Are we really doing students any favors with this

[Manonthestreet]

Under the new system, a student’s behavior is factored out of his or her grades. The school system also now recommends that teachers do not factor homework into overall grades or give students marks below 50%. Baltimore Co. Public Schools revises grading system, factoring out homework and behavior
behavior aside, some students score better on home work than tests,,,,,I think putting so much emphasis on tests piles on the pressure......if ya mess up on one its awfully hard to dig out..even if the lowest you can get is 50%.....This is not innovation...spend too much time trying to disguise teacher and student failure in order to get more tax dollars.

 

[SassyIrishLass]

Public schools teach to the test....it's a recipe for disaster

 

[Fenton Lum]

Public schools teach to the test....it's a recipe for disaster

Gee, wonder how that happened. Anyway look, public schools should not exist. I should not be taxed to educate the spawn of another. You had it, you raise it. As a conservative I vehemently oppose contributing to, via taxation, or investing in, a healthy educated society with the aim of global competitiveness. Community and common cause are for "librules", "communists", "socialists", "lefties" and "traitors" who "hate america".

 

[OldLady]

Under the new system, a student’s behavior is factored out of his or her grades. The school system also now recommends that teachers do not factor homework into overall grades or give students marks below 50%. Baltimore Co. Public Schools revises grading system, factoring out homework and behavior
behavior aside, some students score better on home work than tests,,,,,I think putting so much emphasis on tests piles on the pressure......if ya mess up on one its awfully hard to dig out..even if the lowest you can get is 50%.....This is not innovation...spend too much time trying to disguise teacher and student failure in order to get more tax dollars.

I'd be sunk if I were a student in Baltimore. I only got through math classes because I DID my homework and probably got a few extra points for effort, besides. Pretty sure on my math final senior year, I got extra points for spelling my name right.
I do understand what's behind this, though, I think. Too many kids are getting diplomas who know almost nothing. And I don't know how else you can determine what students know without asking them (they call that a "test.")

 

[Manonthestreet]

Under the new system, a student’s behavior is factored out of his or her grades. The school system also now recommends that teachers do not factor homework into overall grades or give students marks below 50%. Baltimore Co. Public Schools revises grading system, factoring out homework and behavior
behavior aside, some students score better on home work than tests,,,,,I think putting so much emphasis on tests piles on the pressure......if ya mess up on one its awfully hard to dig out..even if the lowest you can get is 50%.....This is not innovation...spend too much time trying to disguise teacher and student failure in order to get more tax dollars.

I'd be sunk if I were a student in Baltimore. I only got through math classes because I DID my homework and probably got a few extra points for effort, besides. Pretty sure on my math final senior year, I got extra points for spelling my name right.
I do understand what's behind this, though, I think. Too many kids are getting diplomas who know almost nothing. And I don't know how else you can determine what students know without asking them (they call that a "test.")

Nobody is saying not to test their knowledge....if there is no score for homework what is the incentive to do it....ergo test scores fall more

 

[SassyIrishLass]

Public schools teach to the test....it's a recipe for disaster

Gee, wonder how that happened. Anyway look, public schools should not exist. I should not be taxed to educate the spawn of another. You had it, you raise it. As a conservative I vehemently oppose contributing to, via taxation, or investing in, a healthy educated society with the aim of global competitiveness. Community and common cause are for "librules", "communists", "socialists", "lefties" and "traitors" who "hate america".

Our children attend private schools, not a penny of your money goes towards their educations and they will come out educated instead of ignorant bots that come out of public schools.

 

[Fenton Lum]

Public schools teach to the test....it's a recipe for disaster

Gee, wonder how that happened. Anyway look, public schools should not exist. I should not be taxed to educate the spawn of another. You had it, you raise it. As a conservative I vehemently oppose contributing to, via taxation, or investing in, a healthy educated society with the aim of global competitiveness. Community and common cause are for "librules", "communists", "socialists", "lefties" and "traitors" who "hate america".

Our children attend private schools, not a penny of your money goes towards their educations and they will come out educated instead of ignorant bots that come out of public schools.

Ain't that america, for you and me.

 

[Manonthestreet]

Most things would not cost as much if people had to pay for them instead of the govt.......govt = +++++ cost

 

[OldLady]

Under the new system, a student’s behavior is factored out of his or her grades. The school system also now recommends that teachers do not factor homework into overall grades or give students marks below 50%. Baltimore Co. Public Schools revises grading system, factoring out homework and behavior
behavior aside, some students score better on home work than tests,,,,,I think putting so much emphasis on tests piles on the pressure......if ya mess up on one its awfully hard to dig out..even if the lowest you can get is 50%.....This is not innovation...spend too much time trying to disguise teacher and student failure in order to get more tax dollars.

I'd be sunk if I were a student in Baltimore. I only got through math classes because I DID my homework and probably got a few extra points for effort, besides. Pretty sure on my math final senior year, I got extra points for spelling my name right.
I do understand what's behind this, though, I think. Too many kids are getting diplomas who know almost nothing. And I don't know how else you can determine what students know without asking them (they call that a "test.")

Nobody is saying not to test their knowledge....if there is no score for homework what is the incentive to do it....ergo test scores fall more

When I was teaching in a public high school in a poor community, a lot of the kids worked pretty much full-time after school or were taking care of younger siblings, etc; some were 'couch surfing' between friends and relatives and didn't have a stable environment. I gave minimal homework assignments for the classes where a lot of that was going on. I kept track of how many assignments were turned in and it could boost a grade, but not turning it in didn't penalize a grade. I would score it so students knew what they'd missed, but those "grades" weren't part of the class grade.
Honestly, I think we keep kids in public school for too long with standards that are too low. Our goals need to be rethunk from the ground up. Throwing an additional standardized test at them isn't going to fix anything.

 

[mgh80]

Public schools teach to the test....it's a recipe for disaster

Every year teachers (in my district) are given a grade/score based on how well we did. Testing is a HUGE chunk of this score. People are telling teachers two things:

1) Don't teach to the test
2) Your student's results on the tests are going to directly impact your scores and how much money you make

Do you know what happens to my students if they fail the state mandated test? They don't graduate from high school...that's not a hyperbole they literally do not graduate.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see what's wrong here. Most teachers I know hate teaching to the test-but they have to if they want to keep their jobs.

 

[MarathonMike]

A good start would be getting rid of the Department of Education because they've done nothing but jack up the public school system for decades. It is an utter disgrace that the US ranks as low as it does compared to other industrialized countries.

 

[OldLady]

A good start would be getting rid of the Department of Education because they've done nothing but jack up the public school system for decades. It is an utter disgrace that the US ranks as low as it does compared to other industrialized countries.

I agree as long as we can trust all the states with their various budget difficulties to hold to equable standards for students, including special education accomodations and safe facilities (eg drinking water).
And as long as the federal government actually gives us a big break in our taxes, since we'll be shelling the money out in state taxes, instead.

 

[Book of Jeremiah]

Under the new system, a student’s behavior is factored out of his or her grades. The school system also now recommends that teachers do not factor homework into overall grades or give students marks below 50%. Baltimore Co. Public Schools revises grading system, factoring out homework and behavior
behavior aside, some students score better on home work than tests,,,,,I think putting so much emphasis on tests piles on the pressure......if ya mess up on one its awfully hard to dig out..even if the lowest you can get is 50%.....This is not innovation...spend too much time trying to disguise teacher and student failure in order to get more tax dollars.

I'd be sunk if I were a student in Baltimore. I only got through math classes because I DID my homework and probably got a few extra points for effort, besides. Pretty sure on my math final senior year, I got extra points for spelling my name right.
I do understand what's behind this, though, I think. Too many kids are getting diplomas who know almost nothing. And I don't know how else you can determine what students know without asking them (they call that a "test.")

Nobody is saying not to test their knowledge....if there is no score for homework what is the incentive to do it....ergo test scores fall more

When I was teaching in a public high school in a poor community, a lot of the kids worked pretty much full-time after school or were taking care of younger siblings, etc; some were 'couch surfing' between friends and relatives and didn't have a stable environment. I gave minimal homework assignments for the classes where a lot of that was going on. I kept track of how many assignments were turned in and it could boost a grade, but not turning it in didn't penalize a grade. I would score it so students knew what they'd missed, but those "grades" weren't part of the class grade.
Honestly, I think we keep kids in public school for too long with standards that are too low. Our goals need to be rethunk from the ground up. Throwing an additional standardized test at them isn't going to fix anything.

It's quite apparent to me that you truly cared about your students. I'm sure many of them will always remember you for your kindness and understanding towards them.

 

[psikeyhackr]

What about the students who do well on tests even when they don't do the homework? I always got A's on math tests but would get a B grade because I did not turn in enough homework.

School is designed to indoctrinate kids to be subservient to authority. Not really educate them. If they were truly educated they might not think what they were told. LOL

Oh yeah, we need jobs so we will have the money to buy all of the garbage that is designed to become obsolete. Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10! What , no Windows 9? Can't Macroscam count?

psik

 

[DGS49]

Don't forget the "equality" scam. Academe believes, as a matter of almost religious faith that if The education system is doing its job properly then all demographics will succeed at the same rate. Thus, grading has been gradually modified so that girls will succeed as well as boys at math. Homework is counted, neatness is counted, problems are recast so that they contain less real math content.

They have been working for decades to try to figure out a way of eliminating the profound impact of a 15 point racial difference in IQ. This silly campaign has done more to harm the education process than "teaching to the test," which is an invented "problem." If the test is relevant to the subject matter - and there is no reason why it would not be - then a teacher SHOULD be teaching to the test.

 

[mgh80]

Don't forget the "equality" scam. Academe believes, as a matter of almost religious faith that if The education system is doing its job properly then all demographics will succeed at the same rate. Thus, grading has been gradually modified so that girls will succeed as well as boys at math. Homework is counted, neatness is counted, problems are recast so that they contain less real math content.

They have been working for decades to try to figure out a way of eliminating the profound impact of a 15 point racial difference in IQ. This silly campaign has done more to harm the education process than "teaching to the test," which is an invented "problem." If the test is relevant to the subject matter - and there is no reason why it would not be - then a teacher SHOULD be teaching to the test.

With all due respect...you have no clue what you're talking about. You're highly misinformed (if you're even informed in the first place). The education system believes that all students should be given an equal OPPORTUNITY...not an equal level of success.

 

[initforme]

This is baltimore. My kids went to public schools and got a first class education. It depends where you live. If people wouldnt have pushed more testing things would ok. Whiners and crybabies blame teachers.

 

[DGS49]

yeah, I spent 20 years in schools, colleges, and universities becoming uninformed.

You asshole.

Most big city school districts, no matter how hopeless or corrupt, have individual schools and programs geared to the children of young professionals, usually well-off. My nephew has two kids in Chicago public schools, and he can bore you to death talking about how wonderful they have been for his "gifted" offspring.

 

[Unkotare]

yeah, I spent 20 years in schools, colleges, and universities becoming uninformed.

Oh, what do you teach?

 

[mgh80]

yeah, I spent 20 years in schools, colleges, and universities becoming uninformed.

You asshole.

Most big city school districts, no matter how hopeless or corrupt, have individual schools and programs geared to the children of young professionals, usually well-off. My nephew has two kids in Chicago public schools, and he can bore you to death talking about how wonderful they have been for his "gifted" offspring.

I work for one of the largest districts in the nation. In my district it's the title 1 schools that tend to get more resources, not the schools in the more affluent areas. I can't speak for other districts in the nation, however this is a big misconception in my experience.