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Students who do no work, but ace tests

Discussion in ' Debate & Marathon Threads Archive ' started by RadiantBerg , Jan 18, 2014 .

RadiantBerg

RadiantBerg Cohort

Jan 18, 2014

I currently have one student (I have a few others that are similar, but a less extreme) who has around a 10% as a homework average, but he manages to get 90s on all the tests. Tests/quizzes are worth 80% of the grade in my class and homework/classwork is worth 20%. This student averages a C, even though his test/quiz average shows "A" level understanding of the material. He just gets the material based on paying attention in class, and sees no need to do the practice. (And yes, I have tried giving "differentiated" homework to offer a challenge if the regular homework is too easy or boring for him, but he didn't do that either. My homework is also generally very short---takes less than 20 minutes...usually around 10-15. ) What do you do for students like this? Would you consider giving him a grade higher than the one calculated? I've thought about at least bumping him to a B, but at the same time, I want him to learn to be responsible and don't want to reward him for blowing off the homework. This would set a dangerous precedent for other students so I will most likely not do this.  

atoz

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Jeky

Jeky Comrade

Just out of curiosity, have you talked to him about it? Does he care that he is getting a C when he clearly understands the material? Has he actually said that he doesn't do the homework because it's too easy for him? In terms of his grade, I'm torn. What grade/subject do you teach? What is your purpose for assigning homework? If the purpose is to give extra practice so that they can master the standards, well... I mean, if your grade is meant to reflect standard mastery and he is showing that he has, ideally his grade should reflect that. On the other hand, though, I don't think that 20% of the grade based on homework is unreasonable at all. In addition, if that is the precedent you have set for your class, I don't think it's fair to change it now. Is there a place on your report card where you can reflect his lack of homework completion, other than the actual letter grade? A work habits section maybe?  

comaba

comaba Cohort

Clearly, he's mastered the content. I would give him an A. Perhaps differentiating the test would motivate him to do the homework.  

HistoryVA

HistoryVA Devotee

He earned a C, he gets a C. If a student passes all my tests/quizzes with Ds and is getting an E because of homework (10% of grade), I won't let them fail on hw alone, but otherwise, you get what you decide to get. I've talked to many students who make this choice and they understand the choice they're making- it's just not worth it to them to earn the A. Sometimes, they're taking AP classes as well and they'd rather concentrate on that class and skate through mine. Their call.  

otterpop

otterpop Phenom

Jan 19, 2014

HistoryVA said: ↑ He earned a C, he gets a C. Click to expand...

Myrisophilist

Myrisophilist Habitué

My personal feelings align with HistoryVA and otterpop. However, since my school is going to proficiency-based and summative assessments are 80% of the grade, this situation would be fine. It's a tough call. I would ask myself, "Does the student know the material?" and I would also talk to them, as others have suggested.  

2ndTimeAround

2ndTimeAround Phenom

He earned a C. If he is smart enough to get an A then he is smart enough to realize the impact of his choices.  

orangetea

orangetea Connoisseur

In my class, he would get a C. My homework is often extension activities and has more challenging problems than I give on tests, so it needs to get done.  

catnfiddle

catnfiddle Moderator

I usually pull those students aside and show them their grade books. It usually triggers a discussion of how quantity is overriding quality, that they're "an A student trapped in a C student outlook." That often gets me some late assignments turned in, which I gladly accept for credit.  
My job is not only to teach a set of a standards but to prepare my students for the next course they'll be taking in our discipline. That next course requires homework. You simply cannot be successful in it if you do not do work outside of class time. Giving a student an A when he earned a C is only encouraging him to slack off even more next year.  

Go Blue!

Go Blue! Connoisseur

I don't mind bumping up a student's grade when they make a real effort - even if they perform poorly on tests. No effort, but good test grades? You get what you get.  

gr3teacher

gr3teacher Phenom

Obviously it's quite different in elementary school... but for a kid like that, with our standards based report cards, they'd get a 4 for the standard. The only negative consequence would come in their "Life and Citizenship Skills" ratings.  

dgpiaffeteach

dgpiaffeteach Aficionado

This is partially why I stopped assigning as much homework and why it's worth 10% of their grade when I do. I care that they learn the standards and are prepared. If they're not responsible, it will show in other areas like projects and papers.  
Go Blue! said: ↑ I don't mind bumping up a student's grade when they make a real effort - even if they perform poorly on tests. No effort, but good test grades? You get what you get. Click to expand...

Honest_Teacher

Honest_Teacher Comrade

platypusok

platypusok Companion

My job is not only to teach a set of a standards but to prepare my students for the next course they'll be taking in our discipline. That next course requires homework. You simply cannot be successful in it if you do not do work outside of class time. Giving a student an A when he earned a C is only encouraging him to slack off even more next year. Click to expand...

a2z

a2z Virtuoso

If a student can skip all of the homework and ace tests and quizzes and do a good job on projects, obviously the student doesn't need to do the rest of the work to show they understand and can apply the standards. Not doing homework when it is not needed actually shows me that the student knows what he or she is capable of and doesn't want to waste his or her time doing work that will not be beneficial. That is a huge skill in life - knowing what is worth the time and what is just a waste of time. Doing something just because you are told to do so just produces compliant drones when a student doesn't need to do the work to be successful. There are plenty of times in life students will learn to comply. The other issue to look at is if the class is designed such that a student just has to pay attention in class to be able to ace a test. A kid that is a natural in math might be able to do this, but some classes such as English don't always assess what they think they are assessing. Most don't assess reading comprehension nor do they assess analysis if the information asked by the prompt has already been discussed in class. Asking about themes in a novel or foreshadowing after this has all been discussed in class doesn't test the students ability to do anything except regurgitate information provided in class.  

kpa1b2

kpa1b2 Aficionado

I'm not a high school teacher, and I'm just throwing this out as an option: Could he take the final exam now and test out of the class? Then he could be moved to a class that is more challenging for him? Or, could someone stress to him the importance of good grades when it comes to college acceptance and scholarships?  
a2z said: ↑ Not doing homework when it is not needed actually shows me that the student knows what he or she is capable of and doesn't want to waste his or her time doing work that will not be beneficial. That is a huge skill in life - knowing what is worth the time and what is just a waste of time. Doing something just because you are told to do so just produces compliant drones when a student doesn't need to do the work to be successful. There are plenty of times in life students will learn to comply. Click to expand...
Myrisophilist said: ↑ Do you really believe the student has thought deeply enough about the homework to come to this conclusion? It's most likely that he just doesn't want to do it because it's work. Click to expand...
I disagree about English a2z. We may discuss a theme in class, but they must be able to defend that theme with evidence from the text. If they can't do that part, they're not passing. It is very easy to see who actually understood the reading and its theme and who just wants to use class discussions. The latter don't provide evidence that makes sense. I would also never test over something that's not taught in class. I can't imagine asking my students to analyze a theme and never reviewing what a theme is with them. We will use it in later units too though and then I don't review it since we've been over it. You may disagree but it works well for us. It's not a strict did you get it correct or not subject. I also rarely do comprehension level questions. Your reading comp level comes across in analysis questions. In high school, my social studies and science classes were just regurgitating information from lectures. No application. English and French truly challenged me.  

Pashtun

Pashtun Fanatic

He gets an A in my class. If he knows the content, he knows the content. If you don't think he deserves an A, I would start putting material on the homework or in the independent reading that you DO NOT talk about in class and that will show up on the test.  
dgpiaffeteach said: ↑ I disagree about English a2z. We may discuss a theme in class, but they must be able to defend that theme with evidence from the text. If they can't do that part, they're not passing. It is very easy to see who actually understood the reading and its theme and who just wants to use class discussions. The latter don't provide evidence that makes sense. I would also never test over something that's not taught in class. I can't imagine asking my students to analyze a theme and never reviewing what a theme is with them. We will use it in later units too though and then I don't review it since we've been over it. You may disagree but it works well for us. It's not a strict did you get it correct or not subject. I also rarely do comprehension level questions. Your reading comp level comes across in analysis questions. In high school, my social studies and science classes were just regurgitating information from lectures. No application. English and French truly challenged me. Click to expand...
a2z said: ↑ For gosh sakes, how hard does someone really need to think to determine that the standard required homework isn't necessary to learn the material. I think many highly intelligent kids know the work being expected is unnecessary but most will do it because they don't want to deal with the negative attitude they get from not complying. And yes, I do know many smart kids that in certain classes know they don't have to do a bit of homework because the class is designed to provide everything they need if they just show up and listen. The kids that can ace the tests working this matter are intelligent enough to think about this. I don't think you give the kids enough credit. Click to expand...

readingrules12

readingrules12 Aficionado

RadiantBerg said: ↑ Would you consider giving him a grade higher than the one calculated? I've thought about at least bumping him to a B, but at the same time, I want him to learn to be responsible and don't want to reward him for blowing off the homework. This would set a dangerous precedent for other students so I will most likely not do this. Click to expand...
readingrules12 said: ↑ I think there is a short-term answer and a long-term answer. Short-term--you and/or your school have a policy in place where he has earned a "C" for a grade. I believe it is important to follow the rules created and give him the "C" he deserves. Long term--I think you make an excellent point when you say, I want him to learn to be responsible and don't want to reward him for blowing off the homework. I agree. In real life, being smart often isn't enough. We had a teacher who was one of the smartest teachers I ever taught with. She was put on probation and eventually left when it was rumoured her contract might not be renewed. She had poor work habits often not turning in lesson plans or other required work. I knew her well and she would boast how she got straight A's in high school and college without doing assigned reading or homework. I think deep down she wished her teachers would have held her more accountable for her work. If you want to change policies a bit now or a lot for next year, I think that is fine. I wouldn't recommend it though. I think your current grade policy is very fair and beneficial to your students. Click to expand...
kpa1b2 said: ↑ I'm not a high school teacher, and I'm just throwing this out as an option: Could he take the final exam now and test out of the class? Then he could be moved to a class that is more challenging for him? Or, could someone stress to him the importance of good grades when it comes to college acceptance and scholarships? Click to expand...
a2z said: ↑ I'm happy to hear that you are expecting much, much more. It is good to know. Unfortunately, not all are dgpiaffeteachs. Click to expand...
RadiantBerg said: ↑ My school would have a HUGE problem with this. They need to have the required skills to move on to the next course, which is why homework/classwork/"fluff" can't exceed 20% of the grade. Click to expand...
Honest_Teacher said: ↑ Is the point of a grade to reflect mastery of skills, or is it to reflect effort? Click to expand...

Rockguykev

Rockguykev Connoisseur

The fact that we still have this argument shows how pointless grades are. We can't even agree with my 5 person department on what grades ought to reflect so there's no way the education system in general is going to do so. Personally, I think with kids like that you set out a individualized plan. We do so with lower achieving kids so why not the higher? It is far more important for high achievers to learn what is important to spend their time on then to learn to just put in whatever is asked. The economics of time is far too often ignored in our desire to have compliant students.  
Go Blue! said: ↑ Where I teach, if we waited for fully mastery - no one would ever graduate. Click to expand...
Honest_Teacher said: ↑ A "passing" grade shouldn't be set at "full mastery." Click to expand...
It's interesting, in all of this, to hear about different districts' grading policies. My district has, for some bizarro reason, gone so far AWAY from assessment-based grading that a student who aced every test, but literally refused to take do any work would have about a 30% at the end of the semester (assuming he took his quizzes as asked). Tests are only worth 20% in my district.  

ajr

This makes me incredibly glad I'm out of highschool, because this is ridiculous. None of my upper level math classes have more than 10% homework grade, and most don't have any homework grade whatsoever. The homework is a small cross section of covered topics, and there's a larger set of additional study problems. It's up to the student to figure out where to best spend their time studying, and even per-subject, what areas they understand least. Then there are the classes that don't have any formal grading policies whatsoever. Beyond that, algebra isn't as hard as people are making it out to be. People struggle with it because they're being asked to learn something they really couldn't care less about, so memorizing inane rules takes a long time. If he has even a mild interest in math, it's perfectly believable to me that he doesn't need to study. You only need to understand a very small set of rules to generate all of elementary algebra. Not everyone who is smart and can get the work done is motivated to do that work by meaningless letters on a piece of paper, and that there are good career paths for people regardless of highschool performance - as long as you graduate. I think I got out of highschool with a 1.2 GPA. Personally, I'm rooting for that kid. Pass highschool with that C and get away from the idiocy of it, two years of cheap community college, and then transfer to a four year. Or go to votech training. Or skip that and go straight into the workforce, if he has marketable interests.  

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What to Do If Your Teen Has Failing Grades in High School

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Finding out your teen has failing grades can be frustrating and scary. After all, failed classes could mean a lower GPA, difficulty getting into college, and perhaps even trouble graduating from high school on time. When high school students fall behind in their classes, catching up can be quite difficult. When grades begin to plummet, many teens give up.

If your teen is failing a class—or they're already failed the entire semester—take action. There are several things you can do to address the issue.

Identify the Problem

If your teen has a failing grade or is in danger of not passing, sit down and discuss the problem. Ask your teen for help uncovering the reasons they are not passing. Sometimes students who start out strong get sidetracked, while other students just aren’t motivated to stay on track.

Talk to your teen and examine whether or not any of these issues have contributed to a failing grade.

  • Are the classes too hard? Sometimes teens sign up for classes that are just too difficult and they become overwhelmed.
  • Is your child not doing the homework? If your teen isn’t doing homework, it will be extremely difficult to pass a class. Find out if homework isn’t completed, not turned in on time, or if your child doesn’t understand how to do it.
  • Are low test scores a problem? Some students struggle with test anxiety or aren’t sure how to study for tests.
  • Has your child had a lot of absences? If your child has missed school due to illness or other issues, it can severely interfere with grades.
  • Is your child under a lot of stress? If your teen is stressed out, they may have difficulty concentrating and completing his work.
  • Could a mental health issue be part of the problem? Mental health problems , such as depression or anxiety often contribute to failing grades. Substance abuse issues can also be a factor in declining grades. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disabilities can impact concentration, motivation, comprehension, and memory.

Talk to the Teachers

Although your teen may not want you to talk to their teachers, it’s important to speak with them to help determine the problem. Your teen may not be aware that they're not paying attention in class or that they're missing a lot of work. Ask for teachers’ opinions about what your child needs to do differently to pass the class.

Consider whether your child may have a learning disability as well. Sometimes learning disabilities or ADHD go undiagnosed until the high school years. Inquire about whether or not educational or psychological testing could be helpful.  

Problem-Solve With Your Teen

Once you have a better idea of why they're failing, sit down and problem-solve with your teen . Discuss they're ideas about how they can improve their grade. Sometimes, simple yet creative solutions can make a big difference.

  • Do they need more structure with homework? Some teens just can’t handle having too much freedom about when and where to do their work. Establishing a scheduled homework time can help.
  • Do they have difficulty remembering what they have for homework? Teens who are disorganized often misplace their papers or forget to bring their work home. Identify strategies to help your teen get more organized.
  • Do they forget to write down their assignments? Some teens try to remember all of their assignments without an assignment book. Other teens forget to write their assignments down. Having your teen write down their work and asking the teacher to initial it after each class can ensure that their assignments are written down.
  • Do they need extra help? Many teens are afraid to ask for help because they are embarrassed or they just don’t understand, even when the teacher tries to explain the concepts again. Staying after school for extra help, meeting with a tutor, or joining a homework club can be helpful strategies for many students.
  • Are they just not motivated to do their work? Sometimes teens just aren’t all that motivated to complete their work. They may have lost interest or are just bored with a particular subject. Discuss strategies that will help motivate your teen to get their work done.

A Word From Verywell

Work together to develop a plan to address failing grades. Discuss possible strategies to help them improve their grade, such as arranging for tutoring. If they're not able to pass the class, talk to the school about alternative options such as summer school or adult education classes.

Steinmayr R, Crede J, McElvany N, Wirthwein L. Subjective well-being, test anxiety, academic achievement: Testing for reciprocal effects .  Front Psychol . 2016;6:1994. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01994

Pascoe MC, Hetrick SE, Parker AG. The impact of stress on students in secondary school and higher education .  Int J Adolesc Youth . 2020;25(1):104-112. doi:10.1080/02673843.2019.1596823

Schulte-Körne G. Mental health problems in a school setting in children and adolescents .  Dtsch Arztebl Int . 2016;113(11):183-190. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2016.0183

Patte KA, Qian W, Leatherdale ST. Binge drinking and academic performance, engagement, aspirations, and expectations: A longitudinal analysis among secondary school students in the COMPASS study .  Health Promot Chronic Dis Prev Can . 2017;37(11):376–385. doi:10.24095/hpcdp.37.11.02

Kent KM, Pelham WE Jr, Molina BS, et al. The academic experience of male high school students with ADHD .  J Abnorm Child Psychol . 2011;39(3):451–462. doi:10.1007/s10802-010-9472-4

American Academy of Pediatrics. What to do if your child is falling behind in school .

By Amy Morin, LCSW Amy Morin, LCSW, is the Editor-in-Chief of Verywell Mind. She's also a psychotherapist, an international bestselling author of books on mental strength and host of The Verywell Mind Podcast. She delivered one of the most popular TEDx talks of all time.

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14 Tips for Test Taking Success

Worried about getting through your next big exam? Here are 14 test taking strategies that can help you do your best on your next test.

Mary Sharp Emerson

From pop quizzes to standardized tests, exams are an important part of the life of every high school student.

The best way to ensure that you’ll get the grade you want is to understand the material thoroughly. Good test taking skills, however, can help make the difference between a top grade and an average one. Mastering these skills can also help reduce stress and relieve test-taking anxiety. 

In this blog, we’ve divided our tips for test taking into two categories: seven things you can do to prepare for your next exam and seven things you should do once the test begins. We’ve also included four strategies that can help with test taking anxiety.

We hope these test taking tips will help you succeed the next time you are facing an exam, big or small!

Seven Best Strategies for Test Prep

You’ve probably heard the quote (originally credited to Alexander Graham Bell): “Preparation is the key to success.”

When it comes to test taking, these are words to live by. 

Here are the seven best things you can do to make sure you are prepared for your next test.

1. Cultivate Good Study Habits

Understanding and remembering information for a test takes time, so developing good study habits long before test day is really important. 

Do your homework assignments carefully, and turn them in on time. Review your notes daily. Write out your own study guides. Take advantage of any practice tests your teacher gives you, or even create your own. 

These simple steps, when done habitually, will help ensure that you really know your stuff come test day. 

2. Don’t “Cram”

It might seem like a good idea to spend hours memorizing the material you need the night before the test.

In fact, cramming for a test is highly counterproductive. Not only are you less likely to retain the information you need, cramming also increases stress, negatively impacts sleep, and decreases your overall preparedness.

So avoid the temptation to stay up late reviewing your notes. Last minute cramming is far less likely to improve your grade than developing good study habits and getting a good night’s sleep.

3. Gather Materials the Night Before

Before going to bed (early, so you get a good night’s sleep), gather everything you need for the test and have it ready to go. 

Having everything ready the night before will help you feel more confident and will minimize stress on the morning of the test. And it will give you a few extra minutes to sleep and eat a healthy breakfast.

4. Get a Good Night’s Sleep

And speaking of sleep…showing up to your test well-rested is one of the best things you can do to succeed on test day.

Why should you make sleep a priority ? A good night’s sleep will help you think more clearly during the test. It will also make it easier to cope with test-taking stress and anxiety. Moreover, excellent sleep habits have been shown to consolidate memory and improve academic performance, as well as reduce the risk of depression and other mental health disorders. 

5. Eat a Healthy Breakfast

Like sleeping, eating is an important part of self-care and test taking preparation. After all, it’s hard to think clearly if your stomach is grumbling.

As tough as it can be to eat when you’re nervous or rushing out the door, plan time in your morning on test day to eat a healthy breakfast. 

A mix of complex carbohydrates and healthy protein will keep you feeling full without making you feel sluggish. Whole wheat cereal, eggs, oatmeal, berries, and nuts may be great choices (depending on your personal dietary needs and preferences). It’s best to avoid foods that are high in sugar, as they can give you a rush of energy that will wear off quickly, leaving you feeling tired.

And don’t forget to drink plenty of water. If possible, bring a bottle of water with you on test day.

6. Arrive Early

Arriving early at a test location can help decrease stress. And it allows you to get into a positive state of mind before the test starts. 

Choose your seat as soon as possible. Organize your materials so they are readily available when you need them. Make sure you are physically comfortable (as much as possible). 

By settling in early, you are giving yourself time to get organized, relaxed, and mentally ready for the test to begin. Even in a high school setting, maximizing the time you have in the test classroom—even if it’s just a couple of minutes—can help you feel more comfortable, settled, and focused before the test begins. 

7. Develop Positive Rituals

Don’t underestimate the importance of confidence and a positive mindset in test preparation. 

Positive rituals can help combat negative thinking, test anxiety, and lack of focus that can easily undermine your success on test day. Plan some extra time to go for a short walk or listen to your favorite music. Engage in simple breathing exercises. Visualize yourself succeeding on the test. 

Your rituals can be totally unique to you. The important thing is developing a calming habit that will boost your confidence, attitude, and concentration when the test begins.

Explore College Programs for High School Students at Harvard Summer School.

Seven Best Test-Taking Tips for Success

You have gotten a good night’s sleep, eaten a healthy breakfast, arrived early, and done your positive test-day ritual. You are ready to start the test! 

Different types of tests require different test taking strategies. You may not want to approach a math test the same way you would an essay test, for example. And some computerized tests such as SATs require you to work through the test in a specific way.

However, there are some general test taking strategies that will improve your chances of getting the grade you want on most, if not all, tests. 

1. Listen to the Instructions

Once the test is front of you, it’s tempting to block everything out so you can get started right away. 

Doing so, however, could cause you to miss out on critical information about the test itself.

The teacher or proctor may offer details about the structure of the test, time limitations, grading techniques, or other items that could impact your approach. They may also point out steps that you are likely to miss or other tips to help improve your chances of success. 

So be sure to pay close attention to their instructions before you get started.

2. Read the Entire Test

If possible, look over the entire test quickly before you get started. Doing so will help you understand the structure of the test and identify areas that may need more or less time. 

Once you read over the test, you can plan out how you want to approach each section of the test to ensure that you can complete the entire test within the allotted time.

3. Do a “Brain Dump”

For certain types of tests, remembering facts, data, or formulas is key. For these tests, it can be helpful to take a few minutes to write down all the information you need on a scrap paper before you get started. 

Putting that important information on paper can relieve stress and help you focus on the test questions without worrying about your ability to recall the facts. And now you have a kind of “cheat sheet” to refer to throughout the test!

4. Answer the Questions You Know First

When possible, do a first pass through the test to answer the “easy” questions or the ones you know right away. When you come to a question that you can’t answer (relatively) quickly, skip it on this first pass. 

Don’t rush through this first pass, but do be mindful of time—you’ll want to leave yourself enough time to go back and answer the questions you skipped. 

* It’s important to remember that this technique is not possible on some tests. Standardized computer-based tests often do not allow you to skip questions and return to them later. On these types of tests, you will need to work through each problem in order instead of skipping around. 

5. Answer the Questions You Skipped

Once you’ve done a first pass, you now have to go back and answer the questions you skipped.

In the best case scenario, you might find some of these questions aren’t as challenging as you thought at first. Your mind is warmed up and you are fully engaged and focused at this point in the test. And answering the questions you know easily may have reminded you of the details you need for these questions.

Of course you may still struggle with some of the questions, and that’s okay. Hopefully doing a first pass somewhat quickly allows you to take your time with the more challenging questions.

6. Be Sure the Test is Complete

Once you think you’ve answered all the questions, double check to make sure you didn’t miss any. Check for additional questions on the back of the paper, for instance, or other places that you might have missed or not noticed during your initial read-through.

A common question is whether you should skip questions that you can’t answer. It’s not possible to answer that question in a general sense: it depends on the specific test and the teacher’s rules. It may also depend on the value of each individual question, and whether your teacher gives partial credit.

But, if you’re not penalized for a wrong answer or you are penalized for leaving an answer blank, it is probably better to put something down than nothing.

7. Check Your Work

Finally, if you have time left, go back through the test and check your answers. 

Read over short answer and essay questions to check for typos, points you may have missed, or better ways to phrase your answers. If there were multiple components to the question, make sure you answered all of them. Double check your answers on math questions in case you made a small error that impacts the final answer. You don’t want to overthink answers, but a doublecheck can help you find—and correct—obvious mistakes.

Four Ways to Cope with Test-Taking Anxiety

Nearly every student gets nervous before a test at some point, especially if the exam is an important one. If you are lucky, your pre-test nervousness is mild and can be mitigated by these test taking tips. 

A mild case of nerves can even be somewhat beneficial (if uncomfortable); the surge of adrenaline at the root of a nervous feeling can keep you focused and energized.

For some students, however, test taking anxiety—a form of performance anxiety—can be debilitating and overwhelming. This level of anxiety can be extremely difficult to cope with. 

However, there are a few things you can do before and during a test to help cope with more severe stress and anxiety:

1. Take a Meditation or Sitting Stretch Break

Take a minute or two before or even during a test to focus on your breathing, relax tense muscles, do a quick positive visualization, or stretch your limbs. The calming effect can be beneficial and worth a few minutes of test time. 

2. Replace Negative Thoughts with Positive Ones

Learn to recognize when your brain is caught in a cycle of negative thinking and practice turning negative thoughts into positive ones. For example, when you catch yourself saying “I’m going to fail”, force yourself to say “I’m going to succeed” instead. With practice, this can be a powerful technique to break the cycle of negative thinking undermining your confidence.

3. Mistakes are Learning Opportunities

It’s easy to get caught up in worrying about a bad grade. Instead, remind yourself that it’s ok to make mistakes. A wrong answer on a test is an opportunity to understand where you need to fill in a gap in your knowledge or spend some extra time studying. 

4. Seek Professional Help

Test taking anxiety is very real and should be taken seriously. If you find that your anxiety does not respond to these calming tips, it’s time to seek professional help. Your guidance counselor or a therapist may be able to offer long-term strategies for coping with test taking anxiety. Talk with your parents or guardians about finding someone to help you cope.

Following these test taking tips can’t guarantee that you will get an A on your next big test. Only hard work and lots of study time can do that. 

However, these test taking strategies can help you feel more confident and perform better on test day. Tests may be an inevitable part of student life, but with preparation and confidence, you can succeed on them all!

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40+ Strategies and Supports for Students Who Are Failing Class

October 17, 2023 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

40+ Strategies and Supports for Students Who Are Failing Class

Sometimes, kids and teens struggle in keeping their grades up. With enough struggle, students can end up failing a class (or just be in danger of failing). This can be for a multitude of reasons from being absent too many times to not understanding the concepts to not turning in assignments. Regardless of the reasons, when kids and teens are failing a class, it’s a big problem. The good news is that there are strategies and interventions to help kid and teens get back on track.

We all play a role. An important note to mention about this article is that I have divided it up into three sections of strategies. These are strategies for the student, the educators, and the parents. There are so many strategies that they could be split up into three separate articles, but I purposefully kept them together. That’s because while it is ultimately up to a student to do the work required to pass a class, we all play a role in setting the stage, providing supports, and helping them get back on track. We’re in this together.

When a student is failing a class, we all have a role to provide supports and strategies.

One more idea to keep in mind is that kids who are failing might feel like they are too far down the road to make their way back to a passing grade. Sometimes, it can feel hopeless for them. They need to know that adults are there to help them and that they can use strategies to help themselves too.

EDUCATOR STRATEGIES

Consider the underlying reason why a student might be failing. There are many reasons why a student might be failing a class. Finding the underlying reason can help get to the root of the problem. Is the student refusing to do work because they are struggling with some personal challenges? Is the student having trouble keeping ahead because they are juggling too many after school activities? Is the student not preparing enough for tests and quizzes? Sometimes, this isn’t always easy to find out, but it’s worth investigating.

Collaborate with other educators. Talk with other educators and compare how the student is doing in other classes. Is the student failing in just one class or across the board? Understanding this can set the stage for next steps.

Provide encouragement. Remind the student that they can improve their situation with hard work and strategies. It’s important to keep a supportive mindset with the student, since the goal is to empower them to make better choices.

Provide personal encouragement to students who are struggling.

Meet privately with the student. Talking 1:1 with the student in a private setting can have an impact. If possible, meet privately with the student by calling them out of study hall or homeroom for a short session. Use this time to identify the problem, discuss, and come up with potential strategies together. It’s important be open to listening to the student’s perspective. Sometimes, the problems and solutions they list can be extremely helpful information.

Provide a list of missing work. After talking with the student, provide a concrete list of assignments they can make up for full or partial credit. Creating a missing work list serves for a few different purposes. For one, it lets the student know exactly what they can do to get started improving their grade. Also, the list can be mailed home and sent to administration for record-keeping at the same time.

Teach executive functioning skills. So often, students are expected to plan, stay organized, manage their time and work through challenges. When students struggle with these skills, it greatly impacts their ability to perform well in classes. The good news is that young adults can learn and apply meaningful strategies to help them. Use lessons and activities to teach executive functioning skills to give students the foundational skills they need.

Teach executive functioning skills

Involve school administrators. When a student is in danger of failing, it’s important to be open and share this early on with school administrators. This is for a few reasons. First, the administrator can step in and contact families to provide an extra layer of support and reminders. Also, it’s important for the administrator to know early on that you are implementing strategies and supports. There should be no surprises about a student failing a class, which is why it helps to involve admin early on.

Give a study hall check-in. Stop into the student’s study hall or resource room to give an extra check-in. Sometimes, a study hall time for kids can be overwhelming; they have so much work and they’re not sure exactly where to start. When you give a check in, be specific about what work they can do in that moment to help get back on the right track. The goal is to help them get started and then allow them to complete it independently. This also helps model healthy work habits.

Check in with students during study hall time to give extra support and direction

Teach SEL skills directly. Many social-emotional skills are actually a prerequisite to success in the classroom. These include skills like working with others, managing emotions, problem-solving, and persevering through challenges. Consider teaching social-emotional skills to your student (or whole class) to provide a foundation of support.

Consider learning challenges and needs. It’s important to consider if a student may have learning challenges that may have gone previously unnoticed. How are the students’ reading, math, and writing skills? Do they need interventions and tutoring in school? Do you suspect the student has a learning disability? If so, these are important questions to bring up and discuss with your school team.

Provide a daily check-in. A quick check-in with a student can help them feel connected while also building accountability. Every student check-in might be a little different depending on what that student needs; some students might need an emotion check in while others might need a check of their homework log. Some students might need both to help them do and feel their best. This check-in can be implemented by many different educators depending on what works in schedules, from a school counselor, classroom teacher, or paraeducator.

daily emotions check-in for social-emotional support

Consider social-emotional challenges and needs. Consider if the student has unmet social-emotional needs. It goes without saying that sometimes social-emotional challenges can impact academic challenges in a huge way. Touch base with your school counselor or school social worker to discuss supports that can be given, such as a group or individual counseling time.

Continue building a relationship. Many times, kids and teens need to feel connected to fully open up about their challenges. Continue focusing on relationship-building strategies . This isn’t a quick-fix but it’s a necessary support along the way.

Build motivation together. When conferencing or meeting with your student, discuss what it means to be motivated. Brainstorm strategies to build motivation together. You can even use motivation workbook activities to help build strategies for getting started, staying focused, and meeting goals.

Free motivation workbook activities

Contact families. Work with families early on to let them know their child is struggling. Sometimes, these conversations can be uncomfortable, so it’s important to be open, honest, and supportive.

Build organization skills. Being disorganized can severely impact a student’s success in the classroom. If this is an area of need for your student, consider giving extra support specifically with organization skills. This includes teaching how to use a planner, keeping binders in order, and having the right materials each day. If this isn’t something that can be directly taught during class time, it might be worth reaching out to the school counselor or school tutor to see if they can work on some of these skills with your student.

Build organizational skills

Encourage healthy homework habits to families. From setting up a homework spot to keeping electronics away, encourage some homework habits for success that can help your student.

Schedule a family conference. A face-to-face conference with families and the student themselves is important. This sets the tone that extra supports are needed. It may help to ask an administrator to be present at the meeting too. One important note here is that the student should join the meeting too.

Develop a guided study hall. A study hall is often unstructured independent time to work. While this is great for self-starting students, it can be a struggle for those who need more direction. Consider implementing a guided study hall. This time is a more structured small group of students who need extra support. It should be run by a teacher or paraeducator who can give extra reminders and strategies along the way. For example, a 7th grade guided study hall might have a list of today’s homework up on the board. That teacher can get kids started on an assignment and provide academic support, as needed.

Develop a guided study hall for students who need it

Develop a contract with the student. A contract very clearly spells out all the expectations for the student. Outline what the student is responsible for. For example, you might write in that the student will complete daily homework each night and will review grades with their homeroom teacher on Friday. Add in other interventions from the school. Then, have all parties sign the contract.

Teach study skills. Some students do not know how to study for tests, write down homework, or prioritize their work. These are skills that are essential for success in the classroom. Use strategies to teach study skills to help students do their best.

Teach study skills and strategies

Try peer tutoring. Peer tutoring is a research-based practice that can teach both the tutor and the student they are teaching. If your school doesn’t currently support peer tutoring, it is something to be creative with and consider. For example, your peer tutor could earn extra credit for helping during study hall.

Consider extra credit opportunities. Sometimes, extra credit can be a helpful option. Such assignments can serve to help a student improve their grade, boost confidence, and teach meaningful skills. Ultimately, this is a decision up to every individual teacher to decide what works best for them and their learners.

STUDENT STRATEGIES

Start with a growth mindset. A growth mindset means knowing that you can improve your skills with hard work and dedication. At first, failing a class might feel like an impossible-to-fix situation, but it’s often not. You can learn and implement strategies to help yourself make better choices and improve your grades.

Check your grades. Being aware is one of the first steps to helping you get back on track. Review your grades to figure out where you currently stand. You can write these down to chart them over time.

Talk to your teacher. Show responsibility by asking to meet with your teacher to work on your grade. Use this time to talk about your current grade and ask for suggestions on how to improve it. It also helps to come prepared with your own suggestions to show you truly want to improve.

Plan a dedicated daily homework time. Habits make it all happen. Start with a dedication daily time to work on homework assignments and study for assessments. Some students might do best working right away after school is over. Others might work best an hour after they get home to help them unwind from the day. Choose what works for you and stick with it.

Create a dedicated homework and study time

Make a goal for yourself. Setting goals helps us accomplish tasks. Consider a measurable goal that you want to meet, such as getting a 70% or higher in math by the end of the quarter. Then, list out steps to get there. Check back in with your goal each week to make sure you’re on track. Consider meeting with an adult at home or at school to help you with writing this goal, if needed.

Keep up with current work. From this point forward, make sure you are staying on track with current assignments. Missing more work will set you further behind, so it’s important to stay up-to-date.

Make a missing assignment list. First, check to make sure your teacher will accept late work. Then, make a list of all the assignments you can turn in for credit. Try to not get overwhelmed with the amount of work if you have many missing assignments. Just get started on a few and turn those in to get some momentum.

Get organized. Being organized can help you accomplish tasks. Spend time tidying up your binders, backpack, and workspace. Then, tackle them on a regular basis to stay organized.

Use a homework log. Use a daily homework journal to record assignments. Some students prefer a paper notebook while others do well with a digital app. Find what works for you! Whatever you choose, make it a habit and consistently write in your assignments.

Participate in class. Make an effort to stay engaged in classroom learning by participating. One way to do this is to take notes while the teacher is teaching. These notes can help you later on when you need to study or review. Another strategy is to raise your hand to answer questions and share ideas. These strategies will help show your teacher that you are invested in learning.

Participate in class to stay engaged and learn concepts

Study with a friend. For whatever class you are struggling in, find a friend who can study with you.

Talk with a school counselor. A school counselor can help you with many things, from personal challenges you’re going through to making a plan to talk to a teacher about your grade. Consider signing up for time with your school counselor to work through some of those needs.

Ask for extra help. Asking for help is a strength! Consider reaching out to the classroom teacher and seeing if there is any extra help available. Be willing to stay after, come during your study hall, or even visit during lunch if that is what is needed.

Asking for help is a strength. It's okay to ask for extra support when you need it!

Know when to put distractions away. This is a tough subject, but an important one! Phones and other digital devices can be extremely distraction during work and learning sessions. Know when you need to put them away to help you focus and accomplish tasks.

Be open to learn new study strategies. If you struggle with tests and quizzes, be open-minded to try new study strategies. Consider quizzing a friend back-and-forth with questions. Make flash cards. Make a mock test and quiz yourself with it. There are many different study strategies and habits to try.

Use a free study skills checklist to identify your study needs

Find an accountability partner. Ask a friend or trusted adult to help hold you accountable for doing your work and studying for tests. Just talking to someone about your progress and goals can help you develop greater self-awareness.

Get enough sleep. Getting enough sleep at night is important to help you doing and feeling your best. Consider coming up with a plan to get enough uninterrupted rest at night.

PARENT STRATEGIES

Provide encouragement. Be a positive force to help your child turn their grade around. Remember that your child may feel it is impossible to recover from their failing grade, making them want to give up entirely. Remind them that they can turn it around with support, strategies, and hard work.

Help your child cope with stress. Failing a class is a stressful situation for young adults. Sometimes, before we solve problems, we have to cope with the emotions first. Help your child build healthy coping strategies to manage stress with activities like deep breathing, listening to music, and mindful coloring.

Check grades together on a regular, planned basis. Checking through grades together helps holds students accountable. Plan a weekly time to review and stick with the schedule.

Check grades with your child on a regular basis to build accountability and responsibility

Create a dedicated work space. Set up an area where your child can complete their homework and studying each night. Set up some rules and expectations for the work space, such as no TV or cell phones while working at the space.

Check over the homework together. Before your child starts their homework , sit with them and review the homework for the night together. This provides an extra layer of accountability and structure.

Chat with the teacher directly. If a teacher hasn’t reached out to you personally, send an email or phone call to get in touch and discuss. Work together to come up with some actionable steps. If your child is continuing to fail, ask for an in-person meeting to discuss strategies.

Schedule consistent work session time. Habits make all the difference! Agree on a daily work session time each day for homework, studying, and organization. Then, put your plan in action.

Complete work together. Try sitting down with your child as they complete their work. Help them get organized and set up. Work through problems with them if needed.

Sit down with your child and complete work together.

Set a regular bed time. Sleep is incredibly important to helping kids and teens do their best. So often, young adults are chronically overtired. Set a nightly bed time and stick with it. This requires a lot of practice but is worth it!

Leave electronics away from bedrooms at night. Cell phones are distracting at all hours of the day, but especially during sleep hours. Your child needs uninterrupted sleep to perform their best during the day. Make it a nightly habit for everyone to leave their phones in a designated spot to charge before going to sleep for the night.

Learn about executive functioning skills. Read about executive functioning skills and how they play a critical role in learning.

Executive functioning workbook

Discuss consequences. Young adults need to be held accountable for their choices. Be up front with your child about consequences for not doing homework, getting to class on time, or finishing assignments in class. Then, make sure to follow through.

Plan incentives together. When needed, consider adding incentives for reaching goals. Try to gear incentives towards activities versus material items. For example, once your child meets a certain goal (all homework for a full week), you might allow them to go to the movies with a friend or choose the end of the week restaurant for dinner.

Create a contract. A written contract is a great way to keep all of the supports, strategies, consequences, and rewards all in one place. Write it out. Then, sign it together.

Celebrate successes. When your child shows improvement, celebrate together. This even means celebrating small wins, such as a better grade on a quiz or finishing homework for the week. Big progress starts with small steps and encouragement can go a long way.

40 strategies and supports for students who are failing a class (or are at risk of failing)

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How Teachers Are Changing Grading Practices With an Eye on Equity

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not doing homework but passing tests

This is the second article in a two-part series about equitable grading practices. The first article sets up some of the challenges . In this post, learn how teachers are addressing this issue.

Nick Sigmon first encountered the idea of “grading for equity” when he attended a mandatory professional development training at San Leandro High School led by Joe Feldman, CEO of the Crescendo Education Group . As a fairly new high school physics teacher, Sigmon says he was open-minded to new ideas, but had thought carefully about his grading system and considered it fair already. Like many teachers, Sigmon had divided his class into different categories (tests, quizzes, classwork, homework, labs, notebook, etc.) and assigned each category a percentage. Then he broke each assignment down and assigned points. A student’s final grade was points earned divided by total points possible. He thought it was simple, neat and fair.

Looking back, however, Sigmon said this kind of system made it seem like teachers were setting up rules to a game. “They say these are the rules and whatever the score works out to be that is your grade," he said.

Feldman’s training questioned whether that approach to grading is fair. Feldman laid out a case against giving points for homework and extra credit, and is absolutely against the 0-100 point scale that dominates many classrooms. He maintains that for grades to provide an accurate picture of what students know, they shouldn’t include behavioral things like homework and participation. And, he says when every teacher has a different set of grading practices it’s not only erratic, it’s inequitable.

“A lot of those ideas [presented by Feldman] questioned the reasons behind our grades,” Sigmon said. “And so it’s easy to get defensive about your grading policy or get defensive about those ideas. There was definitely part of me that was resistant and I could see why other teachers would be resistant. As a teacher you want to believe that you’re doing the right thing and that your grades are meaningful and that you’ve figured out a system of grading that makes sense.”

But as Sigmon looked at the logic and supporting data Feldman presented and tried tweaking a few things in his classes, those challenging ideas started to make sense to him. He realized the way he graded was largely based on his own experience in school and beliefs about what students “should do.” But when he started to see each teacher’s grading policies as a set of arbitrary rules students are expected to follow, as opposed to a coherent indication of what a student knows, he was ready to make a change.

“I have to be more thoughtful. My grades now are meant to be an accurate reflection of a student’s mastery of the standards set by the state in high school physics,” Sigmon said. If a student can display their knowledge of those standards without doing the homework, he shouldn’t be penalized for that in his grade, especially because students all have different responsibilities outside of school that can make getting homework done difficult.

The first thing Sigmon did was think carefully about what it means to show mastery of each standard the state expects him to teach. He asked himself, “What can I expect high school students to do with this content?” That became the qualification for a B grade. To get an A students had to go beyond that. Earning a C meant the student was close to understanding, but not quite there. Getting a D would be very little understanding, and an F would be almost no understanding at all.

“It feels biased and subjective and that’s because it is,” Sigmon said. “I have to kind of trust myself as the professional to judge their understanding of a certain concept. That's a tough adjustment to make.”

Sigmon doesn’t grade by assignment anymore; he grades by standard. That means he’s not assessing things like lab work, classwork or homework anymore. “Those things are all practice,” Sigmon said, although important practice. He only wants to include information that directly relates to their ultimate understanding of the standards in their grade, which he reasons, is supposed to reflect what they know at the end of his course, not how compliant they are.

Like many teachers who hear about this style of grading, Sigmon was worried students wouldn’t do homework at all if points weren’t attached to it. And, in fact, he did see a dip in homework completion at first. But, when students started to see their quiz and test grades drop because they weren’t doing homework, they made the connection pretty quickly. Now, Sigmon says his students' homework completion rate is higher than ever, and even better, they have no reason to copy each other’s homework.

“I was really surprised because after students started failing the assessments they started realizing the only way to improve their grades was to improve their understanding,” Sigmon said. There are still a few kids who try to do as little as possible, but some will even email him for extra questions to get more practice.

Grading and Equity

This kind of  standards-based grading approach is a growing trend in some corners of education. It’s part of a push to make sure kids are actually mastering the information they’re supposed to learn, not just playing a points game . That reasoning is compelling to some teachers who are excited about shifting pedagogy, but Joe Feldman thinks he has an even more compelling reason that schools should start making a shift in how they grade -- equity.

Feldman has worked in education a long time, first as a high school teacher, then a principal, and later as a central office administrator. He’s been around enough schools and classrooms to know that even when teachers have worked hard to align their curriculum and assessments in order to provide coherence for students, the experiences students have in each teacher’s class can be vastly different. That’s because each teacher grades differently, allotting a different percentage for tests, participation, homework, and even things like effort. Some teachers accept late work with no penalty, others allow students to do extra credit to make up work; some allow retakes on tests and quizzes, others don’t. For students, the result is a thicket of different rules that must be navigated each year or class period.

“The more I really investigated and researched it, I found it wasn’t just an issue of consistency,” Feldman said, “it actually had implications for equity in schools. Many times the grading practices teachers use inadvertently punish students with fewer resources.”

The way Feldman sees it, teachers use grades for much more than indicating whether students have mastered the academic content. For example, teachers often deduct points for late work because they want students to respect deadlines and learn responsibility. Or, they know that engagement is important for learning, so they include participation as a portion of the grade. Grades, then, become a behavior management tool, a motivational tool, and sometimes an indication of mastery too.

Take the common practice of averaging grades, for example. One student might come into class with no experience writing a persuasive essay. The first time he tries, he turns in a terrible essay and gets a low score. The next time he improves, and by the end of the semester he’s nailed it. But that student will always have a lower grade than the student who came into class knowing how to write a solid persuasive essay, perhaps because of a summer camp opportunity, and never progressed much further during the year. The second student will get a better average grade, even though she didn’t show growth in her writing.

“That’s really inaccurate to describe a students’ work like that,” Feldman said.

To be clear, Feldman is not saying that teachers consciously develop inequitable grading systems. He knows from experience that the opposite is true. Many teachers go to great lengths to remove bias from the process, doing things like covering student names while grading. The trouble is that some long standing grading practices may be perpetuating bias anyway. Take student participation as an example.

“If I grade on participation and I'm looking for: Are they looking at me? Are they taking notes? Are they not talking when I’m talking? They are descriptions of how that teacher learned,” Feldman said. “And they believe that if other students exhibit those qualities they’re more likely to learn.” But, he says, that’s subjective, which means a whole portion of a students’ grade could be filtered through a teachers’ unintentional bias towards the style of learning they prefer. The way to get rid of this potential bias in grading is not to reward participation in final grades.

“This elicits a lot of different emotions form teachers,” Feldman said. “I’ve had them cry, yell at me, walk out of the room, write me off as some sort of nut. But as I work with teachers they’ll start to confront the idea that what they believe about students may not be true.”

Feldman understands this reaction from teachers. Education has become more top-down with mandates from the state and district level making teachers feel that their professional judgment is not valued. Grading practices are often the last bastion of autonomy a teacher has and independent grading is enshrined in many teacher contracts. When principals or districts try to suggest ways to make grading more equitable, they are often met with accusations that they are infringing on classroom autonomy.

Feldman says the only way teachers come around to what he proposes is by looking at the data, deeply discussing the ideas, and trying some of his strategies in their own classrooms. That’s what convinces most of them to dig in and make changes.

One easy way to dip a toe into more equitable grading is to get rid of extra credit. Often these assignments are things like, go to a museum and submit a report, or write an extra essay.

“These things depend on a student having the time, money, resources to be able to do those,” Feldman said. More importantly, they’re beyond the curriculum and shouldn’t be required for the student to understand the material.

Another strategy Feldman recommends is requiring retakes if students score below a certain level. Right now, many students take a test, get a score and move on. The learning stops there. Feldman thinks a more equitable practice is to encourage students to learn from the errors they made on the test and take it again.

“Teachers have told me that when they suggest to students that they’re going to have to retake it there’s resistance from students, but they ultimately appreciate the teacher doing that and build a stronger relationship,” Feldman said. “There’s no clearer message that your teacher cares about you than that they won’t let you fail.”

And teachers can put parameters on retakes. They may say students can only retake after demonstrating growth on the missed skills, or they may require students to go back through the homework and pick out the questions related to the skills they missed. This not only requires students to reflect on mistakes, but it also reinforces the value of homework for learning.

Importantly, after the retake, teachers should enter the best score in the grade book, not an average. To Feldman’s thinking, students shouldn’t be penalized for putting in the extra work to understand the concepts. If they show they know it, they should get credit. And Feldman has a response for teachers who say that students need to learn to meet deadlines and pass tests the first time -- very few measures of adult learning are one-and-done. People can retake their driver’s tests, their teacher licensing exams, their SATs and MCATs.

In a world of high stakes tests, the discrete skill of test taking may be worth teaching students individually to make sure they know how to face the exams when they come. But Feldman would prefer teachers were honest with students about test-taking as a skill, as opposed to rolling it into the course grade.

Feldman also doesn’t think behavioral things should be included in the grade because they don’t reflect mastery of content. That doesn’t mean a teacher can’t keep track of things like on-time work, organization, or other scholarly behaviors. Perhaps after the next test the teacher can then sit down the student and point out the relationship between some of those tracked behaviors and a poor test performance.

“It opens up a much wider range of conversations teachers have about the purpose of behaviors and their relation to academic success,” Feldman said.

He also doesn’t think teachers should give grades for group work. It’s too hard to determine if the individuals have mastered the content in those settings. That doesn’t mean group work isn’t valuable, it just means the assessments should be individual.

“We want people to collaborate well because when you collaborate well you make a better product and there’s a great reward to doing that work,” Feldman said. “We think it will increase their individual learning. The only way to know if they were effective in their group work is to see if they improved in their individual learning.”

This also prevents one or two students in a group from doing all the work. And, it reflects the inherent value of skills like collaboration and communication because when used on a group project they lead to success.

“There are certain strategies that have been used year after year that are just a barnacle on the ship,” Feldman said. “Teachers feel they just have to do it.” And often the systems within a school building make it hard to break free. The 0-100 scale, for example, is the default setting on many high school online grade books.

Feldman hates this scale for many reasons, but the biggest one is the destructive power of a “zero” for missing work . He contends the scale is weighted towards failure because 0-60 represents failing, whereas there are only 10 points between every other grade delineation. And if a student gets a zero on an assignment, it’s almost impossible to climb out of the hole that creates in their grade. Many students just give up. They know it’s mathematically impossible to pass after that.

One tweak would be a 50-100 scale, although Feldman understands that psychologically it’s hard to give a 50 to a student who did nothing. That’s why he prefers a 0-4 scale, with none of the nit-picking over a few points to get from a B+ to an A-. Students either meet the requirements for proficiency or they don’t. They exceed the requirements or they don’t. Feldman sees the gradations in-between as unnecessary and leftover from a points-based system.

While he doesn't disagree with all of Feldman's points, Ethan Hutt , an assistant professor of teaching and learning, policy and leadership at the University of Maryland, College Park, worries that taking process out of student grades sends the wrong message. He contends students do need to learn to be conscientious, responsible, hard working and to seek help. In his classes, those are the students that succeed. Homework and other incremental assignments build those skills.

“The foolish thing is to teach students that the only thing that matters is the disembodied work product," he said. He thinks it's silly to expect teachers to separate the work from everything else they know about that student. And on a broader scale, he wonders if learning to "play the game" is such a bad skill to teach. Much of life is about learning to navigate bureaucracy and hierarchies, so why shouldn't students start learning to do that in school?

Putting It Into Practice

“I didn’t feel good about what I was doing when I was assigning grades, so I was very much ready for something like this,” said Sarah Schopfer, a 10th grade English teacher at Colfax High School in Placer County, California.

She knew her grades were subjective, but didn’t know how to change them. She noticed that a lot of her grading was based on participation, and the same handful of kids always participated. Those were also the kids who would do whatever she asked of them. But she knew there were other kids who wouldn’t “play the game,” and whose grades didn’t reflect what they could do.

“So that would show them failing,” she said. “And then they think they’re stupid and they’re not. They just do things differently.”

She admits changing how she grades was hard at first. She was uncomfortable with the 0-4 scale and had to change how she teaches to focus more on building relationships with students, as well as helping them find intrinsic motivation.

“It completely rocks your world and that’s why some teachers don’t," she said. "I can see the hesitation." But still, Schopfer said shifting her grading practices is the best -- and hardest -- thing she’s ever done in teaching.

“The biggest changes that I felt comfortable doing right away were that we don’t put things in the grade book that are behavior related,” Schopfer said. If kids are late, acting out in class, or not participating it doesn’t go into their grade anymore. “I know that scares the hell out of teachers because they’re like, how do I get them to turn things in on time?”

This question forced Schopfer to sit down and look at her assignments closely. Some projects were fun and glittery, but didn’t align with the standards as well as she thought, so she jettisoned them. Now she focuses on making the rubrics clear and transparent. She wants her assessments to be accurate. And she promised her students she won’t give them busywork, a commitment she takes seriously.

“Now I manage my class with relationships,” Schopfer said. “They have to trust you. They have to respect you. They have to want to do things for you because you've shown them that the things you ask them to do are important and matter.”

She says students still turn things in on time, but when they can’t for some reason, they apologize to her and let her know when they will be able to get the work in. She doesn’t have as many students sitting in class who think they’re bad at English. They have opportunities to redo things, to learn from their mistakes, and that’s motivating.

“Ultimately to me there’s no question. It’s an ethical issue,” Schopfer said. “Now that I know this I can’t go back. It’s not equitable.”

When she asked students what they think of the new grading system, here’s what she heard:

"It makes sense. All assignments add up and relate to learning overall. You have to do the work to be able to do the next step. You have a clear purpose for us, and the grade is just a side aspect.”

"You realize that we are people. We have crazy home lives, or some of us do. This makes my life less stressful, and they are accurate. I'm learning."

"You are treating us like adults, but with a cushion."

"The old grading methods are straight hypocritical and don't make sense when you think about it."

Nick Sigmon has also asked his students about their perspectives on his new grading system. He was shocked by how clearly students see through traditional grading.

”Students are very much aware that school is a game and that your grades aren’t based on how well you understand something, but on how well you play the game,” he said.

When he surveyed his students, many thanked him for moving to a more transparent form of grading, one that forced them to be responsible for their work, but in a clear, transparent way.

Sigmon has also found that changing how he grades has created a shift in his teaching by giving him a more clearly defined goal. "Now that I have established what my grades mean and what they’re based on then everything works backwards from there," he said. "I know what students need to be able to show, what they need to be able to do. So I had to rethink everything to make that the focus.”

For example, Sigmon has stopped doing the typical “I do, we do, you do” formula for a new concept. He realized that perpetuated memorizing a procedure, not deep understanding, especially when all the practice problems are a clear imitation of the test questions.

“It’s changed the kinds of questions I ask,” Sigmon said. “I try to always ask questions the students have not seen. It’s the same concept, but being applied in a new way.”

For his part, Joe Feldman wasn’t sure these practices would work when he first started developing them, so he invested in external evaluation of grade distribution among teachers who were changing their grading practices. The results from independent evaluator Leading Edge Advisors showed that the rates of D's and F's went down, but the number of A's also went down. One immediate response to this might be that teachers lowered their expectations, but Feldman says grading this way actually made it harder to do well.

The decreases in D's and F's were clustered among Latinx, African-American, low-income, and students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). Meanwhile the decrease in A's mostly affected white students. “It reflects how the current system has been benefiting and punishing certain students disproportionately,” Feldman said.

He also wanted to test the accuracy of grades in this new system. He found that when teachers graded with his proposed equity strategies student course grades more closely correlated to their standardized test scores, indicating that the teacher’s assessment that a student mastered a standard was aligned with that same demonstration on the tests.

All of this is strong proof for Feldman that it’s important to have conversations about grading with teachers. He knows teacher experiences will drive change -- they must have opportunities to try out strategies and see the effects themselves -- but district leaders also have to provide the tailwind for this to become a reality. And that’s where he sees the biggest challenge to this work.

“[District leaders] know it’s going to require a lot of relationship building with teachers and parents. And some aren’t really sure it’s worth it,” Feldman said.

This is the second article in a two-part series about equitable grading practices. The first article sets up some of the challenges . Read an excerpt from Joe Feldman's book " Grading for Equity: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How It Can Transform Schools and Classrooms " to learn one principal's journey in recognizing how inequitable grading was affecting her students.

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An illustration of large scale pencils approaching a standardized test

What Does the Research Say About Testing?

There’s too much testing in schools, most teachers agree, but well-designed classroom tests and quizzes can improve student recall and retention.

For many teachers, the image of students sitting in silence filling out bubbles, computing mathematical equations, or writing timed essays causes an intensely negative reaction.

Since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) in 2002 and its 2015 update, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), every third through eighth grader in U.S. public schools now takes tests calibrated to state standards, with the aggregate results made public. In a study of the nation’s largest urban school districts , students took an average of 112 standardized tests between pre-K and grade 12.

This annual testing ritual can take time from genuine learning, say many educators , and puts pressure on the least advantaged districts to focus on test prep—not to mention adding airless, stultifying hours of proctoring to teachers’ lives. “Tests don’t explicitly teach anything. Teachers do,” writes Jose Vilson , a middle school math teacher in New York City. Instead of standardized tests, students “should have tests created by teachers with the goal of learning more about the students’ abilities and interests,” echoes Meena Negandhi, math coordinator at the French American Academy in Jersey City, New Jersey.

The pushback on high-stakes testing has also accelerated a national conversation about how students truly learn and retain information. Over the past decade and a half, educators have been moving away from traditional testing —particularly multiple choice tests—and turning to hands-on projects and competency-based assessments that focus on goals such as critical thinking and mastery rather than rote memorization.

But educators shouldn’t give up on traditional classroom tests so quickly. Research has found that tests can be valuable tools to help students learn , if designed and administered with format, timing, and content in mind—and a clear purpose to improve student learning.

Not All Tests Are Bad

One of the most useful kinds of tests are the least time-consuming: quick, easy practice quizzes on recently taught content. Tests can be especially beneficial if they are given frequently and provide near-immediate feedback to help students improve. This retrieval practice can be as simple as asking students to write down two to four facts from the prior day or giving them a brief quiz on a previous class lesson.

Retrieval practice works because it helps students retain information in a better way than simply studying material, according to research . While reviewing concepts can help students become more familiar with a topic, information is quickly forgotten without more active learning strategies like frequent practice quizzes.

But to reduce anxiety and stereotype threat—the fear of conforming to a negative stereotype about a group that one belongs to—retrieval-type practice tests also need to be low-stakes (with minor to no grades) and administered up to three times before a final summative effort to be most effective.

Timing also matters. Students are able to do fine on high-stakes assessment tests if they take them shortly after they study. But a week or more after studying, students retain much less information and will do much worse on major assessments—especially if they’ve had no practice tests in between.

A 2006 study found that students who had brief retrieval tests before a high-stakes test remembered 60 percent of material, while those who only studied remembered 40 percent. Additionally, in a 2009 study , eighth graders who took a practice test halfway through the year remembered 10 percent more facts on a U.S. history final at the end of the year than peers who studied but took no practice test.

Short, low-stakes tests also help teachers gauge how well students understand the material and what they need to reteach. This is effective when tests are formative —that is, designed for immediate feedback so that students and teachers can see students’ areas of strength and weakness and address areas for growth. Summative tests, such as a final exam that measures how much was learned but offers no opportunities for a student to improve, have been found to be less effective.

Testing Format Matters

Teachers should tread carefully with test design, however, as not all tests help students retain information. Though multiple choice tests are relatively easy to create, they can contain misleading answer choices—that are either ambiguous or vague—or offer the infamous all-, some-, or none-of-the-above choices, which tend to encourage guessing.

A student takes a standardized test.

While educators often rely on open-ended questions, such short-answer questions, because they seem to offer a genuine window into student thinking, research shows that there is no difference between multiple choice and constructed response questions in terms of demonstrating what students have learned.

In the end, well-constructed multiple choice tests , with clear questions and plausible answers (and no all- or none-of-the-above choices), can be a useful way to assess students’ understanding of material, particularly if the answers are quickly reviewed by the teacher.

All students do not do equally well on multiple choice tests, however. Girls tend to do less well than boys and perform better on questions with open-ended answers , according to a 2018 study by Stanford University’s Sean Reardon, which found that test format alone accounts for 25 percent of the gender difference in performance in both reading and math. Researchers hypothesize that one explanation for the gender difference on high-stakes tests is risk aversion, meaning girls tend to guess less .

Giving more time for fewer, more complex or richer testing questions can also increase performance, in part because it reduces anxiety. Research shows that simply introducing a time limit on a test can cause students to experience stress, so instead of emphasizing speed, teachers should encourage students to think deeply about the problems they’re solving.

Setting the Right Testing Conditions

Test achievement often reflects outside conditions, and how students do on tests can be shifted substantially by comments they hear and what they receive as feedback from teachers.

When teachers tell disadvantaged high school students that an upcoming assessment may be a challenge and that challenge helps the brain grow, students persist more, leading to higher grades, according to 2015 research from Stanford professor David Paunesku. Conversely, simply saying that some students are good at a task without including a growth-mindset message or the explanation that it’s because they are smart harms children’s performance —even when the task is as simple as drawing shapes.

Also harmful to student motivation are data walls displaying student scores or assessments. While data walls might be useful for educators, a 2014 study found that displaying them in classrooms led students to compare status rather than improve work.

The most positive impact on testing comes from peer or instructor comments that give the student the ability to revise or correct. For example, questions like , “Can you tell me more about what you mean?” or “Can you find evidence for that?” can encourage students to improve  engagement with their work. Perhaps not surprisingly, students do well when given multiple chances to learn and improve—and when they’re encouraged to believe that they can.

Trending Today

Spending Too Much Time on Homework Linked to Lower Test Scores

A new study suggests the benefits to homework peak at an hour a day. After that, test scores decline.

Samantha Larson

Homework

Polls show that American public high school teachers assign their students an average of 3.5 hours of homework a day . According to a  recent study from the University of Oviedo in Spain, that’s far too much.

While doing some homework does indeed lead to higher test performance, the researchers found the benefits to hitting the books peak at about an hour a day. In surveying the homework habits of 7,725 adolescents, this study suggests that for students who average more than 100 minutes a day on homework, test scores start to decline. The relationship between spending time on homework and scoring well on a test is not linear, but curved.

This study builds upon previous research that suggests spending too much time on homework leads to higher stress, health problems and even social alienation. Which, paradoxically, means the most studious of students are in fact engaging in behavior that is counterproductive to doing well in school. 

Because the adolescents surveyed in the new study were only tested once, the researchers point out that their results only indicate the correlation between test scores and homework, not necessarily causation. Co-author Javier Suarez-Alvarez thinks the most important findings have less to do with the  amount of homework than with how that homework is done.

From Education Week :

Students who did homework more frequently – i.e., every day – tended to do better on the test than those who did it less frequently, the researchers found. And even more important was how much help students received on their homework – those who did it on their own preformed better than those who had parental involvement. (The study controlled for factors such as gender and socioeconomic status.)

“Once individual effort and autonomous working is considered, the time spent [on homework] becomes irrelevant,” Suarez-Alvarez says. After they get their daily hour of homework in, maybe students should just throw the rest of it to the dog.  

Get the latest stories in your inbox every weekday.

Samantha Larson | | READ MORE

Samantha Larson is a freelance writer who particularly likes to cover science, the environment, and adventure. For more of her work, visit SamanthaLarson.com

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How to Get Out of Doing Homework

Last Updated: February 13, 2024 Fact Checked

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 111 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 281,198 times. Learn more...

Sometimes you just can't get it together and finish your homework. Maybe you had a concert or a game after school and you were too tired to think when you got home. Maybe you ran out of time, or you fell asleep early. Maybe you just had something way better to do! This article will give you ideas for how to get your parents off your back about doing homework and convince your teachers you have a perfectly good reason why you didn't do the assignment. Plus, learn techniques on how to make it look like you made an attempt at your assignment, but life, fate, or technology got in the way. Just don't make a habit of it, or your grades may suffer.

Making Excuses to Your Teacher

Step 1 Get to know your teacher first.

  • Notice how your teacher reacts when other students forget their homework to gauge how much you can get away with.
  • Notice if your teacher collects homework or usually just walks around and glances at your worksheet to make sure you did it.
  • Try to get an idea of what your teacher likes. If they have pictures of their cat everywhere, you may be able to use that to your advantage later by telling them your cat is very sick or had to be put down and you were too devastated to finish the assignment.
  • Remember that your teacher probably got into teaching because they are passionate about their subject. Participate in class as much as possible: if they believe you love history, too, they're probably more likely to be sympathetic later.
  • Find out how much homework counts toward your final grade. If homework only accounts for 20% of your grade and you ace all your tests, projects, and class participation, you might be able to get by without doing homework and still get a decent grade.

Step 2 Blame technology.

  • If your teacher expects you to email them your assignment, ask them the next day if they got your email. When they say they didn't, act confused and explain that you definitely emailed them and that you can't believe it didn't go through. They probably can't check to see if you are lying and will probably give you an extension.

Step 3 Blame a family crisis.

  • Claim the death of a family member. Make it someone close enough that it would affect you, but not so close that the teacher will find out about it. A great aunt or uncle works as they tend to be older. There is also no limit on the amount of great aunts and uncles you have, whereas with grandparents there is a limited number of times you can use that excuse. Plus, you don't want to tempt karma by saying your grandma died unexpectedly.
  • Say that you are having a private family issue and you don't feel comfortable talking about it, but you can't do the homework.
  • Tell your teacher your pet died. But be aware that if your teacher happens to be having a conversation with your parents and says something like "Sorry about the dog!" they may find out you were lying.

Step 4 Blame your memory.

  • Tell the teacher you were in the bathroom when they assigned the work and you completely missed that you had homework. However, if your teacher has a good memory or writes homework on the board or on a school website, there is a high chance this will not work.

Step 5 Fake sick...

  • This works best if you are somebody who rarely gets sick(maybe once or twice a year) then you will be more trustworthy if you appear sick.

Step 6 Go see a guidance counselor during the class period.

  • If you do this too often your teacher will stop being sympathetic, so make sure it only happens once or twice.

Making It Look Like You Did Your Homework

Step 1 Make it look like you did the work if your teacher only glances at your homework.

  • If your teacher walks around the class checking for homework, but doesn't take it in, write your homework page and task at the top of some random notes you have for that class. If they're not attentive, they won't notice.
  • If they are attentive, try to distract them by asking a question related to the subject or show them a word in the textbook you don't understand.

Step 2 Look up the answers online or in the back of the book.

  • Say you must have left it on your desk/in the car/on the bus and ask if you can turn it in at the end of the day. Then you can quickly do the assignment during lunch.
  • Be smart when pretending to be upset that you lost your homework. If you usually slack off and don't do your homework, it may seem odd to the teacher when you suddenly worry about not having your homework.

Step 4 Get help from friends.

  • If you cheat on writing based homework, paraphrase it so your teacher can't tell that you cheated. Also, think about how you usually perform in class. If you don't usually do well in class on homework and tests, your teacher could get suspicious if you get all the answers right. So to be smart, get some answers wrong on purpose.
  • Try asking one friend for answers to questions #1 and #2, then another friend for the answers to questions #3 and #4, and so on until the assignment is complete.
  • Assemble a study group and let them work out all the answers.
  • If you have a friend who owes you a favor, tell them this is how they can repay their debt.

Step 5 Destroy the assignment if it's on a CD or flash drive.

  • Bring in a blank flash drive and swear to your teacher you saved it to the drive and you don't know what happened.

Step 6 Purposely corrupt the file.

  • Go into File Explorer and find the file you want to make corrupt. Right click over the file and select 'Open With...', then select Notepad. Once the file opens in Notepad you should see a really bizarre document with gibberish. Click anywhere within the document and type something random in it, disturbing the flow. After this just save and submit. When your teacher opens it, it will show up an error.
  • Do not select "use application as default" when selecting Notepad after File Explorer step or else all word documents (.docx) will automatically in Notepad showing gibberish.
  • Create a blank image in Paint and save it in .bmp format. After that, forcefully change its format into .doc (right-click and hit Properties), and change the title to the name of your homework assignment. Now, when you try to open the file in any text viewing program, it will show up as a broken file. Send it to the teacher, and if they ask you the next day, just say sorry about this inconvenience and promise to send it this evening. Now, you have an extra day to complete your homework.

Convincing Your Parents

Step 1 Say that you need to work on the computer.

  • So your parents check your history? Easy. If you have the Google Chrome browser, you can use Incognito mode. This will not track your history at all. Press ctrl+shift+N at the same time to open an Incognito tab. Remember to close all Incognito tabs before you go back to doing your homework.
  • Remember ctrl + w closes a window with one tab without prompt, so it is the perfect way without downloading Firefox and certain add-ons to use the computer without parent's knowing anything of your exploits.

Step 2 Tell your parents you did all your homework at school already during lunch or during your study hall.

Community Q&A

Community Answer

Tips from our Readers

  • Try to sound very stressed about not finishing your homework. Try to only skip homework when you really need to. It might be obvious that you're not trying if you never do it.
  • Try to be honest when you get caught. If you lie and get caught, you might be in bigger trouble.
  • Remember: in most cases, it is unlikely your teacher will excuse you from doing the homework altogether, even if these tactics work. Go into it thinking they will give you an extension and you will have time to catch up on your work without it impacting your grade. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
  • Homework is there to help you. In the long run, not doing homework will impact not just your report card but your future. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
  • Avoid lame and common excuses. These excuses have no effect, so don't even try to use them. Avoid "I forgot" and "My dog ate my homework" kind of excuses. Using long, boring excuses may make the teacher just dismiss it and tell you to turn it in tomorrow. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

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Make Up a Good Excuse for Your Homework Not Being Finished

  • ↑ https://edinazephyrus.com/how-to-fake-sick-successfully/
  • ↑ https://corrupt-a-file.net/

About This Article

If you weren't able to finish your homework, there are a few good excuses you can use to keep your teacher off your back. You can blame technology and say your computer or printer broke. If you needed the internet for your homework, say your internet went off for a few hours. Pretending you forgot your homework isn't the best excuse, but it sounds better than admitting you didn't do it. Search through your bag and pretend to look for it, then tell your teacher you must have left it at home. To make it more convincing, see your teacher at the beginning of class and say you had a busy week and forgot to do the homework. You can even tell them you had a family issue. Teachers are unlikely to call you out for being sick, so try going to the nurse before class and telling them you feel sick and you can’t go to class. For more tips, including how to get out of your parents making you do homework, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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not doing homework but passing tests

I have an exam tomorrow but don’t feel prepared – what should I do?

not doing homework but passing tests

Associate Director, The Victoria Institute; National Director, AVID Australia, Victoria University

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Claire Brown receives funding for AVID in Australia from the Sidney Myer Fund and the Helen Macpherson Smith Trust.

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You have an exam tomorrow and you’re not feeling prepared. With only a few waking hours to go, how is it best you spend your time?

To pass tomorrow’s exam, cramming might help you write more on the paper than you would have without doing any form of study, depending on how stressed out you are. But it certainly won’t help you learn the information deeply. You will have forgotten most of what you crammed within a week.

Cramming doesn’t work for retaining information

Research shows we overestimate our ability to remember information and underestimate the importance of actively learning information. Students will often say they don’t need to take notes because they have great memories. But this research suggests we assume we’ll remember things forever as well as we do now (we won’t). We underestimate our need to learn and relearn information to be able to recall it when we need it.

As an article in The New York Times put it, cramming is like jam-packing your brain:

But hurriedly jam-packing a brain is akin to speed-packing a cheap suitcase, as most students quickly learn — it holds its new load for a while, then most everything falls out.

So if your exam is tomorrow then cramming might help, but research shows when students see the same material again at a later date, it’s like they have never seen it before.

Cramming and stress

If you’re feeling anxious, it might be better to put the books down and not attempt to cram. Cramming can clog working memory and that can result in cognitive overload, making you feel overwhelmed.

Going to bed late because of a cramming session, overstimulated from too many energy drinks, then tossing and turning with an overloaded brain, could be worse for you than just giving up now and going to bed.

not doing homework but passing tests

Four study strategies that are better than cramming

It’s never too late to adopt good study habits that will improve your exam success and relieve your exam anxiety.

1. Get organised

A major reason for cramming is poor organisation of time. Time-poor students should use a planner to identify the times available for study and block out those times in the planner. Then actually be disciplined and use that time to study.

Get a study binder – electronic or hard copy – and keep it organised. Use it regularly to store and review your study notes and materials.

Being organised with your study materials helps you to be organised in your thinking, too, as you can easily access the materials you need to help you study in the time you have prioritised to study.

2. Take, make, interact with and reflect on notes

Taking notes is important. An active note-taking process is important to help you transfer new information from short-term memory and then recall it more easily after it is stored in the long-term memory.

Read more: What's the best, most effective way to take notes?

Read more: What's the best way to take notes on your laptop or tablet?

3. Keep interacting with the content

Research has found the rate you forget information is minimised if you interact with (reread/discuss/write) new information within 24 hours of first receiving it. A second, shorter repetition within 24 hours brings recall back up to 100%. A third repetition within a week for an even shorter time brings recall back to 100%.

Going back to the suitcase analogy :

When the neural suitcase is packed carefully and gradually, it holds its contents for far, far longer. An hour of study tonight, an hour on the weekend, another session a week from now: such so-called spacing improves later recall, without requiring students to put in more overall study effort or pay more attention, dozens of studies have found.

When cramming, students often concentrate on one thing intensively for a long period of time. That doesn’t work either. Research shows learning is more effective if the type of material being studied is mixed and study periods are spaced out over time.

That’s why athletes, musicians and students should mix up their training/rehearsal/study sessions by practising different skills over different time periods , rather than focusing on just one thing for an extended time.

Read more: Why block subjects might not be best for university student learning

4. Self-testing

So once you have a good set of notes, what is the best way to interact with them? Self-testing is a powerful way to study and learn.

Other tools you can use to help you self-test are to use mnemonics and flash cards. Mnemonics are memory devices that help you to recall information. An example of a well-known mnemonic is “In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue”.

Flash cards are a great way to self-test. Good organisation of where you store your flash cards and effective use of them are essential to maximise their study potential. It’s good to mix up sets of flash cards and study them in short bursts.

For tomorrow…

If all you want to do is retain the information until after your exam tomorrow, a bit of cramming now might help. But if you’re feeling highly anxious your brain might not retain new information anyway. It might be a better idea to eat a nutritious dinner, go to bed early and get a good night’s sleep.

When you wake up, take a few deep breaths and remind yourself you can only do as well as you can do, and it will all be over in a few hours anyway.

But next time save yourself the stress and take the time to engage with the content frequently. Only this will ensure it’s locked up tight in your brain for a long time. And, finally, good luck!

Read more: HSC exam guide: maximising study and minimising stress

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Biden administration weighs action to make it harder for migrants to get asylum and easier to deport them faster

President Joe Biden walks along a stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas on Jan. 8, 2023.

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is considering taking unilateral action without Congress to make it harder for migrants to pass the initial screening for asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border and quickly deport recently arrived migrants who don’t meet the criteria, say three U.S. officials with knowledge of the deliberations.

The actions, which are still weeks away from finalization, are an effort to lower the number of migrants crossing the southern border illegally as immigration remains a top issue for voters heading into the 2024 presidential election.

Under the new policies, asylum officers would be instructed to raise the standards they use in their “credible fear interviews,” the first screening given to asylum-seekers who are trying to avoid deportation for crossing the border illegally. And Immigration and Customs Enforcement would be told to prioritize recently arrived migrants for deportation, in a “last in, first out” policy, the officials said.

Hundreds of migrants arrive in Ciudad Juarez to cross into the United States before Title 42 ends

A congressional aide with knowledge of the deliberations said the Biden administration has yet to make a decision, but raising the bar on asylum and deporting more newly arrived migrants are considered “low hanging fruit” and actions that can be taken quickly.

The three U.S. officials said it is unclear whether the policies would be achieved through executive order or a new federal regulation , which could take months to implement.

Making it harder to claim asylum and fast-tracking migrants for deportation are not new ideas, but they are being considered more seriously as the Biden administration looks for ways to tamp down chaos at the border after Republicans blocked border security provisions in the National Security Supplemental bill earlier this month. 

An administration official confirmed that the White House is exploring a series of policy options, but said that doesn’t guarantee any will come to pass. 

In a statement, a White House spokesperson said, “The administration spent months negotiating in good faith to deliver the toughest and fairest bipartisan border security bill in decades. … Congressional Republicans chose to put partisan politics ahead of our national security. … No executive action, no matter how aggressive, can deliver the significant policy reforms and additional resources Congress can provide and that Republicans rejected.”

Without the bill, any action the president takes unilaterally will be limited in scope because the Department of Homeland Security is short on funding. 

ICE is currently facing a budget shortfall of more than $500 million and may have to start cutting key services by May without more money from Congress, sources told NBC News last week. 

One DHS official expressed skepticism over the “last in, first out” policy because it would leave millions of migrants already in the U.S., including thousands of homeless migrants in major cities, in a long legal limbo as their immigration cases are pushed to the back of the line.

A spokesperson for DHS emphasized that Congress should still act to avoid compromising border enforcement.

“If Congress once again refuses to provide the critical funding needed to support DHS’s vital missions, they would be harming DHS’s efforts to deliver tough and timely consequences to those who do not have a legal basis to remain in the country,” the spokesperson said. “There are real limits to what we can do given current funding because Congress has failed to pass a budget or respond to the President’s two supplemental budget requests. We again call on Congress to act and provide the funding and tools our frontline personnel need.”

not doing homework but passing tests

Julia Ainsley is homeland security correspondent for NBC News and covers the Department of Homeland Security and the Justice Department for the NBC News Investigative Unit.

not doing homework but passing tests

Julie Tsirkin is a correspondent covering Capitol Hill.

Life in the UK 2024 ‪+‬ 4+

Study for life in the uk test, citizenship test , ltd, designed for iphone.

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Are you taking your Life in the UK test for your citizenship? We've helped millions of people pass their life in the test first time. You can also use this app to learn more about British culture and history. This is the only app you need to take British Citizenship test. What can our app do for you? ● Help you learn this knowledge by category ● Collect your study notes for you ● Take quizzes on all the knowledge points ● Mock exams are the key to passing your official certification Free handbook for life in the UK test.Take the UK citizenship exam with confidence. - Payment will be credited to your iTunes account via purchase confirmation. - Subscriptions will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours prior to the end of the current term. - Accounts will be charged a renewal fee, which will be determined 24 hours prior to the end of the current term. - Subscriber can manage subscriptions and Subscriber can turn off automatic renewal after purchase through Subscriber's account settings. • Payment will be made to iTunes account by way of confirmation of purchase. • Subscriptions are automatically renewed unless automatic renewal is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. • The account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours before the end of the current period, and the renewal fee will be determined. • The subscription can be managed by the user, and the user can turn off automatic renewal through the user's account settings after purchase. Terms of Use: https://sites.google.com/view/citizenshiptest2 Privacy Policy: https://sites.google.com/view/citizenshiptest2024

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IMAGES

  1. Best Excuses For Not Doing Homework that Students Make [Not Common]

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  2. Consequences for not doing homework

    not doing homework but passing tests

  3. 💣 Best excuses for homework. 10 Best Excuses for Not Doing Your

    not doing homework but passing tests

  4. Apology Letters for Not Completing Work

    not doing homework but passing tests

  5. Best Excuses For Not Doing Homework that Students Make [Not Common]

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  6. The Art of Making Excuses For Not Doing Homework

    not doing homework but passing tests

VIDEO

  1. homework vs test

  2. When Not Doing Homework Goes Wrong. (presidential)

  3. Passed the Test without even Studying

  4. Pov your teacher gets annoyed at you for not doing homework

  5. Tutor PUNISHES STUDENT for not doing HOMEWORK! #shorts #subscribe

  6. When you get your exam question and see this 😂

COMMENTS

  1. Students who do no work, but ace tests

    618 Likes Received: 0 Jan 18, 2014 I currently have one student (I have a few others that are similar, but a less extreme) who has around a 10% as a homework average, but he manages to get 90s on all the tests. Tests/quizzes are worth 80% of the grade in my class and homework/classwork is worth 20%.

  2. A student in my course does well on exams, but doesn't do the homework

    Depending on how he fares on a project worth a large portion of his grade, and the final exam, the missed homeworks/labs could cause his grade to be below a C, which is the required grade that a student must receive if they are to advance to the second, more advanced course [and, a C grade is also needed to get credit for the course; otherwise, ...

  3. I Study Hard, But I Still Get Bad Grades

    The solution: Sleep is when material is moved from short-term to long-term memory, so getting a good night's sleep before a test is more effective than staying up all night. Plan ahead and start studying at least 3 days before your test to avoid last minute late-night studying. Cause #5: You're Trying To Do Too Much

  4. Do well on homework, but do mediocre, or fail exam

    Some tips that got me through school: never use the solutions.. Better to try, fail, and go to office hours. exams, make a cheat sheet a few days before the test, redo old homeworks, find old tests from the professor and do them. find others in your major to compare HW and test exam questions with.

  5. What to Do If Your High Schooler Has Failing Grades

    If your teen isn't doing homework, it will be extremely difficult to pass a class. Find out if homework isn't completed, not turned in on time, or if your child doesn't understand how to do it. Are low test scores a problem? Some students struggle with test anxiety or aren't sure how to study for tests. Has your child had a lot of absences?

  6. Acing Homework But Failing Tests

    Acing Homework But Failing Tests? September 9, 2021 Does this sound familiar? Your student starts the year off strong. They have a high "A", maybe even a 100%. They are confident, excited. They think maybe this year they'll ace their math class. Then the first test rolls around and they bomb it. Their grade plummets.

  7. Good grades, bad tests scores: My daughter's story

    The evaluation revealed the problem: extremely slow processing speed. Our daughter is very smart, but it takes her more time than other students to take in, make sense of, and respond to information. We thought the solution for her was to get extended time on tests when she started high school.

  8. 14 Tips for Test Taking Success

    1. Cultivate Good Study Habits Understanding and remembering information for a test takes time, so developing good study habits long before test day is really important. Do your homework assignments carefully, and turn them in on time. Review your notes daily. Write out your own study guides.

  9. Key Lessons: What Research Says About the Value of Homework

    Too much homework may diminish its effectiveness. While research on the optimum amount of time students should spend on homework is limited, there are indications that for high school students, 1½ to 2½ hours per night is optimum. Middle school students appear to benefit from smaller amounts (less than 1 hour per night).

  10. How to Encourage Someone After Failing an Exam or Test

    2. Try to focus his/her attention on the importance of perseverance. The only real failure is to give up. Focus their attention on past successes in exams and assignments to boost their confidence. Encourage them to focus on strategies they used that gave them success.

  11. Tips for Allowing Test Retakes

    Making the Retest Policy Clear. During the first week of school, I spell out my retake policy to my high school history and government students: Aim to perform well the first time around on all assignments and assessments. Otherwise, you create more work and stress for yourself by having to keep up with new work in this and other courses while ...

  12. 40+ Strategies and Supports for Students Who Are Failing Class

    Provide a list of missing work. After talking with the student, provide a concrete list of assignments they can make up for full or partial credit.

  13. Does Homework Improve Academic Achievement?: If So, How Much Is ...

    Across five studies, the average student who did homework had a higher unit test score than the students not doing homework. However, 35 less rigorous (correlational) studies suggest little or no relationship between homework and achievement for elementary school students. The average correlation between time spent on homework and achievement ...

  14. How Teachers Are Changing Grading Practices With an Eye on Equity

    One easy way to dip a toe into more equitable grading is to get rid of extra credit. Often these assignments are things like, go to a museum and submit a report, or write an extra essay. "These things depend on a student having the time, money, resources to be able to do those," Feldman said.

  15. How to Pass a Test (with Pictures)

    1 Give yourself enough time to study for the test. Know when the test will be given so it doesn't surprise you. Come up with a schedule so you can have adequate time to study for the test. If the material is easier, you may not need as long as you will if the material is more difficult.

  16. What Does the Research Say About Testing?

    Over the past decade and a half, educators have been moving away from traditional testing —particularly multiple choice tests—and turning to hands-on projects and competency-based assessments that focus on goals such as critical thinking and mastery rather than rote memorization.

  17. Spending Too Much Time on Homework Linked to Lower Test Scores

    In surveying the homework habits of 7,725 adolescents, this study suggests that for students who average more than 100 minutes a day on homework, test scores start to decline. The...

  18. 3 Ways to Get Out of Doing Homework

    2. Look up the answers online or in the back of the book. Many textbooks have all or half of the answers listed in the back of the book (especially math books). Your teacher may have found the worksheets or questions online, too, so search for the answers online. 3. Act like you did the homework, but forgot it at home.

  19. I have an exam tomorrow but don't feel prepared

    1. Get organised. A major reason for cramming is poor organisation of time. Time-poor students should use a planner to identify the times available for study and block out those times in the ...

  20. 100% on HW but does poorly on tests/quizzes? : r/college

    16 Howie773 • 2 yr. ago I know this may sound weird but many students over study for exams , they start to 2nd guess themselves, try to be perfect, and end up doing poorly. If you have done and understand the reading and homework you probably know the material. Believe in your knowledge and don't mess yourself up with over studying 7 momotekosmo

  21. Can you pass a class by failing tests? : r/college

    If you can manage to hit an average of about 58% in tests while also 100% in quizzes and homework, you'll get to 70% in the class. (15%) homework+ (15%) quizzes + (.58x70 = 40.6%) tests = 70.6% If you aren't hitting 100% on quizzes and homework, you'll have to increase the average you need on your exams. 10 thatawkwerdthrowaway OP • 4 yr. ago

  22. Why Students Aren't Passing Tests

    Nine Reasons for Students Not Passing Tests After examining the mid-term tests as well as the quizzes, homework, and daily performance of students leading up to the exams, I suggest nine reasons for my students and other kids not passing tests. 1. Inability of Students to Do the Classwork

  23. Got A's on homework. Fail exams!! : r/HomeworkHelp

    Homework isn't really a good predictor for exam grades. If the accuracy of your homework (as opposed to just doing the homework) counts towards your grades, then this is especially true because students will be more inclined to simply look up the answer so they don't lose points on their homework.

  24. Biden administration weighs action to make it harder for migrants to

    WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is considering taking unilateral action without Congress to make it harder for migrants to pass the initial screening for asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border ...

  25. ‎Life in the UK 2024 + on the App Store

    Free handbook for life in the UK test.Take the UK citizenship exam with confidence. - Payment will be credited to your iTunes account via purchase confirmation. - Subscriptions will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours prior to the end of the current term.