Monday, January 16, 2012

Getting the Most out of Education

Last week, on TED Conversations, (look it up and thank me later) the question was posed:

Should public schools in the United States eliminate the traditional A to F grading scale? And if so, what assessment do we replace it with?

YES YES YES it should be replaced.

We should instill some standards of quality in the culture of our too-often-lackadaisical education system. There should only be one acceptable grade: "A"

If a student does not perform up to an "A" grade, they should have to repeat, repeat, repeat the test/paper/project/class until they can DEMONSTRATE competency.

No more pushing kids along just because the class schedule dictates. One of the most common curriculum structures is to progressively introduce new concepts which are built on previously-introduced concepts. A student who demonstrates an inadequate command of a concept gains little by getting a "D" or "F" and then continuing on with the class to the next concept. This is REALLY how we leave children behind.

No comments: