The Damage of a D

The letter grade of “D” is damaging to our students and to the education system. What does a “D” communicate? It communicates to many students that they can move on to the next course or that they’ve earned just enough credit to graduate. But are they ready to move on? The “D” grade grants permission, so certainly they must be ready. Or are they? 

Of course this debate would be unnecessary if we weren’t required to give letter grades in the first place, but we will take a few steps back and focus on what is reality in our schools - we give letter grades at least twice a year. In 2008, Mount Olive Schools, in New Jersey, banned D’s from being issued to students. As, Bs, Cs, and Fs were all still given but the school board approved a no D policy with parent support.  Why? Laurie Reynolds, Mount Olive’s superintendent, states for the New York Times, “D’s are throwaway grades. No one wants to hire a D anything (in society), so why do we have D students and give them credit for it?” Her point is clear - a D grade earns students credit and moves them onto the next course or grade-level and they are more often than not under-prepared to be successful. 

Consider prerequisites for college courses or even for college admission. Universities in California will not admit students that received a D in any core class such as algebra. The community college in my hometown Chicago suburb requires all students that earned a D in geometry to retake the course at the college for no credit before taking a credit-bearing math class - and that’s for an associates degree. If this is the reality for our graduating seniors, should issuing D’s be reconsidered in our high schools?

Share you comments and thoughts below, email Aric and Megan at stemflowerlc@gmail.com or visit stemandflowerlearning.com.

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STEM and Flower Learning Consultants