Anonymous
06/12/2026 12:36
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
We should do away with letter grades altogether. Most countries just have numerical scores, some out of 20 (France), some out of 100 (East Asian nations).
I would support that, but as an interim step MCPS should certainly add plus/minus to the current grading system.
Then you'll have more people grade-grubbing to get above the next cutoff.
The solution is for gatekeepers to not take grades so seriously, and use relevant measures of readiness instead.
100%. Your kid graduating with a 3.7 GPA is not the end of the world. It's ok to have a few Bs or, god forbid C's, on their transcript.
I don't disagree, but when an 89 is a B and a 90 is an A, it feels inherently unfair. That's a 1 point difference. If it were B+ and A- it would be more reflective of the work. Better still would be to just list the percentage.
Plus or minus would be useful, but no, it is not "1 point difference," it is a percentage point difference. There has to be a cut-off, and if your child doesn't want to be near the cut-off, they need to apply extra effort throughout the semester. If they are putting in 100% effort and still getting a B, the B is an accurate indicator.
Tell it to my kid who got an 89.4 one quarter from a teacher who did not give the required 9 all task assignments, did not offer a single retake, and who had one grade that was from a group project where you couldn’t pick your group and my kid was stuck essentially doing most of the project and got marked down because his group mates didn’t do anything. And it was the specific marking period being looked at for magnet admission so the B kept him out of the opportunity. I would not say it was an accurate indicator of his work, mastery, or understanding, and I would say it had much bigger implications than it should have.
This is the problem with not using percentages. Even for the most diligent students there is always the chance that they end up working with students who don't pull their own weight but pull everyone else down. You can say this is a good life lesson, but high school grades can literally make the difference between getting into a specific school that a child has worked towards all of high school. The snarky people on this board don't seem to grasp the long-term ramifications of this type of grade issue. Like it or not, where you go to college, in some fields, can literally change the trajectory of someone's career.
As a teacher, where your kid ends up going to college is not something I even remotely care about. I will do my job and I will teach and grade the curriculum fairly and if you fall short I don’t lose even a second of sleep over it.
Anonymous
06/12/2026 11:19
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
We should do away with letter grades altogether. Most countries just have numerical scores, some out of 20 (France), some out of 100 (East Asian nations).
I would support that, but as an interim step MCPS should certainly add plus/minus to the current grading system.
Then you'll have more people grade-grubbing to get above the next cutoff.
The solution is for gatekeepers to not take grades so seriously, and use relevant measures of readiness instead.
100%. Your kid graduating with a 3.7 GPA is not the end of the world. It's ok to have a few Bs or, god forbid C's, on their transcript.
I don't disagree, but when an 89 is a B and a 90 is an A, it feels inherently unfair. That's a 1 point difference. If it were B+ and A- it would be more reflective of the work. Better still would be to just list the percentage.
Plus or minus would be useful, but no, it is not "1 point difference," it is a percentage point difference. There has to be a cut-off, and if your child doesn't want to be near the cut-off, they need to apply extra effort throughout the semester. If they are putting in 100% effort and still getting a B, the B is an accurate indicator.
Tell it to my kid who got an 89.4 one quarter from a teacher who did not give the required 9 all task assignments, did not offer a single retake, and who had one grade that was from a group project where you couldn’t pick your group and my kid was stuck essentially doing most of the project and got marked down because his group mates didn’t do anything. And it was the specific marking period being looked at for magnet admission so the B kept him out of the opportunity. I would not say it was an accurate indicator of his work, mastery, or understanding, and I would say it had much bigger implications than it should have.
This is the problem with not using percentages. Even for the most diligent students there is always the chance that they end up working with students who don't pull their own weight but pull everyone else down. You can say this is a good life lesson, but high school grades can literally make the difference between getting into a specific school that a child has worked towards all of high school. The snarky people on this board don't seem to grasp the long-term ramifications of this type of grade issue. Like it or not, where you go to college, in some fields, can literally change the trajectory of someone's career.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 23:08
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
We should do away with letter grades altogether. Most countries just have numerical scores, some out of 20 (France), some out of 100 (East Asian nations).
I would support that, but as an interim step MCPS should certainly add plus/minus to the current grading system.
Then you'll have more people grade-grubbing to get above the next cutoff.
The solution is for gatekeepers to not take grades so seriously, and use relevant measures of readiness instead.
100%. Your kid graduating with a 3.7 GPA is not the end of the world. It's ok to have a few Bs or, god forbid C's, on their transcript.
I don't disagree, but when an 89 is a B and a 90 is an A, it feels inherently unfair. That's a 1 point difference. If it were B+ and A- it would be more reflective of the work. Better still would be to just list the percentage.
Plus or minus would be useful, but no, it is not "1 point difference," it is a percentage point difference. There has to be a cut-off, and if your child doesn't want to be near the cut-off, they need to apply extra effort throughout the semester. If they are putting in 100% effort and still getting a B, the B is an accurate indicator.
They should just put the percentage in the transcript.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 17:54
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would totally support reporting the actual grade percentages on the report card. Then people would obsess less over one percentage point on the bubble grades. It’s irrational that a kid with all 90s looks so much better than a kid with all 89s.
They do report the score on the report card in HS
We may be having a semantic distinction but I’m talking about the transcript that goes to colleges. They report letter grades only on that.
The post I quoted said report card so I answered accordingly.
Yes they don't show on transcripts, however if you ended with an 89 for the semester, it means one of the making periods you did in fact earn an 88 at best which means you are a B student. It's not like a kid earned 2 As and ended up with a B.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 17:22
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
We should do away with letter grades altogether. Most countries just have numerical scores, some out of 20 (France), some out of 100 (East Asian nations).
I would support that, but as an interim step MCPS should certainly add plus/minus to the current grading system.
Then you'll have more people grade-grubbing to get above the next cutoff.
The solution is for gatekeepers to not take grades so seriously, and use relevant measures of readiness instead.
100%. Your kid graduating with a 3.7 GPA is not the end of the world. It's ok to have a few Bs or, god forbid C's, on their transcript.
I don't disagree, but when an 89 is a B and a 90 is an A, it feels inherently unfair. That's a 1 point difference. If it were B+ and A- it would be more reflective of the work. Better still would be to just list the percentage.
Plus or minus would be useful, but no, it is not "1 point difference," it is a percentage point difference. There has to be a cut-off, and if your child doesn't want to be near the cut-off, they need to apply extra effort throughout the semester. If they are putting in 100% effort and still getting a B, the B is an accurate indicator.
Tell it to my kid who got an 89.4 one quarter from a teacher who did not give the required 9 all task assignments, did not offer a single retake, and who had one grade that was from a group project where you couldn’t pick your group and my kid was stuck essentially doing most of the project and got marked down because his group mates didn’t do anything. And it was the specific marking period being looked at for magnet admission so the B kept him out of the opportunity. I would not say it was an accurate indicator of his work, mastery, or understanding, and I would say it had much bigger implications than it should have.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 16:48
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would totally support reporting the actual grade percentages on the report card. Then people would obsess less over one percentage point on the bubble grades. It’s irrational that a kid with all 90s looks so much better than a kid with all 89s.
They do report the score on the report card in HS
We may be having a semantic distinction but I’m talking about the transcript that goes to colleges. They report letter grades only on that.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 16:47
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I would totally support reporting the actual grade percentages on the report card. Then people would obsess less over one percentage point on the bubble grades. It’s irrational that a kid with all 90s looks so much better than a kid with all 89s.
They do report the score on the report card in HS
Does the number grade appear on the transcript? Because the real difference between an 89 and a 90 is college admissions chances…
Anonymous
06/11/2026 16:02
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:I would totally support reporting the actual grade percentages on the report card. Then people would obsess less over one percentage point on the bubble grades. It’s irrational that a kid with all 90s looks so much better than a kid with all 89s.
They do report the score on the report card in HS
Anonymous
06/11/2026 15:58
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
I would totally support reporting the actual grade percentages on the report card. Then people would obsess less over one percentage point on the bubble grades. It’s irrational that a kid with all 90s looks so much better than a kid with all 89s.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 15:50
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Great idea. Teach your kids the fine art of bribery. It works for politicians and they have a way better base salary.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 15:44
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
We should do away with letter grades altogether. Most countries just have numerical scores, some out of 20 (France), some out of 100 (East Asian nations).
I would support that, but as an interim step MCPS should certainly add plus/minus to the current grading system.
Then you'll have more people grade-grubbing to get above the next cutoff.
The solution is for gatekeepers to not take grades so seriously, and use relevant measures of readiness instead.
100%. Your kid graduating with a 3.7 GPA is not the end of the world. It's ok to have a few Bs or, god forbid C's, on their transcript.
I don't disagree, but when an 89 is a B and a 90 is an A, it feels inherently unfair. That's a 1 point difference. If it were B+ and A- it would be more reflective of the work. Better still would be to just list the percentage.
If I have 89 dollars and something costs 90 dollars, should the store just give it to me because it's unfair I didn't make enough money?
Anonymous
06/11/2026 14:14
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
We should do away with letter grades altogether. Most countries just have numerical scores, some out of 20 (France), some out of 100 (East Asian nations).
I would support that, but as an interim step MCPS should certainly add plus/minus to the current grading system.
Then you'll have more people grade-grubbing to get above the next cutoff.
The solution is for gatekeepers to not take grades so seriously, and use relevant measures of readiness instead.
100%. Your kid graduating with a 3.7 GPA is not the end of the world. It's ok to have a few Bs or, god forbid C's, on their transcript.
I don't disagree, but when an 89 is a B and a 90 is an A, it feels inherently unfair. That's a 1 point difference. If it were B+ and A- it would be more reflective of the work. Better still would be to just list the percentage.
Plus or minus would be useful, but no, it is not "1 point difference," it is a percentage point difference. There has to be a cut-off, and if your child doesn't want to be near the cut-off, they need to apply extra effort throughout the semester. If they are putting in 100% effort and still getting a B, the B is an accurate indicator.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 14:08
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anyone have luck with kid talking to the teacher about a borderline semester grade that's on the cusp of a higher grade at this point in the quarter? Not sure if there's anything to be done at this stage in the game as it seems like the remaining assignment as listed won't bump up to the next level.
Why should your child receive a nonearned "bump"? Unless you have a very unusual teacher, I assure you that he/she had multiple opportunities during the semester to work on this. Just getting close to the next grade is not a reason to boost it. - HS teacher
Anonymous
06/11/2026 00:15
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
The grading and reporting regulation requires them to offer at least 2 retakes per quarter. Have they offered them yet? See 4a on page 12 of the regulation:
"Teachers must provide students with at least two opportunities per marking period to retake or revise an assessment product designed to evaluate the student’s mastery of content, such as unit assessments, papers, projects, quizzes or tests, and/or performance tasks."
https://ww2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/policy/pdf/master%20ika-ra.pdf
I was told by my admin that once the deadline passes, the student's ability to reassess does too
That's inaccurate. The deadline is the deadline for the initial assignment to be submitted, not for the retake.
Anonymous
06/11/2026 00:12
Subject: borderline HS grade-talk to the teacher?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I feel you OP. My kid is just 1 point away in two different classes to a higher semester grade and without that he falls below the line for the college he’s hoping to go to. Both teachers have said no to redoing past assignments or additional assignments. And these are teachers he really loves. I respect the need to be stricter but all other teachers are opening assignments left and right for kids to get grades up. There also should be more nuance to grades vs. 79 is C and 80 is B.
We should do away with letter grades altogether. Most countries just have numerical scores, some out of 20 (France), some out of 100 (East Asian nations).
I would support that, but as an interim step MCPS should certainly add plus/minus to the current grading system.
Then you'll have more people grade-grubbing to get above the next cutoff.
The solution is for gatekeepers to not take grades so seriously, and use relevant measures of readiness instead.
100%. Your kid graduating with a 3.7 GPA is not the end of the world. It's ok to have a few Bs or, god forbid C's, on their transcript.
I don't disagree, but when an 89 is a B and a 90 is an A, it feels inherently unfair. That's a 1 point difference. If it were B+ and A- it would be more reflective of the work. Better still would be to just list the percentage.