I read this article today in the Free Press and it got me a little fired up.
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/dont-dock-students-for-missing-deadlines-ndp-81662227.html
The title of the article is "Don't dock students for missing deadlines: NDP". Basically, the article is saying the Manitoba government does not want to see students being deducted marks for turning in assignments late. The argument is the students capabilities and what they've learned isn't being reflected by their marks if they're penalized for turning in their work late.
What a bunch of hogwash.
What students are learning is they are able to turn in their work late and still get full credit. It takes away motivation to work hard and get the job done on time. It also creates more work for the teachers, and speaking as the husband of a teacher, teachers have enough work to do already without having to plan their lives around marking late assignments.
If there is a valid reason why work is late, and it is discussed between the student and the teacher, I have no problem with that. Real-world situations pop up (the death of a loved one, for example) and need to be accounted for. But being able to turn in assignments whenever a student wants is ridiculous. It's not fair to the students who did the work on time, it's not fair to the teachers who have to find time to mark it (even though they've already marked everyone else's), and it's not fair to the students who turn it in late because they aren't learning the importance of completing their work in a timely manner.
The trend in society these days seems to be one of holding everyone's hand, and I think it's a trend that is going to bite us in the rear end as the baby boomers retire. Adversity builds character, and getting a 10% deduction on your English assignment for being late teaches you to get the next one in on time.
More copies of Dark Awakenings for UAD!!!!
5 months ago
I agree! That is such garbage!
ReplyDeleteI read that in the paper too, I agree with you.~b
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Jay! I think it also hurts the student(s) when trying to learn time management and skills like prioritizing. Too many times parents make excuses for their children, the government doesn’t need to as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree J, the real world doesn't let you get away with not meeting deadlines, what are we teaching students when they can in school? That is madness! Getting docked marks is a natural consequence of being late - it won't damage kids in the long run.
ReplyDeleteSo here is the teacher weighing in! I think that in most cases students should be docked marks if an assignment is late, and I think most students would agree (at least those doing the work on time). Of course there are exceptions to this rule as mentioned.
ReplyDeleteTime managment and responsibility are important life skills, sometimes more so than the essay topic they are writing on. When students try to get away with this I always point out that I have deadlines. If I were to hand out their report cards late I would be in trouble, they need to get their work done ON TIME!! One of my biggest pet peeves as a teacher is late assignments, it really does mean more work for me, and trust me I have enough. I want to mark all at once, in one shot, late assignments make that difficult. Parents, and the government needs to start making excuses for their kids and start helping them to fullfill their responsibilities!