Is getting grades below B normal or is it a sign of something going on?

Anonymous
It depends … some extraordinarily smart kids are bad students, because they are bored or unchallenged. Some very capable students may have off terms due to emotional challenges (break ups, friend issues). Some kids are just exhausted- giving 110% for years and just hit a wall. Have you asked your kid? My otherwise very smart kid got a D in one term of LA because he was stopped doing the homework- which required him to draw definitions- of his vocabulary words (which he already knew). He wasn’t allowed to take the weekly quizzes because he hadn’t done the homework. Finally convinced the teacher to let him pre-test and opt out. After that all As
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:OP here, I guess my question is whether kids who don’t really care much about grades exist. Providing they are from a typical education valuing family and have reasonable expectations and opportunities to do well.


Of course there are. And they exist in all types of families. But there could be an underlying reason. A lot of kids with learning disabilities might have given up if they didn’t get the help required to succeed in school. It’s sad to think of kids struggling because of dyslexia or some other issue that has not been addressed.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:If a middle class student from a functional family with no apparent LDs and reasonably intelligent (say, IQ above 120) is getting Cs in HS in several subjects (including Gen Ed classes), would you think they are just not motivated or would you look for hidden LDs?

I’ve had a conversation with someone who said any reasonably intelligent kid will get As and Bs in HS, at least in regular classes, and there’s something going on if they don’t (like ADHD or dyslexia). My take, however, is that some kids just aren’t motivated enough to care.

What does everyone think?


A kid with an IQ over 120 who’s getting C’s in regular classes has some sort of problem going on.


My son has a learning disability. His IQ was tested at 128. Because of his learning disability he could not take AP courses in high school. He got all As in his electives and Bs in his regular classes English, math, science, social studies. He got a lot of help to get these grades. It doesn’t hurt to have him tested.
Anonymous
My son has an IQ of 132. No learning issues. He just has zero interest in most subjects (except history and English) and doesn’t see the difference between an A and a B. He’s in college now studying anthropology and English and gets mostly As.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:My son has an IQ of 132. No learning issues. He just has zero interest in most subjects (except history and English) and doesn’t see the difference between an A and a B. He’s in college now studying anthropology and English and gets mostly As.


He should be smart enough to know how to excel in every subject so he can get ahead. We all took classes we had zero interest in.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:if you are talking about public school, yes, it's pretty easy to get As and Bs without much effort.


Yes public school. So you think something’s up if a kid can’t get those grades?


NP. Yes something is going if they can’t get As and Bs in public school non AP classes. Be in learning disability or laziness
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:if you are talking about public school, yes, it's pretty easy to get As and Bs without much effort.


Yes public school. So you think something’s up if a kid can’t get those grades?


NP. Yes something is going if they can’t get As and Bs in public school non AP classes. Be in learning disability or laziness


You know not all kids are in the 85th percentile. Someone has to be in the 50th percentile.
Anonymous
Op here, it’s mostly theoretical though my kid does have running Cs here and there but not as a semester grade. He definitely CAN do well, there’s no dyslexia, that’s why I think it can just be a motivation issue.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:if you are talking about public school, yes, it's pretty easy to get As and Bs without much effort.


Yes public school. So you think something’s up if a kid can’t get those grades?


NP. Yes something is going if they can’t get As and Bs in public school non AP classes. Be in learning disability or laziness


You know not all kids are in the 85th percentile. Someone has to be in the 50th percentile.


An A or B in regular high school classes doesn’t take being 85th+ percentile. All you need to do is show up, pay a reasonable amount of attention and turn in your work. There likely isn’t even much homework to be done. The work isn’t challenging and the instructions are pretty explicit. Even tests and quizzes are not hard if you have been present in class and paying attention. Teachers aren’t trying to trick anyone. They have literally given the students all the info and material they need to be successful in class. The bar is pretty low.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:Op here, it’s mostly theoretical though my kid does have running Cs here and there but not as a semester grade. He definitely CAN do well, there’s no dyslexia, that’s why I think it can just be a motivation issue.


It’s apathy. It’s a HUGE problem among a lot of students. I was just talking to a high school teacher about this. He said he just can’t get students to care. Even with in class assignments, students will just not do them and play games on their Chromebooks or put their head down instead
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Op here, it’s mostly theoretical though my kid does have running Cs here and there but not as a semester grade. He definitely CAN do well, there’s no dyslexia, that’s why I think it can just be a motivation issue.


It’s apathy. It’s a HUGE problem among a lot of students. I was just talking to a high school teacher about this. He said he just can’t get students to care. Even with in class assignments, students will just not do them and play games on their Chromebooks or put their head down instead


I suspect there may be low key adhd too, but mostly yes, I feel like he has niche interests and school isn’t one of them. I am torn, I don’t think an argumentative essay about teen abortion rights is a very exciting choice for a 14 yo boy, but then why not quickly get it out of the way and do whatever is interesting?
Anonymous
My 16yr old DD either gets A's with effort or D's and F's when she does not do anything, no in between. She is just overall pretty overwhelmed checking grades 24/7 and ever since sophomore yr it's been harder for her to keep up with her work. She used to just get A's doing things in class but now it feels like she's trying her best to turn everything in and has to work extra hard and doesn't get the same grades, but it gets super overwhelming managing all the classes. What does this sound like?
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:if you are talking about public school, yes, it's pretty easy to get As and Bs without much effort.


Yes public school. So you think something’s up if a kid can’t get those grades?


NP. Yes something is going if they can’t get As and Bs in public school non AP classes. Be in learning disability or laziness


You know not all kids are in the 85th percentile. Someone has to be in the 50th percentile.


That’s why they have different levels. Posters here claim all their kids are in all AP classes with nothing but As but I doubt it. Some parents have a hard time with their kid being in the lowest level class but if that’s the kid’s ability level that’s where the student belongs and should be able to get an A or B.
Anonymous
I have 2 in high school (public) and yes, I’d say it is easy to get A/B’s in regular classes without a lot of effort. Mostly just requires showing up, turning in work on time, studying briefly for upcoming tests or occasionally putting in a bit of extra work on a project. My kids are of average/maybe a bit above average intelligence as far as I can tell. They are each in some honors/AP classes (1 or 2 each). They rarely spend more than maybe 30min/day on homework/studying. They get a mix of As and Bs.

I do think it is totally possible for a bright kid to get a C in a subject they really struggle in, for whatever reason (despite putting in effort) but it would be fairly unusual.

Anonymous
My kids are not apathetic. I guess we just are lucky. I will say that if they were apathetic, then I think tiger mom would need to suddenly appear in their lives. Raaar.
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