Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion How petty can teachers get!?!

I looked up DD's grades last night since our semester will soon be over. Of course she is doing very well in all her classes, but I noticed one class was a little lower than it had been. I looked to see if maybe DD didn't get something turned in or something.
This is what I found - DD got a 2 out of 10 on something the teacher labeled "listening". I looked further and found that DD got the grade for "bad behavior in class" while the class was supposed to be listening to a video on Haiku Poetry. Now really - should teachers be grading on behavior!?! DD had told me about this incident - she had been messing with something she brought to school without our knowledge and it had been taken away.
I have a problem with this, but it didn't really bring her grade down since it was only 10 points - still I'd like to know if other students are being graded on their behavior? I don't think this is really something I need to address with the teacher or anything, but it is just frustating. I will keep an eye on this class just in case.

Of course they should be (imho). They are in our district.

For example, a friend's daughter got a low grade in the "oral" component for language. This girl is a fantastic public speaker and a strong reader, so her mom was perplexed. She asked the teacher and was told that "listening" is a component of oral. Bingo! This girl has ADHD and has poor listening skills because of her ADHD behaviours.

I think this is legit. In our schools, the kids are not groomed to be "test takers" as much as they are equipped with life skills. (They do take tests of course and have to meet provincial curriculum objectives, but they are also required to learn behaviours that will help them in life, such as social skills and listening).

Listening skills are extremely important. I had horrible listening skills when I was a kid, and that is what kept me from being grade-accelerated. If I had been given the guidance when I was young to develop better listening skills, my academic life might have been a lot different.

My ADHD kid, meanwhile, is being given support for his listening issues (time with a SLP, access to technology, EA time, etc.) His report card is pretty bad, but he's in grade 3... how much do marks really count in grade 3?

Just my opinion... others might not agree...

Yes, children are graded on behaviors in our school as well - particularly if the grade/assessment involves a behavior (like poetry/language arts involves listening and attending, ykim?)Anyway, unless your DD has an IEP/504 that allows her or excuses her for certain behaviors, I would think it valid. So, for example, my DS has hypotonia... during circle time, one is suppose to sit in 'criss-cross apples sauce position' and listen; DS was grade low for listening in circle time because he kept laying down or wanted to sit in a chair more supportive of his back. It wasn't until I brought the 504 to the teacher's attention that that he was permitted alternative sitting arrangements and that was no longer held against him (granted this was kindergarten so it's not like they really had grades but I think you get what I am saying).

I understand getting into trouble for not listening when she is supposed to, but I don't know about being graded down for it. I bet if the teacher had asked her to summarize the video or repeat the poem she could have because she probably was listening - she was just messing with something (she shouldn't have been) at the same time. I also think what is rubbing me wrong is the wording the teacher used - "bad behavior in class". There are so many different ways to say that she was not paying attention when she should have been.

If teachers aren't going to quantitatively test student listening skills, then it shouldn't be incorporated into their grades.


The appearance of listening is not the same as actually listening, and similarly, the appearance of being distracted does not necessarily mean the student is not processing the information being presented.

Another point: behavioural issues are a huge red flag for curriculum mis-match, and if identified (and noted on the report card) by the teacher, can contribute to help for the child.

For example, another friend of mine has a very clever daughter in grade 2 (she`s probably gifted). Sure enough, behaviour issues are all over her report card, which has initiated discussions between her mom and the teacher about testing and enrichment.

I agree with you here, 100%. It should have been worded differently.

1frugalmom--I would also have been upset at finding out that this was a problem in this way; if the teacher was thinking to grade down on it, I think it would have been appropriate (and likely to have a much better outcome all around) for them to bring it to your attention to allow for possible outside help and intervention or counseling or whatever. Having said that, our DD has the same issue this year (and in the past) of appearing to not pay attention during lectures, and the (nice) teacher was upset by this because although sometimes DD actually was listening/absorbing the material, other times she was not, and regardless, her clearly inattentive behavior was distracting to the other children. With positive support from the teacher this year, we've been able to discuss and reinforce appropriate behavior at home and her in-school behavior has gradually improved, although she still slips up. I'm not sure what grade your DD is in (ours is in 4th), but until kids get to high school or unless it affects whether they can get into accelerated classes (not an option where we are anyway), I don't think grades really matter all that much (in the sense of not being detrimental to their future). It's really in your DD's interest to be able to pretend to listen, and although this teacher seems to probably be a bad fit and not very helpful, there might be other more helpful teachers down the road who could be put off by distracting behavior and it could cause even more trouble for your DD. So difficult as it is under the circumstances (and I have been there too!!!), please consider gritting your teeth and trying to discuss this with the teacher in a collaborative and friendly way to see if you can work with DD to improve her behavior for the future. It may be a lost cause with this teacher (probably is, given that this is how they chose to handle it), but the best you can hope for is getting something positive out of it anyway for your DD, and remember, the year is half over! Best of luck!

Since this seems to only have happened once, I don't think I'd think twice about it. I'm guessing that this was a one-time thing that happened when your dd brought whatever it was to class that she wasn't supposed to, and that if it was an ongoing issue the teacher would have contacted you at some point.

Re your question, yes, my kids teachers do grade on behavior and I don't see an issue with it. If there was an ongoing issue and I felt the teacher was misinterpreting my child's actions I'd meet with the teacher to discuss what was up.

polarbear

I taught high school and a small percentage of the final grade was based on "participation"-- in district we were advised to include this because we couldn't grade down for say attendance but this have us leeway if kids were gone alllll the time (like rich kids whose families do whatever), or kids who cut and then parents excuse them so they legally could make up the work. Anyway I ended up using it as a way to reward those who tried very hard, contributed a lot to the class, quietly kept their focus or helped others. If I had to stand over a kid daily and beg him to work, he got dinged. Everyone else got neutral points.