Originally Posted by Zen Scanner
Originally Posted by Bostonian
Ideally, grades in math class should reflect what math a student knows, not how he staples, but are there consequences for getting a C vs. an A in 5th grade math? For example, will the A students be sent to a different math class in 6th grade? (Sorry to the OP if she has already answered this question.)

Getting my first C in sixth grade math from this teacher's equivalent when I was in school convinced me grades were a complete fraud and certainly heavily flavored my interactions with school from then on.
In what way? It may be a lot to ask, but I was wondering whether this could be turned into a good thing. Amused contempt is in many ways the right approach to grades - get away from seeing them as a judgement of oneself, and see them as a school game which at certain times will be important to play well, but which fundamentally is far less important than learning stuff. If Val's DD could take this year as a chance to learn that, that'd be positive.

The thing that's got less attention than many other things in this thread, but which bothers me far more, is the teacher's professed unwillingness to accept maths problems solved in a way she wasn't expecting. All the rest is small, if annoying, stuff, but that's important.

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