San Diego Schools “change” grading to account for “racism”….. effort, attendance, results, not relevant…

San Diego Schools announced effort, attendance, tests and quizzes will no longer drive grading because it would be racist….. The district further sites more frequent failing grades from minorities than whites as the evidence that it is racist…. Could it be that the difference in grades is based on the fact that Asians study 2x that of white students and 3x that of black and therefore Asians and whites post better grades as a result? (data below on study times).

“District officials evidently believe that the practice of grading students based on their average score is racist, and that an active effort to dismantle racism necessitates a learning environment free of the pressure to turn in assignments on time. As evidence for the urgency of these changes, the district released data showing that minority students received more Ds and Fs than white students: Just 7 percent of whites received failing grades, as opposed to 23 percent of Native Americans, 23 percent of Hispanics, and 20 percent of black students.

Under the new system, students will not be penalized for failing to complete assignments, and teachers will give them extra opportunities to demonstrate mastery of subjects. The grades they receive upon completion of a course will no longer reflect their average test and assignment scores. “Common grading practices such as averaging a student’s grade over time can disadvantage students who started the year behind grade level and can discredit the progress a student has made, experts have said,” noted The San Diego Union Tribune.

The new approach—which is rather confusingly written—still includes letter grades, but these will reflect student’s “mastery” of the subject rather than their completion of homework, quizzes, and tests. What constitutes mastery is left unexplained. Grades “shall not be influenced by behavior or factors that directly measure students’ knowledge and skills in the content area,” which sounds like a recipe for highly subjective grading. And a great deal of leniency will now be given to students who don’t do the work for a course, including those who don’t show up at all: Attendance can no longer be a factor in grading.” Reason.com

Yet studies (Brookings Institution) continue to show dramatic difference by race in terms of time spent every day on homework….perhaps effort, attendance, behavior and results are the right measures after all….

And how exactly is the black vs Hispanic vs white vs Asian homework "inequality" a product of systemic racism"? And how exactly would #reparations resolve it?#SystemicRacism #StructuralRacism#InstitutionalRacism #SubconsciousRacism pic.twitter.com/5oyAmDzedS

— Larry Elder (@larryelder) June 14, 2020