A memo from an East Harlem high school principal to his teachers, obtained by the New York Daily News, basically asks teachers to lower their standards. Would you be offended if the principal of your kid’s principal said the following to teachers?
“If you are not passing more than 65% of your students in a class, then you are not designing your expectations to meet their abilities. You are setting your students up for failure, which in turn, limits your success as a professional.”
The principal goes on to talk about the fact that many students have difficult home lives and the teachers need to review their grading policies, etc. Wouldn’t lowering expectations and giving kids grades they do not deserve be considered setting them up for failure? A diploma that is little more than an attendance record will not allow that child to compete with kids who had a challenging high school curriculum.
Given the current state of NYC public schools, what’s the right way? Lower expectations and pass kids through because you do not have the resources to bring everyone up to speed? Keep expectations where they are and only pass kids who can make it? A massive overhaul of the school system will take time, what about the kids in school now?
Read the New York Daily News article by clicking here. The article talks more about the teacher bonuses that are tied to student achievement and how the recent “grades” schools received impact school policies.
Thanks for the link, Narmer.
Posted on December 14, 2007 by loveisdope