This is no time for grades
Due to COVID-19, CVHS is not able to function as it should. Events have been cancelled, distance learning continues, students are under stress, and grades are difficult to fairly determine. One of the most concerning adjustments for students is the new grading system, a credit or no credit system. The Olympian supports this process of grading due to the circumstances we find ourselves in.
This credit or no credit system is fair in a public high school. Many students need leniency when it comes to internet access. Although distance learning is a great alternative, it was unexpected and many students are not able to have constant access to the internet or a computer.
Furthermore, special education students also need support and may need more time on a particular lesson. Families are also facing significant problems that may include financial or medical setbacks. COVID-19 presents many difficulties in which students should be given flexibility when it comes to grading.
As simple as credit or no credit sounds, there are also drawbacks that come with the proposition. Many students will not feel motivated to complete their work. A-level students will also get the same grading mark as a B,C, or D-level students, which is a concern in the long run when it comes to transcripts.
However, due to the setbacks of COVID-19, we at The Olympian support credit-no credit because of the extreme circumstances. Students must motivate themselves to do their best and learn without grades for a change.
I believe that in the midst of a world pandemic the credit/no credit system is the best in terms of fairness across the boards. In a time unlike any other part of our living history, we are faced with situations we never had to face or were able to prepare for. Colleges were not exempt from this pandemic and shouldn’t use the way our school decided to grade against us.
I am NOT a fan of this Credit/No-Credit jalopy piece of trash. I just had my grade in Period #2, which is my Academics Class, change to a CR mark, and that is just as annoying as ever. I feel as annoyed as if I would be if the highest mark possible is a C, NOT credit, I mean the C grade that is below average, or what is normally the range from 70-79%. I think that we should use letter grades, just like in the normal school terms. What a piece of junk and garbage this pass/fail grading is!
I think they should give everybody an A for the 4th quarter, OR THEY SHOULD END THE SCHOOL YEAR EARLY! I am tired of the Credit/No-Credit and Pass/Fail grading jalopy. What a piece of junk it is.
I think credit/no credit is good because you can’t do much about grades. Grades should be the least of everybody’s worries when it comes to a worldwide pandemic.
The credit-no credit system is an excellent proposal, and should definitely be sufficient to most students’ needs. As stated in the article, some students may sometimes, or ever, be able to participate in distance learning. For students who do not have some kind of device to participate, they could go to school, pick up paper assignments, and turn them all in at the end of the week, or whenever they’re due. Giving them 0 credit when they are trying their best to participate is not very inclusive when some students have no way to get to their assignments online. But, other than the few flaws the proposal has, it should easily be good for students that have any kind of access to their assignments, besides the fact they may not be motivated to do so. I hope most students are successfully passing their classes and trying their best to do what they can.
The credit/no credit system is a great choice for online learning. As we are all new to learning digitally it gives people room to mess up and doesn’t stress out students if they mess up on something like edpuzzle. There’s room for error and there’s bound to be mistakes because people are new to online school.
I agree with the credit/no credit grading system despite the little flaws. The reason why I like this idea is because it doesn’t put as much pressure on students, we don’t have to worry about having A’s B’s or C’s that would affect our GPA scores. Second students don’t have to worry about failing as long as they put effort into doing their work and participate in certain assignments, but sometimes distance learning is confusing for students depending on how well their teachers explain. Even though teachers ask us to email them for questions, sometimes they won’t be able to reply in time before the assignment is due because he or she is answering another student’s question. Right now student’s families might be having financial problems not being able to pay bills for electricity or other things, so just because the student isn’t able to access the internet they “fail”. Also this new grading system might have an affect on a student’s motivation, not being able chase A’s or B’s and raising their GPA scores can make them lack motivation. But overall I think that it is the best grading system for distance learning.
I like the credit no credit system but its also kind of annoying because if you fall under the threshold then all your work is then useless unless you can climb back up. So its good for the circumstances but I also find it annoying
I think the credit/no credit grading isn’t completely bad but there are some flaws in the system. One of the bigger flaws is that students lack motivation to work. Since they aren’t getting a letter grade, they don’t have the motivation to work for a grade. Another reason is that students that have technical difficulties will not get credit because they “are not doing their work.” It’s just an unfair system for many people but in times like these, the credit/no credit grading system is the best we can do to ensure our students are still learning.
I am in favor of the credit/no-credit system. It does remove a lot of school-related stress that students have because they no longer have to put 100% effort into their assignments. However, because students no longer have to complete assignments to the best of their ability, this diminishes the motivation they may have to do their work. In essence, it is a 50/50 system. Not having to worry about grades which is good, but losing the motivation to complete schoolwork.
Pass/Fail grading is a good idea in some senses but is not good during the pandemic. This provides no motivation for the average student to try after they find out they can just barely try and pass the class. This will ruin student’s will to try harder if they know they have a safety net. Also this is unfair to students who want to continue to try hard if they want an A and their friend can get a pass and have the same result without trying. It is especially unfair to the students who have been trying since the beginning of the semester before the pandemic and continue to work just as hard.
I like the credit/no credit system and think it is very appropriate for the situation of our current pandemic. Doing school online has been very helpful to me and to some of my peers. There are a lot of ways that this system has been helpful for students, such as being able to do work at any time of the day they desire, having more time to complete assignments and still having the ability to contact teachers and staff for questions and concerns.
I agree with the credit/no-credit system, but I understand that students aren’t as motivated when there isn’t a grade to worry about. However, I believe the benefit of less stress from worrying about grades is very important in the midst of this stress-inducing crisis.
I both hate the credit/ no credit grading system and agree with it, because of the corona virus my productivity has completely crashed and all my motivation has gotten thrown out the window. The credit/ no credit system makes it so I don’t have to stress as much about school work affecting my gpa but also doesn’t really encourage me try my hardest to keep up with schoolwork.
I think that the pass/fail grading system is fair because it is a hard time for some people and students are just not as motivated to do school work. But i also think that the 4th grading quarter should not count and we should just end at 3rd quarter because many students are not used to and are struggling with the work at home
I like the credit /no credit system for this situation a lot. I feel like it helps me not be stressed as much about all the work because I feel like teachers have been assigning a lot more work than they usually did during school. Having this grading system makes it so its easier for the students. The only problem with it is students are more likely to have a lack of motivation.
I agree the pass/fail system is needed for the quarantine lockdown because it takes into account everyone’s situation and what they are able to do. If motivation is the problem not every assignment needs that super enthusiasm, if mental health is the problem it allows someone to focus on wellness a bit more than classwork, if technology and internet are the problem someone can do the required amount to pass with less of a struggle and stress, etc. If we were still on a letter grade system not many would be passing or getting As, and (as a response to the comment about this) giving people with no Internet access straight As is not a good solution to the problem. I appreciate all the hard working teachers and the communication from the schools. Thank you.
As a senior, I feel that this cr/nc system is actually benefitting me. It provides me more time to focus on more important assignments and study time for AP tests. I haven’t felt this free and focused on myself in all of my 4 years in high school. However, I do feel a lack of motivation to do the work sometimes because of how lenient the system is. I think underclassmen are struggling more with this system due to the need to retain the information for next year and so on. But, I think this system can help students learn to time manage and set priorities straight. I’m not that informed about how grades would change but I’m seeing now that many positive things about those taking advanced courses…
I agree that the credit/no credit system is appropriate during a pandemic, however, I find myself demotivated and not willing to learn as much because of the leniency. I try my absolute best when doing school work but with the credit/no credit, I just cut corners because it doesn’t seem worth putting in a lot of effort. Learning used to be somewhat fun, but now it just seems like a chore.
i personally don’t like the system as i have to juggle work and schoolwork at the same time, which leaves me in a tight spot. I kinda just wish they would end the school year early.
I am mixed about the credit/no credit, but I am leaning on the side that favors it. I get a lot of assignments a week plus I have to study for AP exams, so I am so overwhelmed that I don’t have time just for myself. Thanks to the credit/no credit policy, I can do assignments whenever I want and won’t be penalized if I miss a couple. I tend to complete short assignments the day it is assigned so I won’t be worried about it later in the week. Due to AP exams this month, I have been slacking in distant learning – both assignments and Zooms/Google meets. I am drained and overwhelmed by everything. I got a better understanding of the policy, so I am pacing myself and doing certain assignments that interest me and those I feel I can benefit from. This allows me to have time to myself throughout the day and then study at night. On the other hand, I feel like it also is unmotivating students, making them lose the knowledge they retained throughout the year. I know it’s a tough time for all of us, but education is also important. Distant learning is a way for seniors to be prepared for online classes during college. This lets us learn about time management and self-studying. Also, I feel like it’s unfair how those who actually put their time and effort in doing assignments will get the same credit as those who don’t do anything. I hope all is well. Put your health first and then squeeze in some learning if you can.
I think the pass/fail system is a good grading system for the circumstance we are going through due to the pandemic. Luckily, I do have access to internet and am able to do all of my assignments, but I know other people do not, or have other priorities such as work, taking care of younger siblings, etc. Even beyond that, I know it is very hard for students to stay motivated at home and even teach themselves all of this new material. For the most part, I think this system helps everyone, though it may be a little unfair to AP/Honors students since they won’t get the grade boost.
I am quite in favor of the Credit/No Credit system recently put in place. Not because I’m a bad student, but because it forces those who care to work on their time management skills! There is absolutely no reason why any of us HAVE to do the work we are assigned, but for those who feel time management skills are important, me, this is a great opportunity to build those up. You got three English assignments due in 3 days? Do one a day, and make sure they get done! This goes for all subjects.
Also by default those who are enjoying certain subjects will focus on those subjects more-so than others, and quite frankly I think that is great! It gives students an opportunity to work on the things that they enjoy. Now I understand that other classes will suffer due to this attitude, but that’s OK in my opinion.
Overall I don’t think this distance learning with credit/no credit is all that bad due to the benefits it does bring, and the way we are gonna get through this is with a good attitude not a bad one.
Have a good one.
I agree with the credit/no credit system in these circumstances as well, however as a high achieving student I find it frustrating. It is unfair that my consistent effort in the classroom and during distant learning will be reflected the same way as a student who puts minimal effort in their work. I now find it extra challenging to continue working when I know there is no way to show my efforts. AP and Honors courses also have their own set of problems with credit/no credit. With only pass or fail, grade boosts cannot be applied and gpa is irrelevant. This is a key factor in college admissions, and I am interested in seeing how it plays out.
The other part of having a grading system is pass/fail or the credit/no credit system is just unfair. If someone was to try their hardest to pass the class and there are 3 assignments that they mess up on, their grade system would put them into the fail category which would make the morale of a kid go down and break. If the student truly tries their hardest and still fails they have that on their record even if they knew everything in the class, the people looking at the record would say they didn’t know anything because they failed the course. I can’t wait to come back to school to talk to my friends and enjoy in-class sessions of class. I hope that this pandemic ends soon because I really want to do the activities that I used to do in order to get rid of my stress.
The credit or no credit grading system while being good during a pandemic, definitely does not present enough motivation. I, as well as many of my peers, are struggling to find motivation to work on assignments given by teachers when knowing that an A+ can be the same as a D. Knowing that this won’t affect our grades is not too helpful and leads to procrastination and just giving up on doing work. The credit or no credit also doesn’t help with boosting the overall semester grade and that can be problematic especially for those in AP and Honors classes.
Personally this whole online school thing is very similar to some of my friend’s accounts from college where some of the courses are entirely online. High school ultimately besides learning essentials is teaching us time management skills and if students are procrastinating their work when sometimes it may even be filling in an attendance survey proves that that isn’t working so well if that’s the case. That is also on the student depending on how motivated they are and just how important the work is to them. The different from high school and college is that college is a choice, but many treat it as it were.
I think the lenient grading system is fair because most students (A, B, C, and D-level students) are lacking motivation to doing assigned homework during the quarantine. It’s also hard to understand some homework assignments because they’re not well specified, but emailing teachers and waiting to get a reply from them takes way too long because there’s a high possibility that teachers are being bombarded with emails from hundreds of people weekly. There have also been multiple power outages which are preventing many students from turning in their homework assignments on time, and I know this from experience. Last week there was a power outage that struck near Castro Valley and San Leandro borders for about two days and I couldn’t do/turn in my homework. Along with not being able to do/ turn my homework in on time, I also didn’t receive emails on upcoming homework assignments. I think the pass/fail grading system is giving students an advantage to getting good grades because not many people are able to access the internet at times, receive emails on homework, and have to motivation to listen to lectures or read multiple pages of information.
I think that having the CR/NC or the PASS/FAIL grading system is CRUEL! Despite the fact that I DO HAVE INTERNET ACCESS, and I AM ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN DISTANCE LEARNING, I think that students that can not participate in distance learning SHOULD JUST BE ABLE TO GET ALL A’s. JUST GIVE THEM THE HIGHEST GRADE POSSIBLE (A or A+) IF THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO BE PART OF THE DISTANCE LEARNING! If students are able to participate in distance learning, THEN THEY GET WHAT THEY EARN!
Here are the reasons that I HATE THE CREDIT/NO CREDIT and the PASS/FAIL grading systems:
1. Some people will NOT have the motivation to do hard work.
2. Many people will settle for what would be JUST OK or LESS than that.
3. IT IS LIKE making it so that the highest a student can get is a C-. With the Pass/Fail or Credit/NC systems, ALL GRADES ARE TOO DARN LOW!
I can’t wait until we return on Tuesday, August 11, so that we can get rid of this CR/NC and PASS/FAIL systems and go back to the letter grades (A, B, C, D, F), and in August, when we return to the physical classrooms, I CAN’T WAIT TO SAY GOODBYE TO THIS CR/NC nonsense. I think that you all can’t wait to return to the physical classrooms in August, and we will return in August, I can tell you with a lot of certainty, and it’s VERY UNLIKELY that this will continue into the Fall Semester.
I hope everybody is doing well