Whew, finals done! Two weeks of finals = no fun!
That being said, I would like to turn to the topic I mentioned earlier. Why schools in general(I mean colleges), and law school in particular have grades. In high school, people work hard, learn how to work hard and apply themselves, and in general build character. After that, is there a need for grades? In college, what do grades do for a person? Sure, they seperate people into groups and such, but do they serve a good purpose?
For a job, do employers look for high grades, or ability and connections? Would a potential employer hire you because you got all A's but cant find your way out of a hole? Conversely, would an employer hire you if you got middling grades but can in fact find your way out of said hole? How much emphasis is placed by employers on grades in college?
For a graduate degree, just how much is placed on grades? I know for law school less emphasis is placed on grades. Is it the same for all graduate institutions? Is it more your recommendations and test score or your grades? I concede that knowledge is important for graduate education, but is knowledge equivalent to grades?
I submit that colleges and education beyond should be on a pass fail system. This way, people are still seperated into groups. you either pass the class or you fail it.
Further, a pass fail system would lessen stress in college. Why work extra hard for an A? What does it give you that a pass doesn't? If the system was pass/fail, we could more be aimed at retaining the knowledge than at cramming for 24 hours and then promptly losing the information, but getting the A.
To continue, a pass/fail system would encourage more extra curricular growth. If the emphasis wasn't on making the grade, perhaps college people could experience more . After all, wasn't that one of the main ideas of college?
Finally, it seems like a trend has begun in higher education to move to a pass/fail system. If a pass/fail system is a bad idea, then why have these other schools begun to do this?
Bah, I will fix this after I have had more time to think about it and people comment.
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2 comments:
I agree with the pass/fail system. It would alleviate so much stress. And at least as far as med/law/vet schools go, it wouldn't "dumb down" the student or provide negative incentives to learn b/c there is still the bar to pass in each state. Unfortunately, though. Law shcool jobs are based on grades. If you have the contacts, you don't have to worry as much about the grades, but if no contacts then you need an A. Some firms only interview the top 5% of the class. Who are not all people I would want working for me. THe incentives in law shcool are all wrong. And I agree, if I totally cram for a class I don't retain anything. However, the classes that were lower stress and that I was interested in, I remember what I learned, even if I didn't do as well on the test.
It's competition; it's measurable results. That's why a pass-fail grading system is simply inadequate. Pass-fail does not promote competition for the highest grades; it does not provide that additional motivation to do the best, to be the best, and have the results to show for it.
I agree that pass-fail may be effective if one is required to pass some sort of cumulative examination at the end of one's schooling--such as the bar exam, but only if one's bar scores then take the place of the GPA and ranking in selective criteria. Performance in school is then made secondary to test performance and test of knowledge--but there is still a quantifiable result that allows for greater employer discernment in selecting candidates with a greater likelihood of success. Unfortunately, the bar is only a test of knowledge and not a reflection of one’s commitment to accomplishing tasks/assignments.
I would rather have an employee who can deliver a quality product/presentation/etc by the necessarily deadline than one with simply a knowledge base that can not deliver. And, grades are a reflection of not only one’s ability to deliver, but also the quality with which one can deliver—whether by ‘cramming’ or by using retained knowledge. What is most important is the resulting work and one’s commitment to excellence, not mediocrity—characteristics which are supported through the evidence of high class rank and grades.
Graduate schools want successful students, an employer wants a successful employee, and in order to predict future success, one must necessarily rely on evidence of past success. Selecting a candidate requires some reliance on prior measurable results as evidence of past success. Test scores are measurable results. Rankings are measurable results. And, whether you like it or not, they are a reflection of your commitment to hard work, your commitment to remaining competitive among your peers, AND your knowledge base.
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