As an 8th grade math teacher currently wrapping up grading for marking period three, I wondered what fellow Hubskiers felt about “No Zero Policies” in k-12 grading. My school district’s current expectation is that all assessment scores (tests & quizzes) bottom out at 50%.
To me, the whole idea of students earning 50% without demonstrating at least 50% mastery is undercutting their confidence in their ability. To me, the action of giving 50% credit, even if a student never turns in anything tells them they cannot do half of this stuff without my help even.
50% for zeroes is a misguided and harmful strategy.
Your thoughts, Hubski?
This seems pretty enlightened. I always thought you should be able to take your grade on the final in lieu of your grade in the class.NM stands for non-mastery. AB for absent. NHI for not handed in regarding homework assignments. DNA for did not attempt,” Araujo wrote on Facebook. “These allow me to communicate to students and parents better to distinguish where the student needs help.”
Depending on the class I support this hardcore. I tested out of health class in high school this way. End of freshman year a friend and I were given the textbook to study over the summer. He studied assiduously a few times a week for three months, I glanced at the book over breakfast the morning of the exam. We both passed. We both had the necessary knowledge that we acquired at our own pacing.I always thought you should be able to take your grade on the final in lieu of your grade in the class.
I don't know how grades are done these days, as it's been a long time since I was in school and I don't have any children of my own. I think though, this information would be very useful even with traditional grading. It gives excellent feedback on what areas need attention from the students and their parents.
Agreed. You can try and B.S. the kids, but even though it is "beneficial" in the short term, you lose respect for treating them like nitwits. It's a lose-lose proposition. I've gotten around this policy by marking zeroes as zeroes. Students can earn the proper credit by completing the assignment before the end of the marking period for any practice assignments. For quiz assessments, they may earn half-credit back by demonstrating knowledge through quiz corrections. As for tests, they get what they get. I'll have students, rarely, turn in a test with just a name on it. In the grade system, they get the zero, with the note, "Bummer, you turned in your test with just your name on it". To be compliant with my school district, as I finalize grades for the marking period, I replace all assessment grades lower than 50% with a 50% score with a note mentioning the policy and that the student did score lower than 50%. So far this seems to work well.