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Show lessons, Fail 2003 page 7 Do Grades Even Mean Anything? BY KIRA JONES JJ /*"** tudents shouldn't worry so much about grades, but ^^ more about learning and absorbing the material... <J If students do the latter, the other will come on its own," said Scott Sampson, assistant professor of geology and geophysics. So, why is it that so many students worry about their final grades? Perhaps what influences a student's understanding of a "grade" is the way society is continuously applying more prestige to academics. Some argue that grades are an unfair reflection of students abilities, since students and teachers have different ideas about what a grade means or represents. Some see grades as something to be obtained while others see them as something to be earned. Students and faculty at the University of Utah seem to agree that grades are used as a measurement of knowledge. Whether a grade should be the only representation of knowledge is another thing. The philosophy behind obtaining or earning grades differs between students and faculty. Freshman business major, Greg Price stated, "grades are more of a stepping stone to a good career, not a reflection of my abilities. I don't care much about grades as long as 1 am able to get a good career." Price believes that grades are not a sure determinant of a person's capabilities especially when grades do not always transfer from one university to the next. "An A at the University of Utah may not be the same as an A from Harvard and vice versa." Some students view grades as obstacles, which have to be overcome in order to continue their career path. Other students believe that grades are something that must be given as an evaluation of skill, ability and knowledge; a definition shared by many faculty. Grades are a method used to assess a student's understanding of material covered in class. They reflect whether a student is learning what is expected of them or not. However, determining grades is sometimes a subjective task. A student may be trying their hardest and still not get an A. Grades do not take into account that a student may work 30 hours at a job while taking nine credit hours, three credits shy of a full load. Course grades certainly don't allow for external factors, which may have a direct effect on a student's performance. Several professors at the University of Utah commented that in a perfect world grades would not be given because students would be in class for the sole purpose of learning. Instead, students set their goals on getting a final grade. Yet professors agree that grades are the most accurate way to assess what information a student retains from course material. Many professors agree if there were a better way to evaluate a student's learning, they would use it, but there haven't been any realistic solutions presented. Students are stuck in the mindset of obtaining grades. It would be difficult to break their concentration on the letter grade and teach them to focus on the information at hand. While there are numerous theories and ideas of what a grade means, the fact is that the academic system requires grades to be given as a standard of measurement. "Students need to process information, which is where exams come from and grades are a reflection of that," Sampson said. Many students avoid courses with a reputation for a heavy workload so they don't have to risk getting a poor grade on the final exam. Tests and assignments reflect how much information a student has retained or has been able to memorize. The definition of a grade may differ depending on class size. For larger courses, grades cannot accurately assess the analytical thinking taught. Such courses as Psychology 1010 and introductory math classes, which seat well over 200 students at a time, make it challenging for an instructor to fully evaluate each student's ability. In these classes, grading is based primarily on tests with correct or incorrect answers and little room for interpretation. Students who do not showcase what they've learned on a multiple choice test aren't able to earn a high grade. This, students say, is a problem when defining a grade as a representation of their abilities. Smaller courses have the ability to better evaluate the effort and level of thinking invested by the student. With fewer |