In my city of Adelaide, schools have admitted to making year 11 easier for students. They get easier exams & are allowed to skip classes. All this is to boost their self esteem & give them better results.
An editorial comment has been published, slamming this poor practise.
I can confirm that not only is this happening in year 11, but at years 8, 9 and ten too. I know this because my step son is in one of those schools that has lower expectations.
I completely disagree with this practise.
It is totally unrealistic to allow a student to think that she/he is doing well just by turning up at lessons & doing assignments at a low level standard. It does not teach them any work habits, setting time limits, thinking, researching & improving themselves.
It is also very unfair compared to students in schools who do have to work hard & do exams to get a good mark.
Here is the editorial comment:
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,23557707-5006336,00.html
I feel like writing a comment to the editor. Would you?
What is your experience of high school expectations?
[question posted by jennybianca]
responses and comments:
I experienced teaching in a school that lowered it standards just to please the parents... it is a so called International School... that caters to foreigners and the richest family in town... those who made it to the top 3 honor roll are like only the average students in the first school that i taught in... I think this sort of strategy is giving the students a false sense of achievement... and i don't think they will be able to cope up with the demands of college... if that is how they are being treated in high school... [aseretdd]
Thanks for the best response mark... [aseretdd]
IMO this is terribly wrong. What a disservice they are doing to these young people. We are all aware that life is not easy and this will not prepare them for what lies ahead and the challenges they will face and have to overcome. [whiteheather39]
I agree completely. Hubby says some schools are doing this to keep their stats looking good. The Education Department say they are doing it "to meet the needs of students". It's kind of like a catch phrase. [jennybianca]
Hi jennybianca! I completely agree with your opinion on this my friend. I believe that in boosting a student self esteem doesn't mean you have to lower the standard or the quality of education. There are other ways to boost their confidence. Because if you lower the standards and make them believe that they are doing well despite that they don't, the school is just producing students who are under achievers. Setting rules and regulations are also form of discipline. What I really am driving at is high school is a preparation to a more intensive education which is college. The youth should have a strong foundation on education and discipline. If this won't be formed in high school, how can they achieve a great result when they are in college or when they are facing the real world after school? Maybe to a few this kind of set up will work but to a greater few, I don't think that lowering the expectations will yield a great result. Just my thoughts. take care and have a nice day! happy [faith210]
Hi jennybianca! Glad to know we are thinking the same on this! Take care and have a nice day! happy [faith210]
i am not agree with this editorial. Education is a training for every student to become a better person on their generation how can they become better person if they don't passed the test of hardship in school, they feel relax and without even force to do anything to speed up their mind and thinking skills. In our school we had the hardest time ever in my life. I learned a lot like self confidence, patience, leadership, hardwork and so on. School is the best training ground of every person nowadays. [julyteen]
The editorial was against this easy life at school too! [jennybianca]
Wow, this comes to me as a shocking surprise, Jenny. I went to high school in Queensland in the 70's and our standards were so high American exchange students were having a hard time. And they were the smart ones. When I came to the USA I was in the 10th grade. With all the credits/grades from Australia transferred the school here placed me as a sophomore (2nd year) in college. Hopefully this practise of lower expectations will not last. [gtargirl]
The high schools vary a great deal ,in South Australia. The State high school my 15 year old daughter goes to is very strict & the standards very high. The one my step son goes to is just like the example I gave in this discussion. [jennybianca]
My daughter is now in grade eleven and she is having a hard time in some of her clases. There is not enough help during school hours for her to learn how to do some subjects. I hope she passes. [stephcjh]
Lol Jenny here too in india, the standard of education is going down, to increase the percent of literate persons , in pen and paper the government adopts such measures, the students are shown to have passed high school, but they are very poor in knowledge......... Thank you so much for this discussion. lolI enjoyed responding it keep sharing, rasp cheers surrender Happy posting. ARUN [arun2009]