Leslie Nunez
Teacher’s Name
Class Section
10 December 2014 Essay Title A student’s education should measure and reflect his or her growth as an individual.
However, our school system relies on grading structure that determines whether the student is capable enough to pass the class or fail miserably. Many argue that schools should abolish the process of grading because it degrades and diminishes the natural passion that the student emits.
Joe Bower, an American teacher, runs an online blog about education and feels strongly against the typical grading system; he does not believe in the pass or fail agenda. On the other hand, there are those who say that we need to give more F’s. Carl Singleton is a teacher that believes teachers should be willing to fail student who clearly have not learned the required materials.
With two strong cases at hand, I think that the grading system should be eliminated and develop a fresh and new way of class curriculum. America's educational system is a oneofakind structure that operates in the least conventional way when compared to the rest of the world. Children start their learning stages, kindergarten, at the fresh age of 4 or 5. Succeeding kindergarten is the grade school years that consists of 5 important years. Now we are getting to the unconventional part of the American
Nunez 2
learning system: middle school. Most countries around the world does not have junior high schools. Countries like Sweden and Australia, trusts their students to be capable enough to have a successful and smooth transition to higher education. After 4 years of high school, American students are now free to decide whether they want to pursue a career through further education or to search for a job. A typical undergraduate students spends about 4 more years after high school to attain a Bachelor's degree; 2 extra years for a Master's degree. Due to this strenuously long process in acquiring education, many students feel discouraged in wanting to continue to earn a degree. With an education system this long, no student wants to work tirelessly just to fail in the end. Abolishing grades will show students that they are more than letter value. Joe Bower is a teacher who runs an online blog that documents his path in evolving his teaching style. Bower believes that students should reflect on their education and to view grades as an information. He also argues that teachers should not act like judges waiting to sentence their students, adding;
“The best learning environments provide students with the opportunity to construct their own understanding while doing projects that are in a context and for a purpose while interacting with their environment.” Bower emphasizes that the only effective way that a student can learn is to make sure they are well prepared and work on their own pace. With guidance from supporting teachers, students will feel less stressed and pressured to do well in class. Bower uses Thom
Hartmann, author of
Complete Guide to ADHD, to strengthen his claims: “Grades did not make students smarter. In fact, they had the opposite effect: they made it harder for those children to succeed whose style of learning didn’t match the didactic, auditory form of lectureteaching
Farish used.” Hartmann’s words are simply true. Not all students learn the same and take
Nunez 3
information from lectures in various way. Bower protests that schools should offer more diverse and an open take to new and fresh learning systems. Even though Bower presents a great idea, there are many people that argue against his views and suggests that our educational system needs a stricter rule.
A strict and controlled school environment will yield better results for students: an idea that teachers like Carl Singleton proposes on contrary to Bower’s point of view. Singleton believes that teachers should be giving more F’s to students who are slacking behind or
