No More "F's"

I read this article this morning and I am slightly torn.

At my program, we also don't give "F's." Our mentality is this, we don't' get the world's best students, and that is ok. Often times our students will "give up" and take an "F" so that they don't have to put forth any effort. Not on my time!

You have to prove to me you understand the material before we move you on to the next assignment/chapter/class, etc. In fact, our students are not allowed to move on in their work until they earn a 70% on their work. If we allowed our students to fail, they would fail on purpose just to get done with the class. I have a freshman now who keeps asking, 'Can't you just let me fail this math class so I can move on?' Heck no! If he fails it now, he's just going to have to retake it at his public high school. At most public schools the student would fail and no one would bat an eye. Thus he would be pushed along in the system having never actually learned the basic math skills. Not happening with me! I always tell my students that learning is like building a house. You have to have a good foundation before I will let you put up your walls, roof, etc.

We don't give "I's." Our kids have to keep working on their class and complete it before we will move them on. If that means we have to rewrite some of our curriculum, then we do just that. If we need to alter our teaching approach, we do just that.

I do agree with the line about how the focus is on sports and not academics in some high schools. The term is STUDENT athlete, guess which comes first in my mind? I am not against sports, don't get me wrong. But I don't think a student should be passed on in a class just so they can play in Friday's game. What are we teaching the students then? It's ok to give up on your academic work because sports will always be there for you? How many athletes are able to actually turn pro and be successful? I always tell people that I don't care if TJ get's a sports scholarship or is asked to go pro, but I will stress the importance of his education first. Take the scholarship and get a degree, then go pro. That way, should an injury occur, he will have a decent education to fall back on!

I am curious what other teachers and/or parents think about the no "F's" thing. "F's" were not acceptable in my home growing up. I remember bringing home a "C" in Algebra II and fearing the wrath of my parents. I struggled so hard in the class and was happy with a "C," but my parents knew that I wasn't grasping something and wouldn't let me move on until I had retaken that semester. So the next year I retook that semester, and I am thankful I did. I was able to keep my academic honors diploma and actually understand the material! So what do you think? Are "F's" gone forever?