Grades Online - Is it a good idea?
My niece’s school district has a system in place where teachers, parents, and students have access to just about everything online - including grades.
Now I know that technology makes this possible, but is it really good to give parents the tools to micromanage their children’s lives anymore than we already do?
What happened to interim reports and end of term report cards? Aren’t they enough of a gauge on your child’s progress?
I would love to hear your opinion! Does your school district have it? Is it a good tool or no?
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POSTED IN: Education
5 opinions for Grades Online - Is it a good idea?
Jackie
Aug 29, 2007 at 10:48 am
Our school also has on line grades and it is great! I can tell when my kids have missing assignments and know when to “encourage” them to complete their work. I can also email the teachers and have found that extremely helpful - the more communication the better as far as I am concerned.
Christine
Aug 29, 2007 at 7:42 pm
I’m on the fence about this one. My oldest is a real slacker when it comes to school work. He’s smart, but he has no interest in school so he just doesn’t do his homework. So the past few years I’ve really relied on the online gradebook to make him get his assignments in. We’d ground him until all missing assignments were done and turned in. But now that he’s 15 I’m rethinking this approach. We aren’t doing him any favors by breathing down his neck. Maybe he needs to learn the consequences of not being responsible and not getting his work done by failing. But as a mother it’s really, really hard for me to let him fail. I worry he’ll have to repeat the 10th grade. Or worse drop out of school if he fails. So I don’t know.
char
Aug 30, 2007 at 7:16 am
Jackie - I am also a huge fan of communication, but I am not sure that having access to my child’s grades every day is really the kind of communication I need.
Christine - I can see how having access would be useful for parents when dealing with an unmotivated child, but I do think we need to teach kids to take responsibility for their own destinies — just make sure that we walk that fine line of in the know and interested vs. overbearing and too involved.
kathylynn
Sep 3, 2007 at 4:39 pm
The school my children go to just started this year with the ability to be able to do this. I happen to think it is a fantastic idea. I just like to know what is going on sometimes. I like being able to steer my kids in the right direction.
Kristen King
Sep 6, 2007 at 12:56 pm
I like this idea because I think it gives parents a chance to be more in touch with what their kids are doing in school on a daily basis. If you know what projects/tests/whatever are coming up, you can help your child prepare. If you have a sense of where he or she is gradewise midsemester, you can make changes if necessary or keep doing what you’re doing without having to wait until the end of the marking period to get the picture. And it’s a much more full picture than just a single grade because you get to see everything that goes into it. I’m a supporter.
kk
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