by James Nunnley, J1 Writer

Towards the end of the school year there is a big push for teachers to have everything covered according to the curriculum.  With all of these grades being recorded, people wonder if grades on the report card and Edline really reflect what is learned.

“Sometimes my grade is bad and I’m doing well in the class,” sophomore Kunal Shah says.

Having to record so many tests and grades, it is very easy for teachers to abandon the true purpose of grades. Grades often do not reflect what a student has learned in the class but how well they can play the gradebook game.  For example, some students will receive points (usually bonus) for bringing a box of tissues or staying after class and picking up trash, which does not reflect what a student has learned in the classroom.

“Grades are our way of measuring the extent of learning that has taken place,” Drew Price of Helium.com says. “Often times grades fail to portray what really has been learned. They should not be looked at so critically by parents and scholarship committees.”

Multiple options for demonstrating knowledge give a more accurate depiction of what students have learned. Practicing multiple methods of testing knowledge is preferred by principal Nancy Rousseau.

“I encourage my teachers to test student’s knowledge using several methods,” Rousseau says.

For example, oral exams and student discussion should be practiced because some students are not good test takers.

“I’m not a good test taker, sometimes I get nervous during testing,” junior Steve Seo says.

Some students may also suffer from test anxiety; even though they know the material.   If the test grade does not indicate that the curriculum has not been comprehended then review and retesting can be an option. Then grades can display progression instead of failure.

“I guess tests can be the only alternative to show what you’ve learned, or do a project over something you feel you improved in or learned about the most,” junior Abraham Hernandez says.

Edline is a weekly progress report used in the school to post grades and assignments and ultimately used for the grading on the report card. However, it does not always reflect what a student has learned.

“Edline is not an accurate representation of what students have learned in the classroom, sometimes teachers will not post regularly or students turn in assignments late,”  Rousseau says.

A failing grade on the report card is usually the result of a student not doing their work or not understanding what is taught.

“Being an active participant in class discussion is the surest way to insure that you learn the material,” Price says. “There is research that indicates you only remember five percent of the content that you hear and only 10 percent of what you read, but up to 90 percent of what you discuss. Therefore, discussing information with your teacher or classmates will help you retain information longer.”