50% Rule

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Who wouldn’t game the system?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Who wouldn’t game the system?

Most people? Or, at minimum, people who are aware that when you try to game the system, sometimes you lose?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Honestly if he learns how to work the system now, that’s going to take him far in life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t realize some schools followed it and some didn’t.

The issue is the parent population.

A teacher CAN give a zero for a missing assignment, but must document that the parent has been notified and responds that they know. If you teach at a school with responsive parents, you give zeros. If you teach at a school with non-responsive parents (include those gaming the system), you give 50% and move on with your day. With all the coverage we’re doing, who has time to try to contact a parent for the tenth time in a row. A parent who sees a Z grade and cares is going to contact you.

Well, this explanation makes a lot of sense. Our DCC high school has low parent engagement and has been a steadfast adherent to the 50% rule.

For me, zeros or 50% doesn't matter to me, because the bar for my kids is way higher than a D, which is really all the 50% rule was meant to facilitate, since D is the minimum grade to pass on to the next class and graduate.

I'm honestly 50/50 on this. I think zeros teach kids about the consequences of slacking on organization and time management, but I also think the statistical hole it puts kids in can be an unfair burden.

Back in the '90s, even when we had the zero rule, there were graces made to allow kids to mess up and still recover, like teachers dropping your three lowest grades before the end of the marking period.

So honestly, I don't care either way, but it should be consistent across the board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Honestly if he learns how to work the system now, that’s going to take him far in life.

Or he could end up in jail. A lot of con artists learn how to work the system and can't stop themselves and wind up in legal and moral gray areas and ultimately, outright illegality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Honestly if he learns how to work the system now, that’s going to take him far in life.

Or he could end up in jail. A lot of con artists learn how to work the system and can't stop themselves and wind up in legal and moral gray areas and ultimately, outright illegality.

I’m not worried about jail. He doesn’t cheat, which surprisingly a significant number of kids in his advanced classes do to maintain A’s both semesters. I don’t like that he is lazy but I would be more worried about cheating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Are there any repercussions from you, the parent?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Honestly if he learns how to work the system now, that’s going to take him far in life.

Or he could end up in jail. A lot of con artists learn how to work the system and can't stop themselves and wind up in legal and moral gray areas and ultimately, outright illegality.

I’m not worried about jail. He doesn’t cheat, which surprisingly a significant number of kids in his advanced classes do to maintain A’s both semesters. I don’t like that he is lazy but I would be more worried about cheating.

So some kid may use this rule to get a D and some people are worried about... Got it. Another non-issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Honestly if he learns how to work the system now, that’s going to take him far in life.

Or he could end up in jail. A lot of con artists learn how to work the system and can't stop themselves and wind up in legal and moral gray areas and ultimately, outright illegality.

I’m not worried about jail. He doesn’t cheat, which surprisingly a significant number of kids in his advanced classes do to maintain A’s both semesters. I don’t like that he is lazy but I would be more worried about cheating.

So some kid may use this rule to get a D and some people are worried about... Got it. Another non-issue.

Pretty much. Again, for me, a D is a major problem. But if getting a D is just fine for you and your family, then yes, the 50% greatly increases the odds of your kid reaching that minimal watermark.

But I'm of the opinion that D's should not even be passing anyway....so I have no dog in this fight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our school the 50% rule has not been used for the first semester. The Principal said that it was to be applied district wide. So it gives the impression that some schools are using the 50% rule and some were not.

At my child’s HS, some teachers applied 50% to missing assignments and others gave zeros. Unfortunately, I have a kid that games the system: all A’s 1st quarter; minimum effort to maintain B’s 2nd quarter.

Are there any repercussions from you, the parent?

I don’t like it but what would be the repercussions and why? He’s not breaking any rules. I don’t bribe my kids for good grades. The natural repercussions are that his method could backfire and I’m OK with that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think the 50% rule makes a huge difference to most strong and focused students. How often are your kids getting less than 50% on a test? Sure it can happen to anyone once or twice but honestly in that case I happy to have my kid not kill the whole semester grade or be able to relearn and get a retake. I think this is more an issue for kids who are in danger of not graduating (and who it is designed to help). Don't drop out because of a low test grade.

It means kids can get a fifty percent even if they turn nothing in

[Anonymous]

It’s creating seepage though. I have colleagues who automatically give 60% as the lowest grade that can be earned if you turn anything in. Parents have no clue that the work was entirely wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s creating seepage though. I have colleagues who automatically give 60% as the lowest grade that can be earned if you turn anything in. Parents have no clue that the work was entirely wrong.

Why are they doing that???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t realize some schools followed it and some didn’t.

The issue is the parent population.

A teacher CAN give a zero for a missing assignment, but must document that the parent has been notified and responds that they know. If you teach at a school with responsive parents, you give zeros. If you teach at a school with non-responsive parents (include those gaming the system), you give 50% and move on with your day. With all the coverage we’re doing, who has time to try to contact a parent for the tenth time in a row. A parent who sees a Z grade and cares is going to contact you.

Well, this explanation makes a lot of sense. Our DCC high school has low parent engagement and has been a steadfast adherent to the 50% rule.

For me, zeros or 50% doesn't matter to me, because the bar for my kids is way higher than a D, which is really all the 50% rule was meant to facilitate, since D is the minimum grade to pass on to the next class and graduate.

I'm honestly 50/50 on this. I think zeros teach kids about the consequences of slacking on organization and time management, but I also think the statistical hole it puts kids in can be an unfair burden.

Back in the '90s, even when we had the zero rule, there were graces made to allow kids to mess up and still recover, like teachers dropping your three lowest grades before the end of the marking period.

So honestly, I don't care either way, but it should be consistent across the board.

We as a society benefit when kids can finish high school. For some kids, the 50% rule is the difference that leads them to the ability to be gainfully employed in a job that provides health insurance and paid sick leave. People who hate the 50% rule don’t have kids that are at risk so they don’t see the benefit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t realize some schools followed it and some didn’t.

The issue is the parent population.

A teacher CAN give a zero for a missing assignment, but must document that the parent has been notified and responds that they know. If you teach at a school with responsive parents, you give zeros. If you teach at a school with non-responsive parents (include those gaming the system), you give 50% and move on with your day. With all the coverage we’re doing, who has time to try to contact a parent for the tenth time in a row. A parent who sees a Z grade and cares is going to contact you.

Well, this explanation makes a lot of sense. Our DCC high school has low parent engagement and has been a steadfast adherent to the 50% rule.

For me, zeros or 50% doesn't matter to me, because the bar for my kids is way higher than a D, which is really all the 50% rule was meant to facilitate, since D is the minimum grade to pass on to the next class and graduate.

I'm honestly 50/50 on this. I think zeros teach kids about the consequences of slacking on organization and time management, but I also think the statistical hole it puts kids in can be an unfair burden.

Back in the '90s, even when we had the zero rule, there were graces made to allow kids to mess up and still recover, like teachers dropping your three lowest grades before the end of the marking period.

So honestly, I don't care either way, but it should be consistent across the board.

We as a society benefit when kids can finish high school. For some kids, the 50% rule is the difference that leads them to the ability to be gainfully employed in a job that provides health insurance and paid sick leave. People who hate the 50% rule don’t have kids that are at risk so they don’t see the benefit.

I agree with this. The majority of people who are outraged about the 50% rule aren't raising kids that need it to get by.