"I thought 50% for no work was okay and I was wrong"

[Anonymous]

The article is about DC schools but FCPS has the same policy in place and it grossly inflates grades at all levels.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/10/23/dc-schools-grading-policy-50-percent-rule/

[Anonymous]

Article says: “ Not everyone was that out of control that year, he said. “A majority of the students … came to school a couple days a week, usually an hour or two late, maybe turned in an assignment or two,” he said. “I think most students still liked the structure of school, a safe-ish place where there’s rules, rules they can choose to break without serious consequences.”

That’s not the majority in FCPS. Some? Sure. Not most.

[Anonymous]

In MCPS, the rule was (though I am dated) you had to attempt an assignment to get the 50%. If the work was not done, it was still a zero.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In MCPS, the rule was (though I am dated) you had to attempt an assignment to get the 50%. If the work was not done, it was still a zero.

That's not the rule in FCPS. Nothing lower than 50%.

[Anonymous]

I mean, this is one anecdotal point of view. I can give you an anecdote of the other side. My F students are continually trying because the D is close. They are working all year, vs. before when after 1st quarter they'd be behavior issues because there was statistically no way for them to pass unless they got As the rest of the year.

This is also Jay Matthews, historically not a fan of public schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I mean, this is one anecdotal point of view. I can give you an anecdote of the other side. My F students are continually trying because the D is close. They are working all year, vs. before when after 1st quarter they'd be behavior issues because there was statistically no way for them to pass unless they got As the rest of the year.

This is also Jay Matthews, historically not a fan of public schools.

No offense but is the goal really to try and pass through kids with D's? I mean, I suppose that gets us to the graduation percentage we seem to want but I don't take that as a sign of a an initiative working.

[Anonymous]

Those rules are offensive to students who actually prioritize their schoolwork.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In MCPS, the rule was (though I am dated) you had to attempt an assignment to get the 50%. If the work was not done, it was still a zero.

Wait are you sure? I thought you didn’t have to turn it in

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Those rules are offensive to students who actually prioritize their schoolwork.

Only if you think the entire point of school is to rank students.

If you think it’s to get the most kids possible a basic level of knowledge so they can be productive members of society, it’s not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In MCPS, the rule was (though I am dated) you had to attempt an assignment to get the 50%. If the work was not done, it was still a zero.

Wait are you sure? I thought you didn’t have to turn it in

My youngest graduated in 2020. You could not just turn in a blank paper or a scribble. It had to be a reasonable attempt (some subjectivity there) at the assignment. If you get 50% for just being enrolled in the school then I think we should call them diploma mills.

[Anonymous]

This makes me crazy. I live in NJ. When my kid doesn't do an assignment, they get a 0. Not a 50. They don't ever get to retake an exam, or do corrections. As a result, they have As, Bs, and Cs on their transcript. No wonder all the stats on the college forum are so magically perfect. Signed, mom of imperfect kid who does not live in the DMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those rules are offensive to students who actually prioritize their schoolwork.

Only if you think the entire point of school is to rank students.

If you think it’s to get the most kids possible a basic level of knowledge so they can be productive members of society, it’s not.

Another part of school is learning to be a productive citizen who not only has a basic level of knowledge but also has a work ethic, knows how to meet expectations, handle deadlines, etc. A basic level of functioning.

Ranking students is a way to bring in people's natural competitiveness in order to help them learn these skills, it's not the end goal.

[Anonymous]

I remember attending our FCPS high school student's end-of-year awards ceremony. The person with the microphone asked the students with a 4.0 GPA to stand up, please. Almost the entire student audience stood up.

Probably 300 students in my kid's class stood up.

When I was in HS at that age, maybe four out of 450 students have a perfect 4.0 average. It was rarified air, for sure.

My spouse and I shook our heads at the rampant grade inflation. It is truly unreal these days. I think the 50% cushion is wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In MCPS, the rule was (though I am dated) you had to attempt an assignment to get the 50%. If the work was not done, it was still a zero.

That's not the rule in FCPS. Nothing lower than 50%.

I can assure you, my kid at Madison is definitely receiving zeros for work not turned in. Missing assignments are a constant struggle. I see the zeros and how they affect his overall grade until he completes them.

[Anonymous]

The kids who prioritize school work and do well in school are not at all affected by the kids who are getting 50% on assignments. As another PP said, if a student can't possibly pass a class based on 0s in the first quarter, why would they even bother to do any work for the rest of the year. However, if they mess up in the first quarter, for whatever reason (often mental health struggles, learning disabilities, family issues), and they can still pass the class, they at least have an incentive to work hard the rest of the year. And guess what, if they don't do any work, they will get all 50% and fail.

FCPS is obligated to educate all students, not just the students in the Top 10% of each class. And if you want to have harsher restrictions/deadlines/grading in honors classes, that's fine because students are self-selecting those classes. But don't make life harder for the kids who are already struggling in school.