When I put out inquiries to people who've worked in US and Moldovan schools for comparisons, the topic that received the most comentary was GRADES. There are several key differences in how we construct and communicate grades. Adapting to differences in grading systems requires intellectual and emotional work for many Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs).
Missed work PCV Natalie D. made this comparison: "In the US, teachers tell students ahead of time what their final grade is made up (i.e. 50% final exam, 10% homework, 30% tests, 10% participation), and if students don't complete an assignment or test they receive a zero and it contributes to the final grade. Here (in my school at least), if students don't do an assignment or miss a test, they just don't receive a grade, which is often better than getting a 2 or 3 [a very low grade]." The practice of not receiving a grade for missed work is so prevalent, it is often covered in presentations by US Americans about our schools. I have found it difficult to explain without visual aids and it receives mixed responses once I communicate it clearly. My Romanian language tutor saw some "pros" in terms of it incentivizing students to do all work and to take class seriously, and some "cons" in terms of it increasing teacher workload. I caused a lot of stress and confusion my first time grading student notebooks because I hadn't yet understood that missing work is not penalized. I collected student notebooks and graded them based on which information was copied correctly into them and which homework assignments were completed. Students and their parents were confused and upset by me calculating zeros for missing work into the overall grade. To deal with this, I learned to give two weeks notice before notebook collections, posting what information was expected to be in the notebook on my office door/in the classroom/now online, announcing that students should copy notes from each other if they miss class, and giving students the opportunity to complete missing information in order to raise their grade. Natalie also noted pros & cons, "In some ways I think it's better- students have more personal responsibility and agency to choose and complete their tasks, but it also makes it really hard to evaluate how students are doing." 1-10 vs. Percentages All the PCVs I've spoken with had the same grading scale I grew up with: The content of the final grade is given at the start of class (i.e. the weight of different aspects of schoolwork, exams vs. homework vs. participation) and everything is graded with percentages. Grades are given as both percentages and letters, usually with + and - options. Here, grades are given from 1 to 10. 10 is the top grade, 1 is the lowest possible. While there are official standards around what should count as a 10, a 9, an 8, and so on, actual grading practices seem to vary widely. A complaint I've heard among educators in both countries is concerns over grade inflation. PCV Beth O. shared this one: "Along those lines, students have to get the equivalent of about 30% in order to fail, which from an American standpoint seems [ridiculous]. I don't feel like I'm doing my job, even if my students are technically 'passing' because the standard of passing seems too low to me." While grades on schoolwork are given as whole numbers, the final grade is calculated to two decimals out (for example, 9.74). All of the existing grades a student has on record are averaged and are recorded in official school records and the student's report card this way. Work vs. Reputation When they exist, rubrics appear to be rarely consulted (which may be a factor of the many years of experience most partner teachers have) and a student's reputation often seems to outweigh how their work on the given assignment met (or not) the rubric. An English Education Volunteer shared with me an anecdote about grading exams. The Volunteer offered to grade a set of class tests and diligently read through every word and marked grades based on a defined rubric. Students then received grades based on the number of right/wrong answers, again, in accordance with the given rubric. When reviewing the grades, the partner teacher was shocked by several students' results - "How could you give so-and-so a 7? They are a very good student! You should have given them a 10." and "Why did you give so-and-so a 10? They are stupid, they should have a 7." The Volunteer then demonstrated how the students' work is where the grade came from and reminded the partner that they were new in a school and did not know the students well yet. My first time giving grades caused a similar confusion - why did I give "good" students low grades? why did I give "bad" students high grades? Thankfully, my partners handled the issue well by talking with students and their parents about how I graded (including sharing my spreadsheet where I had clearly marked which work was missing that caused the students to receive a lower grade) and emphasizing that I was new in the community so I couldn't know yet who "deserved" which grades. Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye! The final difference I want to highlight is how grades are distributed and individual feedback is given. When grades are returned, they are announced aloud in front of the whole class. It may be that the teacher reads off the list of students and their grades. It may be that the classwork is handed back and the students respond with their grade after their name is called. This public announcement has caused many a sweaty armpit and racing heart among PCVs! PCV Danny G. shares: "I think it's strange that grades are public -- like my partners read all of the grades to students that each person got on a test and comments on them. And they are a lot more willing to criticize students and give negative feedback. Like when she comments 'very bad' about a student in front of their friends I cringe a little bit. If they felt that the student needed a talking to they could at least ask them to stay after class. I guess in short students get less positive encouragement than what I am used to in America and they use negative motivation to try and make them be good students."
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Rebecca LehmanHealth Education volunteer serving at Boris Dînga Middle & High School in Criuleni, Moldova. Archives
May 2017
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