Participation Trophy Redux.....

People seem to agree that awarding trophies for all "participants" in children's' athletic leagues is a no-no. They make serious videos about this on social media and they throw the trophies away! It's funny how the same people expect participation trophies for school discipline and school academic work though--and somehow this dichotomy is perfectly acceptable. A former counterpart of mine on the school board summed up his philosophy very succinctly on the subject of earning grades versus  being given marks that were not earned.  His comments were given in a meeting we had in April of 2015:  "It's all about being honest and true with those kids.  It's not 10-year old baseball where everybody gets a trophy.  You earn it. And it needs to always be that way." 

Last week I had the opportunity to speak with a recently retired middle school teacher.  This teacher taught for many years at an Escambia County District 1 Middle School which I won't name.

I have known this teacher for a number of years and can say with confidence that this person is a straight-shooter, a retired military officer, and what this person says is true--this person would not lie about something having to do with the schools-or anything else for that matter so far as I can tell.

As we talked some politics and current events, the subject of teaching came up. Invariably the topic of school discipline came up. Yes, this teacher lamented the lax discipline and the torn up referrals.  This teacher didn't care for that.  And then I segued into an area of special interest that I pursued when I was on the school board.  "No Zero Grading"  (If you want the history of this, you can read what I wrote on this subject a few years back here, here, here, here, here and here.)

My opinion on this in a Nutshell:  No Zero grading is a horrible, terrible construct that coddles students and forces teachers to give grades to students that are not earned.  And the system rewards students who are lazy, while simultaneously punishing students that work hard and try their best.  Nobody gets less than a 50% ever, no matter what, even if work is not completed.  It artificially inflates student grades, allowing students to earn passing grades where these same students, based upon their actual work and mastery of the subject, would fail in truly rigorous systems like the ones you and I and most of us went to when we were in school.

(So I'm glad when I read about teachers and entire school districts that push back against this scheme...)

Like the dumbing-down of discipline expectations and punishments that was rampant in the schools locally and nationally to produce "better and lower suspension numbers"--this is the dumbing-down of .academic rigor and expectations.  It's lazy.  It's feckless.  It short-changes students. It's modern day social promotion.  It's dishonest.   And most importantly--- it does not prepare students for the realities of life and the real world.

"Yeah, that was a standard expectation at the school---I thought everyone knew this?" was the reaction I got when I told this teacher this surprised me.  "I never liked it, I was never comfortable with it--but we were expected to do it.  And at the end of the quarter and  semester, the principal would put pressure on us to move these students' grades up" this teacher continued. "If I had 150 students and 15 or 20 were failing, I was  put on the spot because of it--even though the students were getting the grade they earned"  this person continued.  "I did not like it and again--I never felt comfortable with it but it was what we were expected to do" this individual continued.

I left the school board in late 2016 after serving 10 years.  I brought this "No Zero" grading issue up in early 2015 when I got wind of it-------and the board was told "This is NOT happening in this district"

So it is somewhat infuriating, but not entirely surprising, to hear this teacher say that it is and was happening, as a standard practice,  up through last year when this teacher retired.  

In 2015--when I got a whiff of this happening without the board's approval (and in contravention to the school board's grading scale and policy), I brought the issue to a meeting and the board and the superintendent discussed this.

My District 2 Counterpart on the school board at that time, Gerald Boone, made one of the most profound speeches I ever remember hearing him give --and it was on this subject.  It was short, but as usual he was spot on. As a 35 year teacher, he didn't seem to support giving students grades for work they did not do. His powerful, three- minute statement on this subject starts at 54:50 of the first video section of this meeting.  People should watch this

And the superintendent at that time assured us this was not happening in this district.  He even

No Zero Grading Part VIII: What do the Report Cards Show?

When I was told that at some district middle schools teachers were being encouraged to not give any grades below 50, thereby self-implementing a de facto “no zeros policy” in contravention to existing board policy on grading scales,   I quickly asked the Superintendent and the Asst. Superintendent of curriculum about this. Both men denied this was occurring “to their knowledge.” After hearing that another board member had been told by teachers that “they could not, were not allowed-to fail students” I requested specific information from the district staff so that an analysis could be done on a small sample of report cards from several middle schools to either prove, or disprove, these claims.  The district deserves great credit here, for quickly providing the data requested so that an abbreviated

No Zero Grading Part VII: A Break for Students, or Breaking School Board Rules?

This past Friday morning, the School Board had a thorough discussion of “no zero grading” practices.  The discussion was interesting.  My issue, as I have discussed here via numerous posts, is that the system could potentially reward some students who did not do their work, and could result in disparate treatment of students, as Attorney Donna Waters stated at the meeting when she said:

“the practice of no-zero grading becomes more problematic when multiple grades are combined for a course, semester, or other average. To illustrate, assume two students in a class which has a project and an exam which are equally weighted as the only two grades assigned in a semester. Each makes an 98 on the semester exam, but does not turn in the assigned project.  Student A attends a school which adheres strictly to the grading scale in the SPP; he receives a 49% [calculated as (98 + 0)/2] and fails the class. Student B, in a no-zero-grading school, receives a 50% on the project and a 74% final grade [or (98 + 50)/2] and passes the class. Thus, there could be very serious consequences of such a non-uniform grading system.”

The unanimous consensus at the meeting was that teachers should have wide latitude and great flexibility in the way they assign grades to their individual students—they know their students better than anyone else in the schools.  This is important-- and like the Geico commercials--- everybody knows this.

Even still-several Florida districts unabashedly practice this policy--even though it appears to be at odds with state mandated grading scales.

Judging from the discussion at our workshop--I do not believe the Escambia County School Board would ever embrace this sort of a grading scheme institutionally.

Because giving students nothing below a “50” becomes problematic legally if it is practiced as an unwritten rule at some schools.  It is even more problematic if  “no zeros” grading is dictated to teachers by administrators.  Or even if this practice is “strongly suggested” It is wrong. It is social promotion, and we should all oppose this practice as it does nobody any good.

No Zero Grading Part VI: Coincidence, or Corroboration?

I don't believe in coincidences, I think things happen for a reason.

I'm not Ron Fisher and I did not sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night, either, but I can clearly  see something troubling in the two report cards I've linked above.

These are two report cards from this year reflecting the work of two non-ESE students from two different Escambia County Middle Schools.

But here is the thing:

When looking at all the "F" Grades from these two report cards on Q2 and S1--one can clearly see that there are no "F" scores recorded that are below a "50."  I have redacted the names of the students, the teachers, the courses, and the schools, but I can report that these six instances of "Fs" being registered as exactly "50" and no lower are from six different teachers at two separate schools reflecting the work of two different students.

So if we're not doing "No Zero Grading" institutionally at these schools--what are the odds that all six of these "F" grades would be exactly "50" on the only two report cards from these schools I have ever seen?   Why not 30, 42, 26, 48, or 19?  How are all the lowest "F" grades magically, exactly "50" and no lower?"  It would be fascinating to see how the ghost of Ron Fisher would write up the equation rationalizing these F's all  equaling exactly 50 and no lower...

As I have discussed in multiple entries to this blog over the last several days, I get the troubling sense that we, at some of our district schools, are instituting a different grading scale than that which is in Board Policy (and Fl. Statutes), printed in the Student Progression Plan, the Parents Hanbook, and that which is printed in the upper right corner of the report cards above.  This troubles me because I have been told by teachers that this is happening, that artificial grade floors are being created--and these two report cards appear to corroborate this claim.  

Yet I have been told by administrators that this is not happening, "to their knowledge."

I will be asking the top district administrator about this today.

I will get to the bottom of this at this week's School Board meetings.

No Zero Grading Part V: It's Like Baseball

Sometimes complex issues can be boiled down to essentials using an analogy.  

I like to use baseball as an analogy, as it is a sport I loved and played as a kid, it is America’s past-time sport, and most people understand the game of baseball—even if they don’t necessarily like it.

So as I began thinking about the accusations of students being given grades they did not really earn, regardless of the effort they actually put forth, I thought baseball made perfect sense as the object of a comparison.

In baseball, the object is to win games by scoring more runs than the other team.  It is pretty basic.  You utilize good fielding, pitching, and hitting to score more runs than your opponent while simultaneously preventing your opponent from scoring runs against you.

Many would argue that hitting is one of the most, if not the most, essential skills a good baseball player must possess.  That’s why people talk incessantly about a player’s batting average.

But becoming a great hitter takes years and years of experience, practice, and dedication.

Unless you are a naturally gifted Ted Williams or Tony Gwynn, this means you take batting practice daily.  

Or twice daily.

Some players take 1000 cuts a day.  In the cage, off the tee, soft toss, from a machine, from a machine that throws curves, under hand, overhand, half speed, full speed.  You name it.  It takes repetition-- lots of repetition.

It also takes dedication.

Because to win games you have to first get to base---and being a great batter allows a player to get to base more often than his opponent--- by either hitting, drawing a walk, or capitalizing on a catcher’s error. 

So if you want to make great players, successful at the game of baseball, you have to develop hitters.

  Bottom line:  Batting is hard---success actually is achieved if you get a hit one out of 3 or 4 tries.

But imagine if someone suggested a different way to play baseball. 

Imagine for a moment that learning to hit didn't matter.  If you got up to bat and struck out, you would still be placed on second base, giving you a better chance to score.   If you popped-out, grounded out, or swung at wild pitches all day long and were thrown out at first every time—it would not matter.  If you decided you did not even want to bat at all, when it was your turn in the lineup-you could bypass the batter’s box altogether-- you would still get to go to second base.  Your team would

No Zero Grading Part IV: How Texas Addressed the Issue

It was easy.

The legislature received complaints from teachers about artificial grade manipulation being dictated downward from administrators--stymieing individual teacher discretion while simultaneously precluding such teachers from assigning students any letter grade below an artificially set "grade floor" of 50, 60, or even as high as 70!

These legislators passed the Texas Truth in Grading Act in 2009--and it passed the legislature with unanimous support.  Unanimous.

Here is the simple text of the original bill.  I think we may need something like this locally.  I'm bringing this to the board.

81R13223 EAH-F
	By: Nelson	S.B. No. 2033

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to adoption of a school district grading policy.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 28, Education Code, is
	amended by adding Section 28.0216 to read as follows:
	Sec. 28.0216.  DISTRICT GRADING POLICY. A school district
	shall adopt a grading policy, including provisions for the
	assignment of grades on class assignments and examinations, before
	each school year. A district grading policy:
	(1)  must require a classroom teacher to assign a grade
	that reflects the student's relative mastery of an assignment; and
	(2)  may not require a classroom teacher to assign a
	minimum grade for an assignment without regard to the student's
	quality of work.
	SECTION 2.  This Act applies beginning with the 2009-2010
	school year.
	SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
	Act takes effect September 1, 2009.

No Zero Grading, Part II

Like a loop of the commercial for the Samsung Galaxy III-- “The Next Big Thing is Already Here”—I’m being told that the “next big thing in grading for fairness and to help struggling students” is already here/has been here in some Escambia County Florida schools. 

 If it is, I want to know about it yet I’m told by administrators that it is not being practiced here. In a recent conversation with a high-level school administrator, I was told “Teachers have latitude in assigning grades, you know that-- but the emphasis is on getting the student to do assignments, getting the students and the parents engaged to do the work.”  

Well, that sounds good, but are we also recommending teachers give kids that refuse to do work no grade lower than a 50?

I hope not.

Other districts are, though. 

From the Washington Post:

“The Fairfax County schools administration is considering sweeping changes to the grading system for middle school and high school classes that could help struggling students keep their grades up. In a message sent to thousands of teachers Tuesday, Deputy Superintendent Steven Lockard detailed a series of proposals under consideration to revamp how teachers hand out grades to students and to standardize exam scores across the county.. The majority of the changes Lockard outlined in his message to teachers would aim to create consistency in how students are graded and give those struggling in classes more opportunities to improve their scores. Under the new system, student grades could be calculated partly on classroom effort as well as test scores. Experts say the proposals are similar to changes instituted in school districts across the country. Education consultant and grading expert Ken O’Connor said movements to standardize grading systems are picking up steam. He also said that giving students a zero is “morally and ethically wrong.” “As 

No Zero Grading?

There seems to be a new push coming out of the education establishment and it is spreading across the nation like a wildfire.

No Zeros.

A student does not do his work, refuses to do it and teachers are told to record a “50” in the gradebook instead of a “0”. 

A student “Christmas Trees” the answers to an important class final exam, because he hates school, does not care, and does not want to be there—scoring a “20”--- and yet he receives a “50”.

Meanwhile, other students that try and earn 70, 80, or 85 legitimately after studying diligently and working earnestly to finish their tests get no upward bump.  This is like a liberal engineered, reverse bell-curve designed to totally dumb down education in our country even further than it is being dumbed down already rewarding those that don’t “do” while simultaneously punishing those students who “do”. 

We all know teachers should have latitude in grading.  A student ends the semester, after working his guts out and never missing class and working hard, and the teacher allows such a student to do an extra credit paper to raise his 69.4% to  a 70%.  Yeah—everybody gets that.  That is called caring about kids.

But what if a “everybody gets no lower than a “50” scheme is dictated to all teachers from Educrats, thus unfairly engineering winners while simultaneously diminishing teacher discretion?  Uh, YES, this is problematic.

Is this sort of a scheme fair to students who actually work and do their assignments?  Wouldn't this scheme serve to disincentivize everyone? Isn’t this just a glorified way to make everyone feel like a winner, and isn't this a blatant example of social promotion?

Of course it is.  It is a disaster and it does students no favors in the long run.  But it makes schools appear as if they are improving, particularly the bottom quartile of struggling students.  So, of course the Educrats EMBRACE this scheme

It is for this reason that this scheme is particularly abundant in struggling urban school districts.  A fascinating blog post on this subject, written by a Chicago public school teacher subjected to this policy, provides an illuminating read. 

  Read For students’ sake, say no to ‘No-Zero Policy’ on grading

“After our first year, our principal proposed that we move to what is called a “no-zero policy,” because a zero could bring a student’s grade down so far that recovery was not an option.  She had us read an article that argued that the traditional grading scale of 90-100 for an A, 80-89 for a B, 70-79 for a C, 69-60 for a D, and 59-0 as an F unfairly penalized students because the range for an ‘F’ was 59 points while the other grades spanned only 10 points.  The principal’s proposal was quickly put to a vote, and teachers had the notion that we could always change the policy if we thought it wasn’t working.  The majority of teachers voted in favor of the policy, which meant that if a student did not complete an assignment, he or she would receive a 50 percent.   Many students continued to fall into similar categories--the students who didn’t do homework still didn’t do it, those who didn’t do much class work still didn’t do much class work, and a few opted out of an exam.  But