Benefits of partial credit
By Jasmine Pham, Staff Writer
The zero tolerance policy for late work is commonly found in the curriculum at Fountain Valley High School. Usually established in the teacher’s syllabus at the beginning of the school year, this rule has managed to create many dilemmas for students throughout the course of the class.
Rules are implemented for a reason, but it is best to keep them progressive. If the zero tolerance for late work policy produces more stress on students, then it is best to tackle the situation at hand: allowing students to complete the assignment with a point penalty.
When zero credit is given to late work, students are often compelled to hastily pull something together before the deadline or may even result to not completing the assignment at all. Students will then miss the opportunity to fully understand the material they were taught in class because they did not feel the need to complete the given assignment.
There are numerous obstacles that could infringe on a due date. Many students work jobs outside of school or participate in school activities such as sports and clubs. Sometimes, health or urgent family matters may also be a reason. Teachers should be understanding of a student’s schedule, and should create a learning environment that encourages students to turn in their best work. With so much influence on the youth, teachers should motivate their students to achieve their full potential—not the bare minimum.
Although allowing partial credit may come with cons, its benefits outweigh the disadvantages. Giving students the opportunity to get credit for late work allows them to take more time if they need to understand the learning material at hand.
Benefits of zero credit
By Aminah Khan, Staff Writer and Photographer
Most student see zero credit as a bad thing. The thought of a teacher taking away all of the points for an assignment may seem like a terrible idea at first. However, zero credit may be the best solution to assure that students are completing their homework and cutting back on procrastination habits.
The “credit or no credit” system is a great way to keep students on top of all of their assignments because I often find myself waiting up until the last minute to complete assignments. The fact that students know that they can still receive partial credit makes them unmotivated to do assignments because they know that if they turn in an assignment late, the consequences are not that harsh.
However in the real world, this is not the case. Deadlines are a lot more important and students need to get into the habit of completing assignments on time. A genuine excuse for not completing an assignment should be acceptable and credit should be given, but students need to understand that consequences they will earn in the real world will be worse.
If a student submits work late and receives zero credit for the assignment, they will realize how damaging a zero can be for their grade. In turn, they will work more diligently to complete all of their assignments on time. This means that they will be less likely to leave projects and submissions until the last moment because of the fear of receiving a zero for late submission.
Therefore, the zero credit policy not only prepares students to be better off in the real world, it also reduces procrastination habits among students.
