90 89 84 91 87. . .(typing) 💻
It's this time of the year again when teachers like me focus solely on computing and evaluating students' grades. And if you happen to disturb us even just simply asking questions amidst our work, in response we will bark and growl at you! ( Arrrfff! Grrrr! Arrrgggfff!) Lol! Oops, don't get us wrong.
Personally, this is the time, when I gather all my concentration. I need to focus, much further, I need to be fair, firm, and efficient in giving grades.
Will I be too considerate (since we are in a pandemic)? Shall I be too strict? This and that . . .Aha! All I need to do is be honest in giving grades! And Honesty will make me an effective teacher. These are the thoughts that keep running on my mind while I am seriously computing the grades, not to say that my eyes are a little sore already. I have been looking at my laptop the whole day!!! Until . . ,
"Maam Smile, Maam! " A student interrupted.
"Yes, How may I help you"?,
"Oh-oh, I forgot to bark! Aarrrggffff!
With a pitiful face, the student continued,
"Maam could you please change my grades on the first semester. It's a little low Maam, and I need to get higher grades because I bla. Bla. bla. Bla".
"Sosmaryusep! Change?. I was giving you the grade that you deserve. Grades that reciprocate your efforts and outputs. And you kid, since you have a plan/goals like this, then why haven't you performed well at the very beginning in the first place?! And then you ask me to change your grades! Like your target is 90 but you are giving me some 75-80ish performances! You think this is a joke!" Aaa- arrrgggfff! Arrrgggfff! Arrrgggfff! These are my mind's litany (left unsaid)😅 Thank God I was able to manage and compose myself.
Grades! What is a Grade? And How important these grades are to the Grade12, Senior High students.
Grades, according to the Oxford Dictionary, is a mark indicating the quality of the student's works. So if you have High grades means you are doing well in class.
In DepEd, grades are the numerical interpretation of students' achievement in academics. Or these grades serve as a reward to students, like, 90-94, the student will be awarded as 'With Honors', for 95-97, With High Honors, and 98-100 with Highest Honors or the Gold achiever. These for sure will give pride and honor to the respective parents.
Moreover, and the most important is, having these good grades, shall I say high grades give the students the privilege to be an academic scholar at their chosen university or colleges. This also gives them the chance to apply for different scholarships both public and private as High grades are the very first requirement on the list. And What's more? They can now pursue college for FREE and with allowances and benefits.
But how about those students who couldn't get 90 and above,? those poor-performing students in the academe whose hopes and dreams to go to college for free are too far from reality?
Will you end their hope and kill that fire burning within them? Or will you compromise your credibility as a teacher and just give them high grades (for the sake of helping them) so that they can be admitted to college for free? And this is where the battle begins.
A year ago or two, President Rodrigo Duterte implemented the FREE education for all college students in State Universities/Colleges. With this program, students can now access college and take the course they want for free! Truly a great help to students who dream of having a successful future.
https://philippinescities.com/blog/list-of-free-tuition-philippines-universities-and-colleges/
But all of these are only possible, IF AND ONLY IF, students will not get a grade below 85 in all/her subject areas during Senior High School years. They must get 85 or above in all subjects to avail this Golden opportunity. Of course, all students want to grab this chance, who would not want to? Right?
So, let's put this as simple as it is, if you, a teacher happen to give below 85 it means, you are putting an end to a child's dream to go to college for free. You are depriving the student of a chance to study at college for free!
(Long pause, and thinking 🤔)
"Ang hirap nuh?"
**Are you willing to compromise your credibility as a teacher for the sake of helping a student.? When is helping not good, and when it is good not to help? **
Are grades an indicator of success?
While these are the descriptor and the indicator of the Grades set by the system, which gives pressure and worries on both students and the teacher, let's take a look at these successful people who failed in school yet are very successful in life.
- Steve Jobs
The Apple co-founder "may ... be one of the most famous dropouts in history," per Reed College, the liberal arts school in Oregon which Steve Jobs left after just one semester. ("I ran out of money," Jobs explained in a 1991 commencement speech at the school.)
- Bill Gates
Bill Gates is known as Harvard’s most successful dropout. Gates dropped out of Harvard after only two years and became one of the wealthiest men in the world after founding Microsoft with his childhood friend, Paul Allen. Over 30 years later, Gates returned to Harvard and received his degree (an honorary doctorate) in 2007.
- Mark Zuckerberg
During his time at Harvard, Mark Zuckerberg locked himself in his dorm room to found the world’s most popular social networking site—Facebook. Zuckerberg left Harvard once the site exploded in popularity and relocated to Palo Alto. He is now the youngest billionaire in the world with an estimated net worth of $4 billion.
These are just a few individuals who are successful in life but they failed in school, and the list continues to Walt Disney, Oprah Winfrey, JK Rowling, and so on who failed first in school before their major success in life. They are the living example, the proof, that in life, grades are not the indicator of success.
Yes achieving good grades is a common desire for students, but a research study conducted in 2016, shows that making good grades is not the only factor in determining one's success that character and personality predict more accurately than all other factors.
YES, grades play a pivotal role in our current educational paradigm but grades aren't the only factor. It is your SKILL, GOOD WORK HABITS, POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE, CREATIVITY, AND CHARACTER (SELF-DISCIPLINE).
"Maam, Maam, Maam Smile". Will you change my grades Maam?
I took a deep sigh. And look my student in the eye.