grades. In our district, which is one of the best, if not the best, in the state, we have to nearly "beg" the teachers to give our kids homework and push them to reach their potential.

I think that in our district, the teacher, by union contract, has the right to determine the grade scale, the types of tests, and the deadlines for assignments. I personally think that teachers need to be strict with kids about enforcing deadlines because it will prepare them for life.

Well boooooooo.... I had a really long reply just go poof. And I really don't feel like retyping it.

otherindigo wrote:Well boooooooo.... I had a really long reply just go poof. And I really don't feel like retyping it.

Thanks for letting us know.

Here's the gist of my reply...

grades = assessment of knowledge

1. I believe in enforcing deadlines, but I don't believe that it should be considered in the grade. It isn't a true assessment of knowledge. It's more of a discipline issue. Also, I don't believe giving extra points, dropping the lowest grade, or "freebie grades" are true assessments of knowledge.

2. How can I ask that student with no home to do homework? Or that student whose parent doesn't even have an 8th grade education? Where is the support system? How many middle-, upper- class students' parents do the work for them? How can I be sure the child actually knows the material for his/herself? And I teach at a highly-diversified school where I could potentially have both in the same classroom? Am I dumbing-down my curriculum? Heck no.

3. Zero is evil. I cringe when I hear about a student with an average something like 42 because of several missing assignments that cannot be made up. How does that child have a chance to even pass? Many students would just shut down and become discipline problems. What's the motivation for them now?

4. Retaking a test is a good thing. It should be a completely different test, but it should assess the same objectives as the original. If they failed the first time, they must not have "gotten it". I need to find out what it was they didn't get and figure out a way for them to get it. If I've taught them and they got it, they should be successful.

5. Cheating is a discipline issue IMO. Giving that child a zero is not a true assessment of knowledge.

Are they saying, "don't make the kids do the work"? No. Are they saying, "give all kids A's"? No.

And I do believe a teacher should be held accountable if "too many" of his/her students are truly failing.

I wasn't as thorough in this reply so let the questioning begin. I'll try to be as open and honest in my opinion as an educator and as graduate student working on my Master's in curriculum and instruction.

P.S. I highly doubt "the best teachers" will be headed towards the exit. Many of the "best teachers" I know, want each and every student to be successful.

otherindigo wrote:P.S. I highly doubt "the best teachers" will be headed towards the exit. Many of the "best teachers" I know, want each and every student to be successful.

oi, I disagree with many of your views expressed, but I respect you for your commitment to your profession and your students.

I believe that sometimes the best way to help a student to be successful is to allow them to fail when they fail.

Whether we like it or not, life is about conforming our behavior to somebody else's rules. That means getting work in on time. If students can't or won't get their schoolwork in by the time set, they will never learn that they have to meet deadlines in the real world.

Maybe we can help some students make some better grades in the here and now, but that greatly hinders their potential success once they end their formal education.

TheCalvinator24 wrote: oi, I disagree with many of your views expressed, but I respect you for your commitment to your profession and your students.

I believe that sometimes the best way to help a student to be successful is to allow them to fail when they fail.

I agree that we all learn through our failures. I have students that don't get it the first time. However, if the student has the knowledge that the teacher is assessing, where is the failure in the knowledge? The failure is in the discipline or the act of not turning in the assignment on time. That is a whole other assessment.

Assessment for learning - (not given a grade) It's the learning that is still underway. These are the assessments that teachers conduct throughout the teaching and learning that may diagnose student needs, plan for the next step in instruction, provide students with feedback that helps them improve their quality of work.

Assessment of learning - (determines the student's report card grade)It's the evidence of mastery of the objectives, a measure of achievement status. It takes place after the learning. It could be in the form of achievement tests, final exams, major projects.

Turning in an assignment is not an assessment of mastering an objective. It's in the assessment for learning. With that, the teacher, parent, student (all or just teacher and student) get together and discuss what steps are needed for mastery and that feedback of you need to get your work in on time. What can we do to see that the work is turned in in a timely manner?

TheCalvinator24 wrote: Whether we like it or not, life is about conforming our behavior to somebody else's rules. That means getting work in on time. If students can't or won't get their schoolwork in by the time set, they will never learn that they have to meet deadlines in the real world.

Maybe we can help some students make some better grades in the here and now, but that greatly hinders their potential success once they end their formal education.

It isn't about making better grades. It's about being successful, mastering those objectives, learning what is ultimately assessed. Yes we need students to be responsible. I completely agree with that. However, that is not a graded assessment. It is an assessment for learning. It is something we teach, yet we shouldn't give it a grade in an average of assessing the academic knowledge.

I admit that my "homework" opinion comes from a teacher who teaches in block scheduling. If I saw my students only 50 minutes a day, I would anticipate having to send homework. There would be really no way around it. Since I have my students for about an hour and 45 minutes every other day, most assignments could and should be completed during class.

How do you teach the importance of handing in assignments on time if there is no penalty for not doing so?

That's a serious pedagogical question.

TheCalvinator24 wrote:How do you teach the importance of handing in assignments on time if there is no penalty for not doing so?

That's a serious pedagogical question.

They do have a penalty for not turning work in my class.
Any student missing an assignment or has late work must come in during an elective period and/or during teacher-led after-school detention. An I (incomplete) will be entered into the grade book until completion. The parent/guardian will be notified of the incomplete before a progress report or report card is issued.

Our school district uses "Character First" character education in each school from elementary to high school. Each class is allocated certain times to teach the character lessons. The "Character First" website shows many character traits, but the district concentrates on:

Honesty
Respect
Kindness
Responsibility
Perseverance
Patience