Chapter 7

Abstract:
This chapter was about inconsistencies in grading systems some ideas to solve these problems. This chapter brings up the point that if you were to have different teachers grade the same paper you would end up with a multitude of different grades. With this happening, how do you really know what a letter grade means? Are they important? This chapter talks about schools that do not have grades, the idea of instead of giving zeros giving incompletes, and the fact that to much emphasis may be being put on letter grades and class rank. The emphasis should not be on grades, but rather on what students actually know and whether or not they have really mastered the material and met the standards set for the class.

Reflection:
Our group agreed that he book made some valid points about the grading system. It is very inconsistent and what could be considered an A in one class could easily be considered a C in another. We think that teachers need to have more communication with each other about this topic in order to set clearer standards and prevent this high level of inconsistency. Some members of our group liked the section about taking students backgrounds into consideration when grading. It was brought up that this idea is important because taking some students backgrounds into consideration is important while for other students it would be completely inappropriate. We think the difficult part is knowing when grades should be adjusted for background reasons, and when they should not. It was also brought up in our group that while some students would do extremely well in a system without grades, others would probably struggle. Some students thrive on competition from grades, while others see grades as stressful and are therefore held back by them. The grading system is a very controversial subject and there are many ideas for making it better, but it is hard to find an idea that will account for all the different students because of all the diversity in schools.
*posted by Chelsae