#grading of students

[wazafam]

By BY STEPHANIE SAUL from U.S. in the New York Times-https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/11/us/west-point-high-school-valedictorian.html?partner=IFTTT After two white families claimed a grade calculation error, a Mississippi school added their children as co-valedictorian and co-salutatorian, reviving questions about race and equity. Two Black Students Won School Honors. Then Came the Calls for a Recount. New York Times

[wazafam]

By BY DAVID L. KIRP from Opinion in the New York Times-https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/06/opinion/stanford-admissions-campus.html?partner=IFTTT If elite colleges are serious about diversity of class and race, there’s a simple solution. Why Stanford Should Clone Itself New York Times

[freshpicknews]

British Grading Debacle Shows Pitfalls of Automating Government https://ift.tt/34gwiQ5

[themomsandthecity]

When Parents Compare Siblings, the Results Can Show On Report Cards

New research suggests that a parent's belief that one sibling is a better student than another can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. http://bit.ly/1J2GJnq

[l-more-blog]

Unless You Are Spock, Irrelevant Things Matter in Economic Behavior

People are not as rational as economists would like to believe, but there are ways to nudge people into doing what’s best for them.

Making Connections

Are you a vulcan? No? Then you probably can’t control your emotions as well as you think you can. Your emotions probably cloud your mind when trying to make a logical decision. Don’t worry you are not alone in this fault. Nearly all people suffer from this problem (except vulcans and economists of course). This is why there is a form of economics which accounts for these illogical decisions, behavioral economics.

Behavioral economics explains why students were upset with getting a 72 out of 100 and not upset when getting a 96 out of 137 when in fact the 96 is a worse grade. Most tests given to students are out of 100 points. So it is natural for students to automatically identify any grade in the 90’s as a good grade. However, they do not take into consideration that this professor ranked his tests out of 137 points instead of the normal 100. Behavioral economics basically states that people will not always make decisions that make sense and it accounts of these decisions in the economic market.

This irrationality of behavior and decisions also affects supply and demand. Because people make decisions based off of irrelevant facts we tend to buy more, eat more, and spend more on things we, logically, don't need to.

At the end of the article the writer brought up the concept of money. If allowing a tax cut to stimulate spending should the government provide the additional money to a person all at once or in multiple smaller installments? He claimed it was better to provide the money in small installments because if they were given it in a large amount they would use it to pay off debts or save it. This contrasts with the view of other economists who claim that people don’t buy large new items because they do not have the money or are scared of using their savings in case something happens and they need that money. However, if given a large sum of additional money they would finally buy that big ticket item because they don’t have to worry about missing that money later since it is something they would not normally have.

[alexisloveschuckbass]

Unless You Are Spock, Irrelevant Things Matter in Economic Behavior

People are not as rational as economists would like to believe, but there are ways to nudge people into doing what’s best for them.

                            Skill #3: Behavioral Economics

Traditional economic theories assumes that everyone is “perfectly rational.” Behavioral economics, on the other hand is defined as a method of economic analysis that applies psychological insights into human behavior to explain economic decision making. I would say Behavior economist are the rationals ones here. These behavioral economists account for the fact that people are not perfect, they procrastinate, are very impatient, and do not alway make the best decisions, or any decisions at all (I myself, am very indecisive). Behavioral economics can be used to show “irrational decisions,” like someone making an economic decision to make them happy rather than rationally thinking it through first.

Who would have known that the way a professor grades exams can affect the way a student reacts and accept the grade with no rational logic behind it. Richard H. Thaler, a professor of economics and behavioral sciences at the University of Chicago was tired of his students complaining and being upset at how hard his exams were and the grade they would receive. Their complaint was that the average score was 72 points out of 100 (a 72%). They were told by Thaler that their average numerical score on the exam had absolutely no effect on how their letter grade was calculated. The idea occurred to him that his next test would be out of 137 points as the max. This exam being harder, students received an average of 96 points on this test (a 70%). Since the average was close to 100 points (out of 137 points), students were ecstatic about their grade! And had absolutely no complains… Both exams had an average of 70-72%...Thaler explains his students as “misbehaving,” meaning their behavior made no logical sense, there was no reason for them to be happier with an exam grade that actually averaged slightly lower. 

Hmm… I think Thaler is up to something… Mr. Steuter you should start grading like this way to make your future students feel better about their grades :)

[themomsandthecity]

A First Report Card Fails to ‘Exceed Expectations’

My son's kindergarten report card brought out the worst in me. http://bit.ly/IBFC3s

[themomsandthecity]

Why Some Students Believe They Have to Cheat (and How to Teach Them Not to)

Short-term, bottom-line C.E.O. parents looking at the semester's G.P.A. are missing a chance to put the emphasis on real success. http://bit.ly/RcJpmw