My math teacher sparked an interesting discussion the other day, one that I had thought about before but now took into real consideration. I now apply it here. Go back to your days as a student and pick one of the classes you took. Consider this question: If the grade in a class did not matter, would you still go for the best grade or for the learning experience? "Grades" was the much more common answer than "experience" and it has a good reason to be. For we need good grades to get a good academic standing, and then get into a good college, and to have a good future.
But why even ask that question? Because that is what our education system has made us believe in, to get the right grades and the right scores so that you can reach the right places. This is what the system runs on and what students have in turn come to believe. Have you ever heard a student say, "I would do anything just to better understand those concepts"? No. We instead hear students praying for A's, grubbing for some more points, or pouncing upon extra credit, just to get that most beloved first letter of the alphabet.
A fellow student in my class then asked a question, in a slight mocking manner saying, "Could you imagine us saying to a college, 'Yea I didn't get the best grade, but I learned a understood a lot!'?" He posed a good question. Much of the college admission process is a factor of a student's GPA, a measurement of the grades they have received in classes, and the scores on a variety of standardized tests such as the ACT, SAT, AP Tests, and the list goes on. Thus we must get little sleep and argue for points for those very grades could determine our future! Colleges do understand that grades alone don't determine an applicant (thankfully) and most also require teacher and counselor recommendations and short-answer or essay questions.
Like I said, I have often thought about this. At certain points in my academic career, I was in a specific class or at least discussion where the concepts and ideas that we were being talked were so intriguing that I was genuinely interested and just wanted to keep talking about it. Then suddenly, it was an assessment of some sort, and I could not complete all the problems or couldn't detail my essay correctly, not reaching the grade I wanted. But I still understood what went on. It continues to frustrate me that such an emphasis on grades is had. To some extent, however, it is needed. Should students be assessed on solely their participation? Or how much effort they gave on the test rather than how many they actually got correct? It is a difficult system to work with, but perhaps the boundaries could be widened and explored.
The critique of the education system does not end there. Just as the system impresses upon students the significance of grades, the system itself impresses its own process upon students. That a certain curriculum is developed and should be taught in this manner. The teacher writes on the board, the students are to write the notes down word-for-word what is written. The only questions are what does that word say and what are the answers, the bell rings, and this all repeats. But are students really understanding what they are writing? Most are not, they are simply just mechanically copying. I am reminded of this picture that I had seen:
Indeed, where is our opportunity for exploration and discussion of topics and ideas? Our bubbles of thought are indeed shaped to fit the square, pointed, and regulated system of the teacher-a part of a bigger system. The focus on grades is just one part of this shaping that is done by the education system.
However, I will never discourage the importance of education. The fact that we are able to have such an education that allows us to become intellectuals, some more than others, is quite astonishing and a gift others around the world may not have access to. A lot of this expression of our selves and our minds may have to come after going through the education system, but the expression itself may not have been possible without education.
So what is the final say? That education system can be viewed as faulty, but is there any system that isn't? Students are taught to think and act in a certain manner, most significantly in the best interest of good grades. That does not necessarily inhibit the chance to have a good learning experience with a class, but may make it harder. The success in the system may overshadow its drawbacks. However, being aware of this fact can allow us to seek that experience that exists, and to explore ideas more than what is given. We can bend the box that our mind has been shaped too, but still keep enough shape to complete the system.
But why even ask that question? Because that is what our education system has made us believe in, to get the right grades and the right scores so that you can reach the right places. This is what the system runs on and what students have in turn come to believe. Have you ever heard a student say, "I would do anything just to better understand those concepts"? No. We instead hear students praying for A's, grubbing for some more points, or pouncing upon extra credit, just to get that most beloved first letter of the alphabet.
A fellow student in my class then asked a question, in a slight mocking manner saying, "Could you imagine us saying to a college, 'Yea I didn't get the best grade, but I learned a understood a lot!'?" He posed a good question. Much of the college admission process is a factor of a student's GPA, a measurement of the grades they have received in classes, and the scores on a variety of standardized tests such as the ACT, SAT, AP Tests, and the list goes on. Thus we must get little sleep and argue for points for those very grades could determine our future! Colleges do understand that grades alone don't determine an applicant (thankfully) and most also require teacher and counselor recommendations and short-answer or essay questions.
Like I said, I have often thought about this. At certain points in my academic career, I was in a specific class or at least discussion where the concepts and ideas that we were being talked were so intriguing that I was genuinely interested and just wanted to keep talking about it. Then suddenly, it was an assessment of some sort, and I could not complete all the problems or couldn't detail my essay correctly, not reaching the grade I wanted. But I still understood what went on. It continues to frustrate me that such an emphasis on grades is had. To some extent, however, it is needed. Should students be assessed on solely their participation? Or how much effort they gave on the test rather than how many they actually got correct? It is a difficult system to work with, but perhaps the boundaries could be widened and explored.
The critique of the education system does not end there. Just as the system impresses upon students the significance of grades, the system itself impresses its own process upon students. That a certain curriculum is developed and should be taught in this manner. The teacher writes on the board, the students are to write the notes down word-for-word what is written. The only questions are what does that word say and what are the answers, the bell rings, and this all repeats. But are students really understanding what they are writing? Most are not, they are simply just mechanically copying. I am reminded of this picture that I had seen:
Indeed, where is our opportunity for exploration and discussion of topics and ideas? Our bubbles of thought are indeed shaped to fit the square, pointed, and regulated system of the teacher-a part of a bigger system. The focus on grades is just one part of this shaping that is done by the education system.
However, I will never discourage the importance of education. The fact that we are able to have such an education that allows us to become intellectuals, some more than others, is quite astonishing and a gift others around the world may not have access to. A lot of this expression of our selves and our minds may have to come after going through the education system, but the expression itself may not have been possible without education.
So what is the final say? That education system can be viewed as faulty, but is there any system that isn't? Students are taught to think and act in a certain manner, most significantly in the best interest of good grades. That does not necessarily inhibit the chance to have a good learning experience with a class, but may make it harder. The success in the system may overshadow its drawbacks. However, being aware of this fact can allow us to seek that experience that exists, and to explore ideas more than what is given. We can bend the box that our mind has been shaped too, but still keep enough shape to complete the system.
Grades categorize and clump us together from the beginning, and like you said, they might not accurately reflect our knowledge or interest in a class. But to play devil's advocate, there has to be some way of gauging progress in a class, and grades/test scores seem to be the most standardized way of approaching it. What really irks me is the letter scale; a 99.9% in class is the same as an 89.5%. Once we hit the real world, grades become nonexistent, but for now, we have to work within the system. When I visited MIT this past year, they informed me that there was some sort of program where during freshman year where no grades whatsoever are awarded. The idea was to foster collaboration and teamwork, not competition. I guess they wanted to break the stigma of a competitive, grade-grubbing environment. And whose to blame them?
ReplyDeleteTo address the beginning of your comment, I do also agree that some sort of system is necessary, but to find the "best" is very difficult. Indeed, the fact that there is such a range for the same letter grade has induced some teachers to simply give kids a 95% for an A, 85% for a B, and so on. But you have hit the mark when you discuss that grades become nonexistent in the real world. What holds much more value in a class is the learning experience a student can have; a takeaway of value and consideration that will have a much lasting impact than the letter grade they received. Unfortunately, it is the letter grade that holds precedent in our world.
ReplyDeleteShawn, your consideration of this topic is well thought out and expressed! I think that while formal grading (A, B, C, D, F) may disappear in the "real world," competition and the judgement that goes along with it still exist. Most people who care about career advancement try to be the best and may look down their noses at those who are not. I wish an environment (work or learning) existed where such ruthless competition did not exist and we all worked for the good of others, instead of how good we look to others. Keep writing...I enjoyed reading!
ReplyDeleteI think its something we all wish existed. However, the idea that "competition drives innovation" should be considered. If there was no incentive for students to work hard and outperform others by going farther, would we or could we reach the advancement of the classroom that we have today. Indeed, a system of collaboration would be highly encouraging to the student, but would require great steps in administration to judge or assess the individual versus the group.
DeleteShawn, you pose an interesting and hotly debated question regarding the use of grades- and although, I think that ultimately it comes down to the individual and their willingness to pursue the best education that they can receive with or without grades- grades only represent the surface of the flaw in our educational system, and that flaw lies in the definition of intellect that grades are trying to measure and that education favors.
ReplyDeleteWhen thought about there are so many ways a person can be "smart"- they can be artistic, street smart, emotionally intelligent, even have something like a high basketball IQ, yet we wouldn't call these people "smart" unless they fit under society's definition of what being intelligent is (i.e. book smart, good at math, science, etc.). Yet today's education system pushes this exclusionary definition of intelligence upon all of its students-- and that's where the change has to begin.
It's been said that people excel in their "elements" i.e. the educational environment they're most comfortable with, and the current education system without a doubt, doesn't afford that for every student.
In that sense, there shouldn't be any such thing as a "model student" because that assumes there is a singular goal for each individual, setting forth a higher value to some types of intellect than others and stunting the growth in other areas of education.